the qur’an recited in hafs by

SHEIKH DUKALI MUHAMMAD AL-ALEM

THE WORD OF GODListening to the euphonious recitation of the Qur’an, whether alone or in a group, is a joyous and beautiful experience. With tajwid, the science of recitation, one comes toappreciate the Qur’an as the Word of God, as Divine Revelation itself, which convinced seventh-century Arabia into accepting monotheism. It was,moreover, the miraculous Qur’an along with theprophetic leadership of Muhammad œ that united the previously warring tribes and brought peace to a people long steeped in power struggles and conflict.The recitation of the Qur’an, with proper guidanceand intention, clear thought and focus, settles themind and brings tranquility to the heart, not merely to the reciter but all those who surround him.

INTRODUCTION TO THEQUR’AN RECITATION BY SHEIKH DUKALI AL-ALEM

THE LIBYAN HERITAGE OF QUR’AN RECITATIONLibya, or Tripolitania as it was known throughout most of its history in Islam, is a little-known example of the manifestation ofthe Qur’an’s power to effect good. Despite being a country of amere six million people, the residents in the stretch of desertbetween Ghadames and Tubruq have one of the highest ratios ofhuffaz or memorizers of the Qur’an. In international competitionstoday, the memorizers of Libya, sometimes as young as ten yearsold, consistently rank amongst the top in the world. The mastersof recitation, likewise, continuously appear as panel judges inthese same competitions. Whatever hidden causes there might be for such a phenome-

non, it is clear to any reader of Libyan history that the Sufi zawiyasplayed—and continue to play—an integral role. It was in thesezawiyas that the message of the Qur’an was taught, such that itwas internalized and lived upon. In response to the ever-changingneeds of society, preachers, religious scholars, and Sufi guidesoperated out of these lodges to teach the memorization and reci-tation of the Qur’an, law, tasawwuf, theology, astronomy, logic,and mathematics to both laity and elite. Today, the zawiyas dotting Libya’s landscape remain abuzz

with the group recitation of the Qur’anic hizb after every ¢asrprayer. The tradition of Qur’anic teaching has today spreadbeyond these zawiyas, as one may find Qur’anic schools in nearlyall of Libya’s mosques. Nevertheless, all remain indebted to the work of the Sufis, for it was they who truly exemplified themeaning of prophetic character by virtue of their dedication to Islam and adherence to the Qur’an, its recitation, and its deep message.

No doubt the most famous of all these lodges, and what hasbecome a full-fledged university, is the Zawiya of Sidi ¢Abd al-Salam al-Asmar, the famous Libyan saint and founder of theArusiyya Sufi order. Other zawiyas of great importance include:

• Sheikh al-Dukali Zawiya in Msallata • Al-Mahjub Zawiya in Misurata • Al-Hattab Zawiya in Tajourah • Ibn Shu¢ayb Zawiya in Western Zawia • Ibn Juha Zawiya in Khoms • Sidi ¢Ali al-Ferjani Zawiya in Suq al-Khamis• Abu Rawi Zawiya in Tajourah • Sidi Muhammad ibn ¢Ali al-Sanusi’s Zawiya in Jaghbub, and similar Sanusi zawiyas in both the eastern and western parts of the country

• Uthman Pasha Madrasa in Tripoli

SHEIKH DUKALI AL-ALEMOut of this rich yet little-known network of religious activityemerged the reciter of this production: Sheikh Dukali Muhammadal-Alem al-Idrisi al-Hasani. Born in 1949 in the western Libyantown of Msallata, he began memorizing the Qur’an at an early age in his home town and went on to complete it at the Zawiya of Sidi¢Abd al-Salam al-Asmar. Shortly thereafter he moved to Tripolifor his primary, middle, and secondary education at the famousMalik ibn Anas Madrasa. Upon completion he took a teachingcourse and taught for two years before moving to the eastern cityof Bayda to pursue a degree in Sharia at Bayda Islamic University(formerly known as Muhammad ibn ¢Ali al-Sanusi University).

