| Tajweed Thajweed
means to improve, to make better. Thajweed
of the Holy Qur-an means the knowledge and application of the rules of recitation
so the reading is as the recitation of the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad S.
How can you learn tajweed?
Tajweed and its application can only be learned with a qualified
teacher.
The rules themselves can be studied independently, but their correct
application can only be done by listening to, reciting to, and being corrected
by, a qualified teacher of the Qur’an.
Do all Arabs know how to recite the Qur’an with proper tajweed?
Unfortunately many do not know proper tajweed. In the days of the
Prophet, peace and blessing upon him, there was no need for the study of tajweed
because they talked with what is now known as tajweed; in other words, it was
natural for them. Now, over 14 centuries later, colloquial Arabic has changed
radically from the classical Arabic with which the Qur’an was revealed, and Arabs
have to study tajweed, just in the same way that non-Arabs do.
I want to learn to recite the Qur’an with proper tajweed, but don’t
know where to start.
The first step is finding a qualified Qur’an teacher who will listen
to you and point out your mistakes, and help you practice fixing them. You will
need to learn the Arabic letters and vowels too.
What if there aren’t any qualified teachers where I live?
Then your task is going to be a little harder, but certainly not
impossible. You need to work with tapes of good reciters, for example, Sheikh
Abdullah Basfar, or Sheikh Mohammed Hosary. There are sets available on the Internet
and in Islamic stores that are called “mu’alm”. In these sets, the reciter reads
a phrase, and then there is a blank space on the tape, allowing the student to
repeat what the reciter has just read.
You will need to work on the pronunciation of letters by getting
a description of the articulation points and practice placing your tongue, lips,
or finding the place in your throat where the letter is articulated from, and
compare it to the letter when recited by the Sheikh.
Common Tajweed Mistakes
The
two most common tajweed mistakes made by non-Arabs are the timings of the vowels,
and medd letters, and in the articulation points of the letters. The first type
of mistake has been addressed in the first of what will be, insha’ Allah many
tidbits; please see the tidbit lesson link. The second type of mistake, that in
the letters themselves, is a major problem that needs to be addressed by all non-Arabs,
whether they are Westerners, Europeans, Africans, from the Indo Pakistani subcontinent,
or from Eastern Asia. At the outset, the letters that occur in Arabic that are
not common in other languages would be what one would imagine to be a problem,
but in fact, there are letters in Arabic that are similar to other languages,
but do not share the same articulation points with their counterparts.
The letters that occur in Arabic,
that are not common in other languages are:
The articulation points of all
the Arabic letters will be described later, insha’Allah in a future tidbit lesson.
Letters
that have similar sounds in other languages, but in fact have different articulation
points are:
The first two (starting from the right), use the tip of the tongue
from the top side and what lies opposite from the tip of the tongue from the gum
line of the two top front incisors. Many different languages have similar letters,
as in English there is “d” and “t”, but they articulate these letters at a posterior
position in the mouth from what the Arabs use as an articulation point. The result
is an incorrect pronunciation of these letters when reading Qur’an.
The next two letters also are used in other languages. Most notably
the kaf in Arabic is similar to the “k” in English. Many languages pronounce this
letter farther back in the mouth than the correct Arabic position. The deep part
of the tongue meets up with the hard palate in Arabic to pronounce this letter,
not the soft palate, as many mistakenly use.
The ra’ and lam are two letters that non-Arabs have some difficulty
in pronouncing correctly. The ra’ uses the tip of the tongue and the top of the
tip and the gums of the two top incisors, but the trick to the ra’ is actually
hitting the gum. Many Muslims try to pronounce the ra’ without touching the tongue
to the gum. Some mistakenly use the throat, like the French do in the French “r”.
The Arabic lam has the widest use of the tongue of any other letters, but uses
only the end of the sides of the tongue until it ends at the tip, which then hits
the gums of the front upper eight teeth.
The above are just brief summaries of the letters, and as stated
before, insha’ Allah soon a tidbit lesson will be posted with all the articulation
points discussed in detail.
A third mistake incurred by Arabs and non-Arabs alike is in making
proper stops and starts. There is more than one aspect to this mistake. The first
aspect is that the proper way to stop on a word is by putting a sukoon, or absence
of a vowel on the last letter of the word. It is not allowed to stop using the
harakah, or vowel on the last letter of the word. The second aspect of stopping
is that of stopping at a place that doesn’t contradict the meaning intended by
Allah, the Exalted. The same mistake can occur when starting up after stopping
and taking a breath. One cannot just start on the next word arbitrarily, instead
the meaning needs to be considered, and the start should be on a word that portrays
the correct and complete meaning, even if the reciter needs to go back two or
three words. The stop and start will be explained in detail, insha’ Allah in future
tidbit lessons.
