Question

May Allah reward you continuously and grant the students of tajweed correct recitation of the Qur'an and understanding of it's verses and putting in practice of it's teachings.  Could you please tell me if the choosing of either 2 or 4 or 6 in stopping on a word (which has a medd due to the dropping of a vowel on the end of the word) is connected to the speed of reading?

 

2. It is difficult to keep the tongue from touching the roof of the mouth in the front behind the teeth when trying to say - so it does not sound right even if we are touching the right place at the molars.  Would you have any suggestion as to how to prevent that from happening?

Answer

Ameen.  It is very important to put into practice the teachings of the Qur’an while learning how to recite it.  The Qur’an was revealed as a guidance and a light for us, if we only pay attention to perfecting our letters we are indeed missing out on the most important part of reciting the Qur’an. 

1. The choosing of 2, 4, or 6 counts for ,  or presented sukoon lengthening that you described is not specifically connected to the speed of reading.  An example of this lengthening would be when stopping on the word: ; there is a medd letter followed by only one voweled letter, then we stop on it with a presented sukoon on the last letter, and the medd letter, in this case a  is lengthened 2, 4, or 6 vowel counts.  If one is reciting at a quick pace, keeping in mind that he/she must obey all the recitation rules while doing so, he/she most likely will choose the two vowel counts for this lengthening, but this is not required.   

2.  The tongue actually will touch lightly the gum line of the two front teeth when pronouncing the  correctly, the important thing to remember is that there is no pressure, collision, or separation from this area.  The tongue gently touches it due to the mechanical lengthening of the tongue due to the pressure that builds up when pronouncing this letter correctly.  The most vital point in pronouncing the letter  correctly is remembering that it is a vertical motion.  The side or both sides of the tongue move up vertically to the molars no matter what vowel is on the .  The vowel sound comes from opening the mouth with a fat-h, lowering the jaw with a kasrah, and circling the lips with a dhammah, and the sound of the letter remains a product of collision or separation of the two articulated parts.  A very common mistake with non-Arabs in the pronunciation of the  is using the middle of the tongue instead of the sides, especially when there is an accompanying dhammah with the letter.  Continued practice in conjunction with listening to the correct sound from a qualified teacher and most importantly a lot of dua’ are what is needed to correct this mistake.