Marife Turkish Journal of Religious Studies

Abstract

Tajweed is the science that focuses on the phonetic differences of the letters of the Qur'an and the principles and rules of recitation. Since the Prophet Muhammad, the effort to read the Qur'an in a regular way in terms of the principles of recitation has been meticulously applied. These efforts towards the recitation of the Qur'an did not only remain in practical, but they were also labored in a theoretical manner as they were systematized by distinguished scholars. The first work written in the field of tajweed is Mûsâ ibn Ubaydullah al-Hâkânî's verse called Qasidat al- Khāqāniyya. The work, also known as Qasîdat al-Râiyye, consists of 51 couplets. Besides being the first in its field, the work opened the door to the emergence of the verse tradition tajweed literature. In this article, Malātī's qasida, which was written as parallel to the aforementioned qasidat al-Khāqāniyya, will be analyzed in the context of muaraza(dispute) and compared with the former work. When we look at the composition of works on Islamic sciences, it is seen that they were mostly written in prose, but it is a known fact that some scholars produced works in verse. Regarding the writing of these works in verse, it is noteworthy that the most important reason for this is that they are texts prepared with the aim of memorizing information about the field in order to make it permanent in the minds of the students. Instead of the concept of muaraza, which is the subject of the article, the word "nazire" is used in today's Turkish in the sense of "a poem written in the style of appreciation or rejection of a poet's poem in the same form (in the same meter and rhyme). In Arabic poetry, with the same meaning, it is called a poem written to criticize and satirize a poet's poem in the same rhyme and meter, either to reach and surpass him in the same style because he is liked or to criticize and satirize him because he is not liked. Malāṭī's qasida, which is the subject of our article, is a counter-argument against Mûsâ b. Ubaydullah al-Ḥāqānī's famous work on the science of tajweed, called Qāṣīdat al- Khāqāniyya. It is seen that al-Malātī was not alone in his muāraza on al-Khāqāniyya. In this sense, it is seen that other muarazas were also written on the work in this context. In the first eight couplets, the author tries to convey the importance and value of his work to the addressee. Accordingly, in the first couplet, he expresses his wish by addressing the owners of reason, and in the second couplet, he prays and prays for his God to help him and protect him from traits such as arrogance. From the 9th couplet onwards, including the twelfth couplet, he includes the etiquette of reading the Qur'an: In the ninth couplet, he is advised to be obedient to Allah in secret and in public, hoping for rewards with the noun "O one who recites the Qur'an!". In the couplets 13 to 17 there is a reference to the imams of Qiraat. It’s been pointed out that these imams were not only the ones who had the ability and knowledge but also the ones who were pious. Between the couplets 24-33, important issues regarding the pleasure of reading the Qur'an are mentioned. That’s why, firstly the issue of compliance with the order, which is the most ideal state of recitation of the Qur'an, is pointed out. Then, we notice the statements on issues such as the etiquette of recitation and the avoidance of ifrad and tafrīd in terms of observing tajweed.
In couplets 30-32, the importance of the lesson taqrir in the recitation of the Qur'an is emphasized, the importance of reciting the Qur'an in an analytical way is pointed out, and it is stated that there is no need for an excess beyond that. In the following couplets, issues related to idgam, ihfa, izhâr and med types are discussed. In consequence, we can say that Qasīdat al-Malātī, which consists of 59 couplets and is written in didactic style, is one of the first works that opened the way to muāraza in the science of tajweed.
In couplets 30-32, the importance of the lesson taqrir in the recitation of the Qur'an is emphasized, the importance of reciting the Qur'an in an analytical way is pointed out, and it is stated that there is no need for an excess beyond that. In the following couplets, issues related to idgam, ihfa, izhâr and med types are discussed. In consequence, we can say that Qasīdat al-Malātī, which consists of 59 couplets and is written in didactic style, is one of the first works that opened the way to muāraza in the science of tajweed.