His mastery of Qur’anic recitation has made him a local icon inLibya, even during a period in Libya’s history where the politicalclimate made it difficult and even dangerous to be so. In additionto his role as imam at the Ibn al-Amin Mosque in Tripoli, he ledthe annual Ramadan prayers for several years at the MawlayMuhammad Mosque, which were broadcast on Libyan television.He has served as a judge in several Qur’anic memorizationcontests held in Malaysia, Iran, Egypt, and Morocco. Beforecompleting the production before you, Sheikh Dukali hadpreviously recorded two other full recitations of the Qur’an inLibya and Lebanon in 1995, with the most prevalent style ofQur’anic recitation in Libya: Qalun ¢an Nafi¢.

THE RECITATION OF HAFSIn 2014, Sheikh Dukali completed his third recitation of theQur’an, in association with Kalam Research and Media andrecorded at the famous Let The Change Be Studio in Dubai. Thisrecording is recited in the style of Hafs ¢an ¢Asim, the dominantstyle of recitation in much of the Islamic world. There exist tenstyles of Qur’anic recitation, each of which is named after theoriginal reciter who most famously mastered it. These recitationsfulfill all the conditions required by the Islamic community toestablish its authenticity to the Prophet Muhammad œ, whoreceived the Qur’anic revelation from the Archangel Gabriel over a period of 23 years in what is known as the “seven letters”.These “seven letters” (al-ahruf al-sab¢) are not equivalent to therecitations we have today, but all of these recitations togethercontain within them the seven letters referred to by the Prophet œin several well-known narrations.

When the caliph ¢Uthman sent forth the Companions of theProphet œ to various cities, each of these Companions taught therecitation of the Qur’an in the manner which he learned from theProphet œ himself. Accordingly, the various cities of Kufa, Basra,Fustat, Marw, Medina, Mecca, and Damascus had begun togather around the recitations passed down to them by the residentCompanions of their respective cities. Afterwards, men who dedi-cated themselves to perfecting the knowledge of these recitationsin precisely the way they were received from the Companions,became authorities in their respective regions. These menrepresent the culmination of the science of Qur’anic recitationwithin their respective region, and they transmitted their saidscience and style of the recitation of the Qur’an in the samefashion to thousands of others. The reciters are the following (alldates given as ah):

1. ¢Abdullah ibn Kathir al-Dari of Mecca (d. 120)2. ¢Abdullah ibn ¢Amir al-Yahsubi of Damascus (d. 118)3. ¢Asim ibn Abi al-Nujud al-Asdi of Kufa (d. 127)4. Abu ¢Amr Zabban ibn al-¢Ala’ of Basra (d. 154)5. Hamza ibn Habib al-Zayyat of Kufa (d. 156)6. Nafi¢ ibn ¢Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Na¢im of Medina (d. 169)7. Abul Hasan ¢Ali ibn Hamza al-Kisa’i of Kufa (d. 189)8. Abu Ja¢far Yazid ibn al-Qa¢qa¢ of Medina (d. 130)9. Ya¢qub ibn Ishaq of the Yemen (d. 205)10. Khalaf ibn Hisham of Baghdad (d. 229)

From the recitations of these masters came subsequent narra-tions by others. The recitation most recognized in the Muslim

world today is that of Abu ¢Umar Hafs ibn Sulayman of Kufa (d. 180), the stepson of ¢Asim ibn Abi al-Nujud. Hafs’s mastery ofthe recitation earned him great praise by his contemporaries andthe subsequent generations of experts of Qur’anic recitation. Thedominance of this recitation around the heartlands of Islamiccivilization also played a key role in its growth. The Hafsrecitation is largely associated with the Hanafi, Hanbali, andShafi¢i schools of Islamic law, whereas the Maghrib remainedclosely knit with the Medinese recitations of Warsh and Qalunfrom Nafi¢ of Medina, in the same manner that it remained loyalto the legal system of the city: the Maliki school. The variations between the different reciters go back to what

was taught by the scholarly Companions of each region. Hafs’schain of narration is as follows: Hafs, who took from ¢Asim ofKufa, and he from Abu ¢Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami, who tookfrom ¢Ali ibn Abi Talib (Allah ennoble his countenance), thefourth caliph and cousin of the Prophet œ, who memorized theQur’an directly from the Prophet himself.In spite of different recitations having practical dominance

among the various Muslim populations around the world, the elitereciters are required to have a mastery of all these recitations.Thus, out of Tripolitania, where the narration of Qalun fromNafi¢ is dominant, we now proudly present to internationallisteners the recitation of Hafs from the master reciter SheikhDukali al-Alem.

