The Qur’an earns its reciter a good deed for every letter, multiplied tenfold; it will come on the Day of Resurrection to intercede for its companions, and the best of people are those who learn it and teach it. Those who gather to recite and study it receive tranquillity, mercy and the company of angels; its people are the people of Allah, whom He raises in this world and the next.
The Qur’an is the Speech of Allah, revealed to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in wording and meaning through Gabriel, written in the mushafs, transmitted by mass transmission (tawatur), whose recitation is an act of worship, inimitable even in a single surah, opening with Al-Fatihah and closing with An-Nas. It is the first source of Islamic law; Allah has undertaken to preserve it from any alteration and revealed it to bring people out of darkness into light.
Whoever recites the Qur’an receives a good deed for every letter, and a good deed is multiplied tenfold; “Alif-Lam-Mim” counts as three letters, not one.
The Qur’an will come on the Day of Resurrection to intercede for its companions; it will be brought with its people who acted upon it, preceded by Al-Baqarah and Ali ’Imran pleading for their reciter.
The Prophet ﷺ said: “The best of you is the one who learns the Qur’an and teaches it.” Because of this hadith, Abu Abd ar-Rahman as-Sulami taught the Qur’an for forty years in the mosque of Kufa; and Sufyan ath-Thawri, asked whether he preferred a military expedition or reciting the Qur’an, answered: reciting the Qur’an.
No people gather to recite the Book of Allah and study it together but tranquillity descends upon them, mercy covers them, the angels surround them and Allah mentions them among those with Him; this merit is not limited to the mosque, though gathering there is better.
The one who recites the Qur’an proficiently will be with the noble, righteous scribes, and the one who stumbles over it, finding it hard, will have two rewards.
The people of the Qur’an are the people of Allah and His elect; the believer who recites the Qur’an is like a citron, pleasant in scent and sweet in taste; and none may be envied except a man to whom Allah gave the Qur’an and who stands with it in the hours of night and day.
Authentic (sahih)Anas ibn Malik Authentic (sahih)Al-Bukhari and Muslim Authentic (sahih)Al-Bukhari and Muslim
By this Book Allah raises some peoples and lowers others; and on the Day of Resurrection the companion of the Qur’an will be told: “Recite, rise and recite slowly: your rank is at the last verse you recite.”
Authentic (sahih)Muslim Authentic (sahih)Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi
The Prophet ﷺ loved to hear the Qur’an from someone else: he listened to Ibn Mas’ud until his eyes shed tears. An-Nawawi concludes that it is recommended to listen to recitation, pay attention, weep and reflect; and when His verses are recited to the believers, their faith increases.
Arabic text, translation, reference and authenticity grade of each hadith.
منْ قرأَ حرْفاً مِنْ كتاب اللَّهِ فلَهُ حسنَةٌ، والحسنَةُ بِعشرِ أَمثَالِهَا لا أَقول: الم حَرفٌ، وَلكِن: أَلِفٌ حرْفٌ، ولامٌ حرْفٌ، ومِيَمٌ حرْفٌ
“Whoever recites a letter of the Book of Allah receives a good deed, and a good deed is multiplied tenfold. I do not say that ‘Alif-Lam-Mim’ is one letter: Alif is a letter, Lam is a letter and Mim is a letter.”
اقْرَؤُا القُرْآنَ فإِنَّهُ يَأْتي يَوْم القيامةِ شَفِيعاً لأصْحابِهِ
“Recite the Qur’an, for it will come on the Day of Resurrection as an intercessor for its companions.”
يُؤْتى يوْمَ القِيامةِ بالْقُرْآنِ وَأَهْلِهِ الذِين كانُوا يعْمَلُونَ بِهِ في الدُّنيَا تَقدُمهُ سورة البقرة وَ آل عمران، تحَاجَّانِ عَنْ صاحِبِهِمَا
“On the Day of Resurrection the Qur’an will be brought with its people who acted upon it in this world, preceded by Surah Al-Baqarah and Ali ’Imran, pleading on behalf of their companion.”
خَيركُم مَنْ تَعَلَّمَ القُرْآنَ وَعلَّمهُ
“The best of you is the one who learns the Qur’an and teaches it.”
وما اجتمع قوم في بيت من بيوت الله يتلون كتاب الله ويتدارسونه بينهم إلا نزلت عليهم السكينة، وغشيتهم الرحمة، وحفَّتهم الملائكة، وذكرهم الله فيمن عنده
“No people gather in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it together, but tranquillity descends upon them, mercy covers them, the angels surround them and Allah mentions them among those who are with Him.”