One note that is of utmost importance. It is vital that the Muslim
learn the Arabic letters and vowels and recite the Qur’an using them, NOT a transliteration.
Transliterations do not take into account the various letters that sound similar
to the untrained ear, but are very different in pronunciation. The Qur’an is the
word of Allah, revealed to man as a guidance, and we have to be extremely careful
to read it, as best we can, with proper pronunciation. Reading a transliteration
can lead to changing the meaning of the Arabic Qur’an by mispronouncing letters.
Manners when reading the Qur'an
Manners of the Heart
A. Understanding of the origin of the words
This is an indication to the greatness of the words being read,
and the bounty of Allah; Glorified is He, to His creation when He addressed His
creation with these words.
B. Putting into the heart the understanding that these are not
the words of man.
Through
this the reader should think about the characteristics of Allah the Exalted.
C. Presence of the heart while reading.
Through this the reader should throw away other thoughts while
reading the Qur’an.
D. Pondering the meaning.
There
is less reward in reciting the Qur'an without understanding the meaning. The Qur'an
was revealed for guidance and this can be achieved through recitation accompanied
with pondering.
E. Understanding the meaning.
This
means interacting and reacting to every verse according to what is proper for
it.
F. Individualization
This
means that the reader feels that every message in the Qur’an is meant especially
for him personally.
External Manners for reading the Qur’an
A.
Purity
of body and clothes and place.
Using sawak.
B.
Facing
the Qiblah.
C.
Seeking
refuge from rejected Satan and reading the basmalah.
Not reading when yawning.
D.
Avoiding
cutting off reading to talk with people.
E.
Stopping
at a verse of warning and seeking protection with Allah, and stopping at a verse
of mercy and asking The Merciful for His Bounty.
F.
Humbleness
and crying when reading.
Imam An-Nawwawi may Allah be Merciful to him said: Crying when
reading the Qur’an is a characteristic of those who know Allah (know Him through
His names and Characteristics) and the feelings of the righteous.
PRINCIPLES OF TAJWEED
One who wishes to learn a science needs to know its principles so that he will
gain insight into the sought science. There are several principles in the science
of tajweed that should be understood:
1. Its definition By linguistic definition: Betterment
Applied definition:
Articulating every letter from its articulation point and giving the letter its
rights and dues of characteristics. Rights
of the letters are its required characteristics that never leave it. The dues
of the letters are its presented characteristics that are present in it some of
the time, and not present at other times. i.e. the medd, idgham
2. Its formation The
words of the Glorious Qur'an and some said Honorable Hadiths also. 3.
Its fruits It
is preserving the tongue from mistakes in pronunciation of the Glorious Qur’an
during reading.
4. Its precedence It
is one of the most honored of sciences and one of the best of them due to its
relation to Allah’s words.
5. Its place within the sciences It
is one of the Islamic Law sciences that are related to the Glorious Qur'an.
6. Its founder The
rule setter from the practical point of view is the Messenger of Allah
because the Qur’an was revealed to him from Allah, the most High, with tajweed,
and he, was instructed on it from the Trustworthy, Jibreel, peace be upon him,
and taught it to his companions, who then taught it to their followers and so
on until it came to us by these chains. The rule setters from the scientific point
of view are the scholars of Qur’anic sciences, such as Abu ‘Ubaid Al-Qasim bin
Sallaam.
7. Its precept Knowledge
of tajweed is fardh kifayaah, meaning some of the Muslim community must know it,
and its application is fardh ‘ain, required by all Muslims (men and women) who
have the complete Qur’an or part of it memorized, even if only one surah.
8. Reasons for its rules Guarding
the Glorious Qur'an and preserving it from distortion. The Arabs mixed with non-Arabs
after the spread of Islam, and the Muslims feared that the Arab tongue would become
corrupted with this intermixing. It then became mandatory for rules to be put
down that would preserve the recitation of the Qur’an from mistakes, and guarantee
the reader of the Qur’an integrity of pronunciation.
9. Its principles The
knowledge of tajweed is contingent on four matters: 1.
Knowledge of the articulation points of the letters 2.
Knowledge of the characteristics of the letters 3.
Knowledge of what rules change in the letters due to the order of letters 4.
Exercising the tongue and a lot of repetition. | 