1. Al-Fatiha 2. Al-Baqara3. Aal ¢Imran4. Al-Nisa5. Al-Ma’ida6. Al-An¢am7. Al-A¢raf8. Al-Anfal9. Al-Tawba10. Yunus11. Hud12. Yusuf13. Al-Ra¢d14. Ibrahim15. Al-Hijr16. Al-Nahl17. Al-Isra’18. Al-Kahf19. Maryam20. Ta-Ha21. Al-Anbiya’22. Al-Hajj23. Al-Mu’minun24. Al-Nur25. Al-Furqan26. Al-Shu¢ara’

27. Al-Naml28. Al-Qasas29. Al-¢Ankabut30. Al-Rum31. Luqman32. Al-Sajda33. Al-Ahzab34. Saba’35. Fatir36. Yasin37. Al-Saffat38. Sad39. Al-Zumar40. Ghafir41. Fussilat42. Al-Shura43. Al-Zukhruf44. Al-Dukhan45. Al-Jathiya46. Al-Ahqaf47. Muhammad48. Al-Fath49. Al-Hujurat50. Qaf51. Al-Dhariyat52. Al-Tur

53. Al-Najm54. Al-Qamar55. Al-Rahman56. Al-Waqi¢a57. Al-Hadid58. Al-Mujadila59. Al-Hashr60. Al-Mumtahana61. Al-Saff62. Al-Jumu¢a63. Al-Munafiqun64. Al-Taghabun65. Al-Talaq66. Al-Tahrim67. Al-Mulk68. Al-Qalam69. Al-Haqqa70. Al-Ma¢arij71. Nuh72. Al-Jinn73. Al-Muzzammil74. Al-Muddathir75. Al-Qiyama76. Al-Insan77. Al-Mursalat78. Al-Naba’�

Sura Tracklist

79. Al-Nazi¢at80. ¢Abasa81. Al-Takwir82. Al-Infitar83. Al-Mutaffifin84. Al-Inshiqaq85. Al-Buruj86. Al-Tariq87. Al-A¢la88. Al-Ghashiya89. Al-Fajr90. Al-Balad91. Al-Shams

92. Al-Layl93. Al-Duha94. Al-Sharh95. Al-Tin96. Al-¢Alaq97. Al-Qadr98. Al-Bayyina99. Al-Zalzala100. Al-¢Adiyat101. Al-Qari¢a102. Al-Takathur103. Al-¢Asr104. Al-Humaza

105. Al-Fil106. Quraysh107. Al-Ma¢un108. Al-Kawthar109. Al-Kafirun110. Al-Nasr111. Al-Masad112. Al-Ikhlas113. Al-Falaq114. Al-Nas

Supplication forcompleting theQur’an

P R O D U C T I O N D E TA I L S

Reciter: Sheikh Dukali Al-AlemRecording: Let The Change Be Studio, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesSound Engineers: Benammi Mohammed, Husam Saleh, and Usama SheikhBooklet Text: Sheikh Mohamed Al-Ajail and Abdurrahman MihirigArabic Translation: Salah NwederEditing: Muhammad Ridwaan and Yusuf LenfestDesign & Typesetting: Sohail NakhoodaCover Ornamentation: Ibrahim BatchelderArabic Calligraphy:Ustadh Muhannad QaisiPhotography: Sohail Nakhooda and Masud Ahmed Khan/KRM

Kalam Research &Media would like to thank Dr. Aref Ali Nayed, Majid Hussain,Raafa Zaitun, Dr. Nagib Serag, Mohamed Busafita, D. Hayes Blanchard, Raed AbuBakr Ghordlo, Muhammad Ridwaan, Ustadh Ali Busayfi, Ustadh Ahmed Lamin, andBesim Bruncaj. Recorded and made in the UAE. © 2015, Kalam Research &Media. All rights reserved.

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