Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
According to Ibn Al-Jazari in Al-Nashr, Ijazah for partial Quran recitation is only valid if the Sanad is authentic, unbroken, and meets three conditions: (1) sound transmission by trustworthy narrators, (2) conformity with the Uthmanic script, and (3) linguistic validity in classical Arabic. The recitation should ideally be transmitted through Tawatur or widespread scholarly acceptance.
Responding to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:
Understanding Ibn Al-Jazari’s Classification of Sanads
To answer your question, I can give a general overview of Imam Ibn Al-Jazari’s work. For a deeper analysis, it’s best to consult an expert in Qiraʾat.
In his key work An-Nashr fi Al-Qiraʾat Al-`Ashr, Ibn Al-Jazari carefully documented the asanid (chains of transmission) for the ten canonical Qiraʾat—the recognized recitations of the Qur’an. He aimed to highlight chains that met strict authenticity criteria, rather than listing all existing ones.
Conditions for Valid Qur’anic Recitation
Ibn Al-Jazari outlined three essential conditions for a Qur’anic recitation to be valid:
- Authenticity of Transmission
The chain of narration (Sanad) must be sound. It should be unbroken and consist of reliable (Thiqah) and precise (Dabt) narrators. This ensures the reading was transmitted faithfully without errors.
- Conformity with the Uthmanic Script
The reading must match the orthography of the Uthmanic codices. While some flexibility is allowed due to early Arabic script lacking diacritical marks, any reading that contradicts the preserved script is invalid.
- Linguistic Validity
The recitation must follow the grammatical rules of classical Arabic, even if it includes less common dialect features. Readings without a basis in sound Arabic were rejected.
Levels of Transmission: Tawatur and Istifadah
Ibn Al-Jazari also stressed the significance of broad and continuous transmission:
- Tawatur
Ideally, a Qiraʾah should be passed down through many independent chains in each generation to prevent fabrication.
- Istifadah
If strict Tawatur is not possible, the reading must have wide acceptance among scholars from different regions, showing strong collective recognition.
Ruling on Ijazah for Partial Quran Recitation
Finally, Ibn Al-Jazari valued the longstanding practice of the Muslim community (`Amal Al-Ummah). If a reading was widely used and recited throughout the Muslim world, this consensus added weight to its validity.
In summary, An-Nashr shows Ibn Al-Jazari’s careful methodology in choosing only those Asanid that were sound, widely transmitted, aligned with the Uthmanic script, linguistically valid, and accepted by the broader Ummah. His rigorous standards helped preserve the integrity of the ten canonical Qiraʾat as we know them today.
Further Islamic guidance is in these fatwas:
- Is Reciting Quran With Tajweed Necessary for Silent Prayers? (Video)
- Is Tajweed Obligatory in Prayer?
- Do All Family Members Have to Listen During Quran Lessons?
- Can I Enter Bathroom with Quran on My Phone?
- Does Reading Quran on Phone Count?
- Is Touching Quran Without Wudu Permissible?
- Can I Listen to Quran while Studying?
- Why Are There Disjointed Letters in the Quran?
Almighty Allah knows best.