1004/1 - Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) say: “Allah does not listen to anything as He does to a prophet with a beautiful voice, reciting the Qur’an aloud pleasantly.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
“Allah listens” here indicates that He is pleased with it and accepts it.
1) It points out the merit of reciting the Qur’an with a pleasant voice, for Allah Almighty likes to listens to it being recited by His servant.
2) Reciting the Qur’an with a pleasant voice includes the following:
Improving the performance, articulating every letter properly,
and improving the tone of the voice. Both are required and commendable, without affectation.
3) We should follow the example of the prophets (peace be upon them) in terms of reciting the Qur’an with a good performance, a pleasant voice, and an audible recitation.
1005/2 - Abu Mūsa al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: “You have been endowed with one of the melodious voices of the family of Dāwūd (David).” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
In a version narrated by Muslim: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: “If you only saw me while I was listening to your recitation last night!”
1) It points out the merit of the Companion Abu Mūsa al-Ash‘ari, as the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) praised him by saying that Allah Almighty endowed him with a melodious voice like that of Prophet David (peace be upon him).
2) It is recommended to recite the Qur’an with a pleasant voice so that the listener would enjoy the sweetness of the words of Allah. This attracts people to the Qur’an and it affects them. Indeed, a pleasant voice adds to the beauty of the Qur’an.
3) It is permissible to refer to someone by saying “the family of so-and-so”. His words “the family of David” refer to David himself.
1006/3 - Al-Barā’ ibn ‘Āzib (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported: “I heard the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) reciting Sūrat at-Tīn in the ‘Ishā’ prayer, and I never heard anyone with a voice more pleasant than him.” [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
1) Of all people, the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) had the pleasantest voice and the best performance in reciting the Qur’an.
2) It is acceptable to sometimes recite short Surahs in the ‘Ishā’ prayer, although the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) would mostly recite in the ‘Ishā’ prayer such Surahs as Al-A‘la and Al-Ghāshiyah.
1007/4 - Abu Lubābah Bashīr ibn ‘Abd al-Mundhir (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever does not recite the Qur’an with a melodious voice is not one of us.” [Narrated by Abu Dāwūd, with a good Isnād] “With a melodious voice” means to improve the voice by making it more pleasant when reciting the Qur’an.
1) It is part of the Prophet’s guidance to recite the Qur’an with a melodious voice. Only a fortunate person would be keen to adhere to the Prophetic guidance at all times.
2) If a person seeks guidance from other than the Qur’an, Allah will lead him astray. This is one of the possible meanings of the Arabic verb 'yataghanna' used in the Hadīth. It may mean: to recite with a melodious voice, and it may also mean: to regard something as sufficient. In light of this, another possible translation of the Hadīth would be: “Whoever does not regard the Qur’an as sufficient for him...”
In his Sahīh, Imām Al-Bukhāri gave the following title to a chapter: Whoever does not recite the Qur’an with a melodious voice, and the verse: {And is it not sufficient for them that We revealed to you the Book which is recited to them?} [Surat al-‘Ankabūt: 51] Then, he cited the Hadīth reported by Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) in which the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Allah does not listen to anything as he does to the prophet 'yataghanna' with the Qur’an.” Sufyān said: “This means that he regards it as sufficient.”
This interpretation is one of the valuables of the Fiqh of our predecessors in understanding the texts. Their hearts were filled with joy over the revelation sent down by Allah Almighty for the life of this Ummah. {And those to whom We have given the Scripture rejoice at what has been revealed to you.} [Surat ar-Ra‘d: 36] They believed with certitude that the revelation - the Qur’an and Sunnah - is adequate and sufficient for all people’s affairs and interests. How would we replace this divine revelation with religious innovations and personal inclinations? The erudite scholar Ibn Al-Qayyim was right when he said in his poem the Nūniyyah (what means):
1008/5 - Ibn Mas‘ūd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to me: “Recite the Qur’an to me.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, shall I recite to you while it has been revealed to you?” He said: “I like to hear it being recited by others.” So, I recited to him Sūrat an-Nisā’ until I reached the verse that says: {So how [will it be] when We bring from every nation a witness and We bring you against these [people] as a witness?} [Surat an-Nisā’: 41] Thereupon, he said: “Enough now.” I turned to him and behold! His eyes were shedding tears. [Narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim]
1) It proclaims the blessing of the Qur’an and that it benefits both the reciter and the listener.
2) It is permissible for a person to ask another to recite the Qur’an to him, even if the former is more knowledgeable and higher in rank.
3) A listener to the Qur’an may be more able than the reciter to ponder its meanings. Hence, it is said that the reciter is a milker and the listener is a drinker.
4) Part of the Prophet’s guidance is to be moved by listening to the Qur’an recitation and weeping out of fear from Allah Almighty. That is the way of the believer: His heart becomes humble and his eyes shed tears when he hears the noble Qur’an.
According to the Sunnah, when the listener feels he had enough of the Qur’an recitation, he should say to the reciter: “Hasbuk” (Enough). This is what the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) said to Ibn Mas‘ūd. As for saying “Sadaq Allahu al-‘Azhīm” (Allah Almighty speaks the truth), which many people commonly say (to tell the reciter to stop), it contradicts the Sunnah. Even though its meaning is true, this is not the situation in which to say it. Indeed, we should follow the Prophet’s guidance, which is the best of guidance.