The Tajwidi Qurʾan

A guide for non-Arabic readers to the pronunciation of the original text and to understanding some of the meanings revealed in the Glorious Qurʾān.

This translation and transliteration of the Qurʾān makes it easy for the learner or non-Arabic reader to pronounce the sounds of the Words of Allāh while cross-checking with the clear Arabic text. For English speakers, new Muslims and students, this approach to the Qur'an is a great blessing. It enables the reader to enunciate the sounds of the Arabic, while having the translation in English directly underneath each transliterated ʾāyāt allows to begin connecting the meaning to the sound and to the Arabic text on the facing page.

This is the traditional beginning for all Qurʾānic studies, what everybody learns for ṣalāh, the thirtieth part of the Qurʾān from sūrah 78 to sūrah 114, including most of the early Makkan sūrahs. Of all the Qurʾān, these sūrahs are most cognate to the time in which we live, since these sūrahs came in the midst of the jāhilīyyah and emphasize knowing the presence of Allāh and the ultimate end of life. Traditionally, studying these sūrahs allows beginners to increase the diversity of the sūrahs which can be used in their ṣalāt.

It is customary in parts of the ʾIslāmic world to make collections of different Qurʾānic chapters which can easily be carried with one and read in rotation after each ṣalāh, beginning with ṣalātul-l-fajr. The contents of these collections are not entirely consistent, and one will sometimes find slightly different arrangements, usually with sūrah Yā Sīīīn or sūrah Kahf replacing surat-al-Fatḥ.

Al-Bukḫari reported on the authority of ‘Aslam that the Prophet ﷺ said, “Tonight there has been revealed to me a sūrah which is dearer to me than whatever the sun shines upon.” Then he recited, “’inna fataḥna laka fatḥam mubina” ("Truly We have given you a manifest victory") (al-Fatḥ 48:1). Al-Bayhaqi reported on the authority of ʾibn Masʿūd that the Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever reads sūrah al-Wāqiʿah every night shall never be afflicted by starvation.’ Aḥmad and Abu Dāwūd reported on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet ﷺ said, “There is in the Qurʾān a sūrah of thirty ʾāyāt which intercedes for the person until he is forgiven. This is the sūrah (that begins) "tabaraka-l-ladhi” (al-Mulk 67:1). These ahaditḫ are direct comments that the Prophet ﷺ made on three of the five gems included in this collection. Of the other two, sūrah Raḥman describes in detail the great bounties of Allāh (“Which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?”), the variety and beauty of the creation, and the fact that all of these things shall perish but the Face of our Lord, expressing the Unity within duality and diversity. Sūrah Muzzammil, the second sūrah revealed, describes the extra importance of the night prayer. In it the recital of Qurʾān and the ṣalāt are enjoined on the people.

It is hoped that this traditional collection will be useful for removing the rust which attaches itself to all of our hearts.

The Prophet ﷺ remarked that whoever recites once a day the thirty-three verses known as ʾāyātu-l-Ḥirz (Signs of Protection) will be safe from all miseries, beasts and thieves and that, furthermore, these verses contain the cure of all diseases. The efficacy of these verses has been described by many. It is evident that it is very useful to recite them, and it is said that they can also guard against the dangers of war. These ʾāyāt are also known as “The Thirty-Three Verses.”

Abi Amama narrated that the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ , peace and blessings be upon him and his family, said, “The most magnificent Name of Allāh is sealed within the Verse of the Throne. Whoever calls by it — his prayers will surely be answered.” (Abu Dawūd)

Imām Jaʿfar aṣ-Ṣādiq (ʿalayhi-s-salām), said:“These two [al-kursi wa-l-ʿarsḫ] are two of the greatest doors to the Invisible World. They are themselves invisible, and intimately connected in the Invisible; the Kursi is the Hidden Door that contains the Knowledge of How, of Existence, of Quantity, of Limit, of Where, of Volition and of the Attribute of Will; it also contains the Knowledge of Words, of Movements, and of Immobility, as well as the Knowledge of the Return and of the Origin.”

This is a collection of six ʾāyāt that mention healing. It is recommended to read them as part of your daily recitations of the Qurʾān or in the ṣalāh.

Al-Bayhaqi reported on the authority of ‘ibn Masʿūd that the Prophet ﷺ said, “Whoever reads sūrah al-Waqi’ah every night shall never be afflicted by starvation."

Many merits of this sūrah are mentioned in the ʾahaditḫ. Here is a list of some of them. The Prophet ﷺ said, “My heart desires that Sūrah Yā Sīīīn should be present in the heart of everyone in my Ummah.” “In the Qurʾān is a chapter that intercedes for its reader and seeks forgiveness for its listeners. This chapter is Yā Sīīīn.” “Yā Sīīīn is good for whatever purpose it is read.”

The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ also said, “Everything has a heart and the Heart of the Qurʾān is Yā Sīīīn. Allāh will record anyone who recites Yā Sīīīn as having recited the entire Qurʾān ten times.” “In the Qurʾḫān is a chapter that intercedes for its reader and seeks forgiveness for its listeners. This chapter is Yā Sīīīn.” He ﷺ also said, “Whoever reads Sūrah Yā Sīīīn solely for the pleasure of Allāh, all his earlier sins are forgiven. Therefore make it a practice of reading this sūrah over your dead ones.” And he ﷺ said, “Whoever reads Yā Sīīīn at the beginning of the day has all his needs for that day fulfilled.”

Allāh, through the Angel Jibrīl(ʿalayhi-s-salām), says to Maryam, peace be upon her, in the Qurʾān,”Oh Maryam, truly Allāh has chosen you and made you pure and raised you above the women of all the worlds.” (Al-ʾImrān 3:42) In this sūrah her story and that of her son ‘Isā, peace upon him, is more fully developed. Together with the story of Zakariyya and his son Yaḥya, the precursor of ‘Isa, peace upon them all, it occupies about one-third of the whole sūrah and is re-echoed towards its end in ʾāyāts 88 through 91. Maryam, peace upon her, was a siddiqah, the righteous, those next to the prophets in purity, understanding, and closeness to Allāh. She was dedicated to Allāh before birth, and raised in the temple, magnetized by every breath and action to intimacy to the Source of Divine Illumination. Her spiritual vigilance and spiritual resolve strengthened her in carrying in her own body the Word of Allāh, ʿIsā, peace upon him. She is known to us as one of the four perfect women, the queens of Paradise.

According to one haditḫ, the Messengerﷺ said, “Allāh recited Sūrah Yā Sīīīn and Sūrah Ṭā Hā one thousand years before the creation of Heaven and Earth, and on hearing this the angels said, “Blessings for the community (ummah) to whom the Qurʾān will be revealed and blessings for the hearts which will bear it and blessing is for the tongues that will recite it.”

In this sūrah is the story of Mūsa, peace be upon him, in the crisis of his life when he came into his prophethood and received the Order from Allāh to return to Egypt with his brother. It also describes his relations with his mother, and how he came to be brought up in the household of his arch-enemy the Pharoah and hence learned many things from Egyptian wisdom and custom that would serve his mission later in life when he and Harūn, peace be upon him, confronted Pharoah and his magicians, and when he led his people across the sea and into the desert. In another place it describes how the people of Mūsa, peace be upon him, were stirred up by the Samiri in their wish for a visible idol, and how Mūsa, peace be upon him, returned to them, broke the calf, and banished its maker. In this sūrah also is the description of the Fall of Adam and his wife, their repentance and the promise given to them of guidance from Allāh.