Speech at the Conclusion of Quran Recitation Ceremony in the Blessed Month of Ramadan

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

We thank God for the understanding of another Ramadan and the opportunity to recite and listen to the Quran. May we appreciate this divine opportunity given to us once more and be prepared to answer God Almighty for how we utilized it. We also thank the dear brothers, the reciters, who participated in this session this year, especially those who came from afar. We hope God grants you all success and helps you progress further in this path.

Overall, from this session and other recitations heard through radio and television or other gatherings, we are hopeful that, thanks be to God, our progress in recitation has been good. Comparing ourselves to the early years of the revolution, we must say we have advanced both qualitatively and quantitatively. The number of those who showcase their talent in recitation, with pleasant voices, strong throats, and creativity in singing, has increased, and we are pleased with this. Today, thanks be to God, we heard some warm voices from young people whose youthful freshness is evident in their recitation; they must know that the field for their progress is wide open, and they must not stop at any level. Stopping means descending and declining.

In terms of memorization, we have also relatively progressed. Although we did not encounter the respected memorizers in this session, it is evident that our youth and adolescents have turned to memorization, albeit insufficiently. Living in a large society and a vast country, we should have thousands of Quran memorizers. Those at older ages have less chance of memorizing, although it is not impossible. Some do not have the time; if they did, they could experiment and test. I myself do not have the time; otherwise, even at this age, I would start memorizing the Quran. Young people should know that even at our age, if there were time and opportunity, it would be appropriate and better to spend time memorizing the Quran; in youth, this task is necessary. Ideally, all our people should be so familiar with the Quran that its verses are familiar to their ears; when a verse is recited, they should be familiar with its beginning, end, and context.

Respected reciters should also note that a memorizing reciter has many advantages over a non-memorizing reciter. These young and adolescent reciters who have just started reciting the Quran, like our dear young one, or others with good voices and promising futures, should plan from now to become Quran memorizers.

In terms of tajweed, thanks be to God, our reciters have made great progress; it seems that tajweed is becoming part of the nature of our Quranic community. I remember before the revolution, when we had Quran sessions in Mashhad, many of those present here were in those sessions. Sometimes, to teach a student the pronunciation of a letter or a tajweed rule, like a proper thickening or thinning, sessions were spent, yet the young person would not learn or would learn with difficulty, unless they had talent, because the environment was not Quranic, and the sound was unfamiliar to the ears. One had to stay in those sessions for a long time to gradually become accustomed to this style of reading and be able to pronounce correctly. Today, it is not like that; one sees that this young person recites so well and pronounces the sounds of 'sad,' 'dad,' 'ta,' and 'za' like native Arabs, as if he was born Arab! These Arab reciters who come here repeatedly tell me they are amazed at how our reciters pronounce these words and letters, whose sounds are foreign to their language! Why is this? Because the environment has become Quranic. We have repeated for many years that if the flow moves in a certain direction, education becomes easy; this is one of the blessings of the Islamic Republic. Because the direction of movement is Quranic, the Quranic form and shape easily and comfortably emerge in the youth and even in average talents. Therefore, in terms of tajweed and pronunciation of letters and words, we have no problem; thanks be to God, it is getting better day by day, especially these talented and good young people who are reciting; indeed, every time they recite, I see, God willing, they have improved from the previous time.

The point I want to emphasize is that everyone, whether experienced individuals, average individuals, or newcomers, should feel that the place they are in is not the highest; there are higher places, and they should strive to seize and capture them; therefore, growth should not stop. These young people who are encouraged and rightly so, like our dear young one who recited very well, should be aware that these encouragements should not mislead them into thinking they have become a reciter! No, there is still much work to be done; this is still the 'In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful'; and this is still the beginning of this great field; this is the start of the work; however, it is a very good start. If we want to compare this start with, for example, the start of Mr. Shahat Anwar, this start is better than Shahat Anwar's start, provided they consistently put in appropriate effort. Of course, this does not mean exhausting the throat and constantly going here and there and constantly doing showy work; this is also not right; I do not agree with this work. The work must be truly organized; of course, some display has a place in organized work. If they work systematically and well for fifteen years, they will recite better than the person they are now imitating; but if we want to judge now, there is a significant difference.

