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The Quran (lit. a “reading” or “recitation”) is distinct
from the recorded sayings and deeds (Sunnah) of the Prophet Muhammad, which are
instead preserved in a separate set of literature collectively called the
“Ahadeeth” (lit. “news”; “report”; or “narration”).
Upon receiving revelation, the Prophet engaged himself in
the duty of conveying the message to his Companions through reciting the exact
words he heard in their exact order. This is evident in his inclusion of
even the words of God which were directed specifically to him, for example: “Qul”
(“Say [to the people, O Muhammad]”). The Quran’s rhythmic style and
eloquent expression make it easy to memorize. Indeed, God describes this
as one of its essential qualities for preservation and remembrance (Q. 44:58;
54:17, 22, 32, 40), particularly in an Arab society which prided itself on
orations of lengthy pieces of poetry. Michael Zwettler notes that:
“in ancient times, when writing was scarcely used, memory
and oral transmission was exercised and strengthened to a degree now almost
unknown.”[2]
Large portions of the revelation were thus easily memorized
by a large number of people in the community of the Prophet.
The Prophet encouraged his Companions to learn each verse
that was revealed and transmit it to others.[3] The Quran was also required
to be recited regularly as an act of worship, especially during the daily
meditative prayers (salah). Through these means, many repeatedly heard
passages from the revelation recited to them, memorized them and used them in
prayer. The entire Quran was memorized verbatim (word for word) by some
of the Prophet’s Companions. Among them were Zaid ibn Thabit, Ubayy ibn
Ka’b, Muadh ibn Jabal, and Abu Zaid.[4]
Not only were the words of the Quran memorized, but also
their pronunciation, later which formed into a science in itself called
Tajweed. This science meticulously elucidates how each letter is to be pronounced,
as well as the word as a whole, both in context of other letters and
words. Today, we can find people of all different languages able to
recite the Quran as if they are Arabs themselves, living during the time of the
Prophet.
Furthermore, the sequence or order of the Quran was arranged
by the Prophet himself and was also well-known to the Companions.[5] Each Ramadan, the Prophet
would repeat after the angel Gabriel (reciting) the entire Quran in its exact
order as far as it had been revealed, while in the presence of a number of his
Companions.[6] In the year of his death, he
recited it twice.[7] Thereby, the order of
verses in each chapter and the order of the chapters became reinforced in the
memories of each of the Companions present.
As the Companions spread out to various provinces with
different populations, they took their recitations with them in order to
instruct others.[8] In this way, the same Quran
became widely retained in the memories of many people across vast and diverse
areas of land.
Indeed, memorization of the Quran emerged into a continuous
tradition across the centuries, with centers/schools for memorization being
established across the Muslim world.[9] In these schools, students
learn and memorize the Quran along with its Tajweed, at the feet of a master
who in turn acquired the knowledge from his teacher, an ‘un-broken chain’ going
all the way back to the Prophet of God. The process usually takes 3-6
years. After mastery is achieved and the recitation checked for lack of
errors, a person is granted a formal license (ijaza) certifying she has
mastered the rules of recitation and can now recite the Quran the way it was
recited by Muhammad, the Prophet of God.
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The image is a typical license (ijaza) issued at the end of
perfecting Quran recitation certifying a reciter’s unbroken chain of
instructors going back to the Prophet of Islam. The above image is the ijaza certificate
of Qari Mishari bin Rashid al-Afasy, well known reciter from Kuwait , issued
by Sheikh Ahmad al-Ziyyat. Image courtesy of (http://www.alafasy.com.)
A.T. Welch, a non-Muslim orientalist, writes:
“For Muslims the Quran is much more than scripture or sacred
literature in the usual Western sense. Its primary significance for the
vast majority through the centuries has been in its oral form, the form in
which it first appeared, as the “recitation” chanted by Muhammad to his
followers over a period of about twenty years… The revelations were memorized
by some of Muhammad’s followers during his lifetime, and the oral tradition
that was thus established has had a continuous history ever since, in some ways
independent of, and superior to, the written Quran… Through the centuries the
oral tradition of the entire Quran has been maintained by the professional
reciters (qurraa). Until recently, the significance of the recited Quran
has seldom been fully appreciated in the West.”[10]
The Quran is perhaps the only book, religious or secular,
that has been memorized completely by millions of people.[11] Leading orientalist Kenneth
Cragg reflects that:
“…this phenomenon of Quranic recital means that the text has
traversed the centuries in an unbroken living sequence of devotion. It
cannot, therefore, be handled as an antiquarian thing, nor as a historical
document out of a distant past. The fact of hifdh (Quranic memorization)
has made the Quran a present possession through all the lapse of Muslim time
and given it a human currency in every generation, never allowing its
relegation to a bare authority for reference alone.”[12]
Footnotes:
[2] Michael
Zwettler, The Oral Tradition of Classical Arabic Poetry, Ohio State Press,
1978, p.14.
[3] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari Vol.6, Hadith No.546.
[4] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari Vol.6, Hadith No.525.
[5] Ahmad
von Denffer, Ulum al-Quran, The Islamic Foundation ,
UK , 1983, p.41-42; Arthur
Jeffery, Materials for the History of the Text of the Quran, Leiden : Brill, 1937, p.31.
[6] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari Vol.6, Hadith No.519.
[7] Saheeh
Al-Bukhari Vol.6, Hadith Nos.518 & 520.
[9] Labib
as-Said, The Recited Koran, translated by Morroe Berger, A. Rauf, and Bernard
Weiss, Princeton: The Darwin Press, 1975, p.59.
[10] The
Encyclopedia of Islam, ‘The Quran in Muslim Life and Thought.’
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