الَّذِي يَقرَأُ القُرْآنَ وَهُو ماهِرٌ بِهِ معَ السَّفَرةِ الكرَامِ البررَةِ، والذي يقرَأُ القُرْآنَ ويتَتَعْتَعُ فِيهِ وَهُو عليهِ شَاقٌّ له أجْران
“The one who recites the Qur’an proficiently will be with the noble, righteous scribes (the angels); and the one who recites it stumbling, finding it hard, will have two rewards.”
مثَلُ المؤمنِ الَّذِي يقْرَأُ القرآنَ مثلُ الأُتْرُجَّةِ: ريحهَا طَيِّبٌ وطَعمُهَا حلْوٌ، ومثَلُ المؤمنِ الَّذي لا يَقْرَأُ القُرْآنَ كَمثَلِ التَّمرةِ: لا رِيح لهَا وطعْمُهَا حلْوٌ، ومثَلُ المُنَافِق الذي يَقْرَأُ القرْآنَ كَمثَلِ الرِّيحانَةِ: رِيحها طَيّبٌ وطَعْمُهَا مرُّ، ومَثَلُ المُنَافِقِ الذي لا يَقْرَأُ القرآنَ كَمَثلِ الحَنْظَلَةِ: لَيْسَ لَها رِيحٌ وَطَعمُهَا مُرٌّ
“The believer who recites the Qur’an is like a citron: its scent is pleasant and its taste is sweet. The believer who does not recite the Qur’an is like a date: it has no scent but its taste is sweet. The hypocrite who recites the Qur’an is like basil: its scent is pleasant but its taste is bitter. And the hypocrite who does not recite the Qur’an is like the colocynth: it has no scent and its taste is bitter.”
إن لله تعالى أهلين من الناس. قالوا: يا رسول الله من هم؟ قال: هم أهل القران أهل الله وخاصته
“Allah has people of His own among mankind.” They asked: “O Messenger of Allah, who are they?” He said: “They are the people of the Qur’an, the people of Allah and His elect.”
إِنَّ اللَّه يرفَعُ بِهذَا الكتاب أَقواماً ويضَعُ بِهِ آخَرين
“By this Book Allah raises some peoples and lowers others.”
يُقَالُ لِصاحبِ القرآن: اقْرأْ وَارْتَقِ وَرَتِّلْ كَما كُنْتَ تُرَتِّلُ في الدُّنْيَا، فَإنَّ منْزِلَتَكَ عِنْد آخِرِ آيةٍ تَقْرَؤُهَا
“It will be said to the companion of the Qur’an: Recite and rise, and recite slowly as you used to recite in the world, for your rank will be at the last verse you recite.”
قال لي رسول الله ﷺ: اقرأ عليَّ. قلت: يا رسول الله: أقرأ عليك وعليك أنزل؟ قال: نعم إني أحب أن أسمعه من غيري. فقرأت سورة النساء حتى أتيت إلى هذه الآية ﴿فَكَيْفَ إِذَا جِئْنَا مِنْ كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِيدٍ وَجِئْنَا بِكَ عَلَى هَؤُلاءِ شَهِيدًا﴾ قال: حسبك. فالتفتُّ إليه، فإذا عيناه تذرفان
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to me: “Recite to me.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, shall I recite to you when it was revealed to you?” He said: “Yes, I love to hear it from someone else.” I recited Surah An-Nisa until I reached this verse: “How will it be when We bring from every nation a witness, and bring you as a witness over these?” He said: “That is enough.” I turned to him and his eyes were shedding tears.
لا حَسَدَ إلا في اثنَتَيْن: رجُلٌ آتَاهُ اللَّه القُرآنَ، فهوَ يقومُ بِهِ آناءَ اللَّيلِ وآنَاءَ النَّهَارِ، وَرجُلٌ آتَاهُ اللَّه مالا، فهُو يُنْفِقهُ آنَاءَ اللَّيْلِ وَآنَاءَ النهارِ
“There is no envy except in two cases: a man to whom Allah has given the Qur’an and who stands with it in the hours of the night and the day, and a man to whom Allah has given wealth and who spends it in the hours of the night and the day.”
One line per surah. A solid dot marks an authentic hadith specific to it.
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The full Arabic text: introduction, virtues, themes, and a study of the chain and authenticity of each hadith.