Now we move on from them to these good young people who are reciting. Today, one of these young people recited with a very fresh and good voice. One truly senses the freshness of youthful voice in that tone and realizes how beautiful these voices are. You young people should not think that when your voice rises and the audience says 'Allah Allah' and 'Well done, well done,' it means the matter is over; no, you are still at the beginning of the path; however, your talent and voice are very good, and if you work hard, you will become much better; this is the meaning of these encouragements. I know many of you. There is a brother who has been reading regularly and seriously for seven, eight, ten years; this is different from a brother who has been reading for four or five years; however, all of you brothers should pay attention to this characteristic.

See, we need to have reciters within the country who have their own style in recitation; now, whether it is the famous recitation we read, which is the recitation of 'Hafs,' or alongside it, other recitations that are common in North Africa. The reason you see Egyptians constantly reading the recitations of 'Warsh' and 'Qalun' is that these two recitations are prevalent there. For example, in Libya, Algeria, and Tunisia, the recitation of 'Warsh' is taught in schools, not the recitation of 'Hafs.' Of course, in the Islamic world, the recitation of 'Hafs'—the one we commonly read—is more famous. I agree that brothers should learn and read other recitations, especially the well-known ones like the recitation of 'Warsh.' We must reach a point where when our reciter begins to read, the quality of pronunciation and expression of Quranic words by him is such that the audience, to the extent they are familiar with the Arabic language, is affected; the main goal of recitation is this. You, who, thanks be to God, have good voice, tajweed, and recitation, should strive to reach a point where, like Sheikh Mustafa Ismail—whom these reciters who come here rarely read like him—you can express the word of God in such a way that the listener, to the extent of their capacity, is affected by the divine word and feels that atmosphere. You should become stylistically unique in this field and no longer be imitators of others; this is the ultimate goal we currently have in mind; this requires effort, innovation, and creativity.

The last point is about these chants. I was very pleased to see that our brothers from Mashhad, thanks be to God, have innovated and come with new poetry and new tunes. Of course, some things in these chants are very Arabic, and we do not understand them; it does not matter, and we do not deny it; but what is very good is that the style is new; the poetry is new; it is no longer mere imitation of others. I have often told these brothers who are engaged in Tehran and have these chanting and harmony groups—which are indeed very good—that this joint Quran reading you have is very excellent; it is truly rare in the world for seven or eight people to harmonize like this; but in the field of these tunes and hymns about monotheism and the Seal of the Prophets (peace be upon him and his family) or about other subjects, you must innovate. You see, when you read this 'Burdah' poem and 'Lamiya al-Ajam' and the poems of Sheikh Kazem Uzri and these famous Arabic poems, in any Arab gathering, if there are four people who know Arabic, as soon as you read the first line, they all understand what you want to read; the poem is clear to them; this poem is good; then you read it with an innovative tune; just as these brothers read with a new tune now. Your voices, thanks be to God, are no less than their voices. There is no need to always read the same because 'Taha al-Fashni' or others have read this poem. Of course, if we learned from them at the beginning, it is not a problem; but a person should not always imitate until the end; they must innovate. In praise of the Holy Prophet and in praise of the Imams (peace be upon them), in praise of Ramadan, in praise of the Quran, and in supplication to the Almighty, there are very good, excellent Arabic poems; read these. We hope that, God willing, this work will progress day by day.

I firmly believe that if we want the Quran to be established in the mindset and atmosphere of society, we must have many Quran reciters; for this reason, we pursue Quran recitation. These Quranic tunes draw hearts to the Quran; pleasant voices should be employed in these matters. No content is more worthy than the word of God to be placed in a pleasant voice and for the pleasant voice to carry this word and expression; this is higher than any poem or eloquent speech.

Once again, we thank the dear brothers who made the effort and especially those who came from afar, and we ask God Almighty for all your success.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings