Ibn al-Qayyim said,
The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to recite the Qur’ān whilst standing, sitting and lying down. He recited it with ablution and without ablution. The only thing that prevented him from reciting it was the state of major impurity.
314. Ya’lā ibn Mamlak narrated that he asked Umm Salamah about the way the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) recited the Qur’ān, and she described his recitation as clear, thoughtful and slow, letter by letter. [360]
Al-Ghazalī said,
The recommended way to recite the Qur’ān is to recite it slowly and clearly (Arabic: tartīl). It was narrated that Ibn Abbās said, “I prefer to recite Sūrah al-Baqarah and al-Imrān slowly and contemplate them than reciting the whole Qur’ān hastily.”
315. Qatādah narrated: “I asked Anas ibn Mālik, ‘How was the recital of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him)?’ He replied, ‘He prolonged the recitation of Qur’ān.’” [361]
Al-Taybī said,
The letters that are prolonged in the recitation of the Qur’ān are three letters, namely (أ – و – ي) and the length of the prolonged letter depends on the letter that follows and whether it is paused or not.
316. Umm Salamah narrated: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) recited every ayah separately; he recited ‘Alhamdulillāhī Rabbil ‘Ālamīn’ and paused, then recited ‘Ar-Rahmānir Rahīm’ and paused. Then he would pause after reciting ‘Mālikī Yawmiddīn.’” [362]
Al-Sakhawī said,
This is evidence that he (peace be upon him) used to recite Sūrah al-Fātihah audibly.
Ibn Battal said,
He (peace be upon him) used to recite in this way to fulfil the command of Allāh to recite the Qur’ān slowly and thoughtfully. Thus, he (peace be upon him) recited in such a manner to teach his nation the way to recite the Qur’ān and how to contemplate it.
Ibn al-Qayyim said,
The method of recitation mentioned in this hadīth is the most recommended way. It is better to pause after each ayah even if the following ayah depends on the ayah that precedes it.
317. ‘Abdullāh ibn Abī Qays reported: “I inquired from Aisha about the recital of the Prophet (peace be upon him): whether he recited quietly or audibly. She replied, ‘He recited in both ways; he recited quietly and audibly.’ I said, ‘Praise be to Allāh, who has accorded ease in this matter.’” [363]
Al-Nabhānī said,
Ibn Abbās said, “When the Prophet (peace be upon him) recited the Qur’ān in his house, those in the same house would be able to hear his recital but he would not let it reach [to the ears of those] outside his house.”
318. Umm Hānī’ narrated: “I heard the Prophet (peace be upon him) reciting the Qur’ān at night, whilst I was upon my bed.” [364]
Al-Qasim ibn Salam said,
Umm Hanī intended to mean that she heard his recitation during the night.
‘Abdullāh ibn Sa’īd al-Hadramī said,
This hadīth refers to an instance when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was in Makkah and he was offering his night prayers next to the Ka’bah. This happened before the time of Hijrah.
319. ‘Abdullāh ibn Mughaffal narrated: “I saw the Prophet (peace be upon him) riding his camel on the day of the conquest of Makkah and he was reciting, {Indeed, We have given you, [O Muhammad], a clear conquest, that Allāh may forgive for you what preceded of your sin and what will follow.}[365] He (peace be upon him) recited it and did tarjī’[366].”
Mu’awiya ibn Qurrah (a narrator of this hadīth) said, “If I did not fear that people would gather around me, I would have recited it for you in the same tone.” [367]
‘Abdullāh ibn Sa’īd al-Hadramī said,
This indicates that reciting audibly is better than reciting inaudibly in some places especially when it is to glorify Allāh and awake the heedless. The conquest referred to is either the conquest of Makkah, as reported from Anas ibn Mālik, or Khaybar, as reported from Mujāhid, or the Hudaybiyyah Truce as reported from the majority because it was the basis of all the conquests that followed.
He (peace be upon him) recited the entire Sūrah of al-Fath as stated in the hadīth mentioned by al-Bukharī. Tarjī’ means the coming and going of sound and it often happens due to joy as it happened to the Prophet (peace be upon him) on that day.
320. Qatādah said: “Allāh blessed every Prophet that He had sent with a beautiful face and beautiful voice. Your Prophet (peace be upon him) had a beautiful face and a beautiful voice, and did not recite with tarjī’.” [368]
Ibn al-Athīr said,
This refers to his recital when he was not riding since the instance of the tarjī’ happened while he was riding.
Muhammad ibn Yūsuf al-Shāmī said,
Ibn al-Munīr, al-Zarkashī and others commented on the statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him) wherein he mentioned that Prophet Yūsuf was given half of the beauty, saying, “Some people think that the other half of beauty, based on this hadīth, is divided among the rest of people while, in fact, it means that Prophet Yūsuf was given half of the beauty given to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
321. ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās narrated: “The recitation of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was audible enough that it might have been possible that if he recited in the house, those in the courtyard would be able to hear it.” [369]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This explains the previous hadīths regarding the audibleness of his recitation, which is to state that if he recited audibly in the night then it would be loud enough to be heard by those who were near to him, meaning he did not recite very loudly.