❖ Tafsir of the Verse: “When the Qur'an is Recited, Listen Attentively and Remain Silent”
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah, Vol. 1, Kitāb al-Ṣalāh, p. 330Verse:
﴿وَإِذَا قُرِئَ الْقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ وَأَنْصِتُوا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ﴾
(Surah al-Aʿrāf: 204)
❀ Question:
What is the meaning of the Qur’anic command: “When the Qur’an is recited, listen to it attentively and remain silent”?
✔ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā baʿd!
✿ Background of Revelation and Context
During the recitation of the Qur’an by the Prophet ﷺ, the disbelievers would make noise and commotion to prevent others from hearing it. Allah addressed their behavior with the following verse:
﴿لَا تَسْمَعُوا لِهَـٰذَا الْقُرْآنِ وَالْغَوْا فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَغْلِبُونَ﴾
“Do not listen to this Qur’an and make noise during its recitation so that you may prevail.”
(Surah Fuṣṣilat: 26)This verse is unanimously considered Makki, and it refers specifically to the polytheists and disbelievers who used to cause disturbances during the recitation and propagation of the Qur’an.
✿ Clarification Through Classical Tafsir Sources
Several prominent classical scholars and tafsirs clarify that this verse is related to general Qur’an recitation and daʿwah, not Salah:
◈ Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī — Vol. 1, p. 121
◈ Al-Baḥr al-Muḥīṭ by Abū Ḥayyān al-Andalusī — Vol. 4, p. 448
◈ Tafsīr al-Kabīr by Imām al-Rāzī — Vol. 15, p. 104
◈ Fawāʾid al-Qurʾān by ʿAbd al-Jabbār ibn Aḥmad (via Qurṭubī) — Vol. 7, p. 354
✿ Statements from Deobandi Commentators
◈ ʿAbd al-Mājid Daryābādī (Deobandi scholar), in his Tafsīr Mājidī (Vol. 2, p. 263), affirms the same interpretation.
◈ Ashraf ʿAlī Thānwī (Deobandi scholar) writes:
“In my opinion, the command ‘fa-istamiʿū lahu’ refers to preaching, not to recitation in prayer. The context clearly indicates this. Thus, if several people are reciting the Qur’an together in a gathering, it is not objectionable.”
Al-Kalām al-Ḥusayn, Vol. 2, p. 212 – Maktabah Ashrafiyyah, Lahore❖ Refutation of the Misuse Against Fātiḥah Behind the Imām
Some people wrongly use this verse to argue against the recitation of al-Fātiḥah behind the Imām, claiming it necessitates total silence.
However, this verse is general, and specific commands (e.g., reciting Fātiḥah) override general ones.
"A general evidence cannot override a specific ruling."
✿ Recommended Sources for In-Depth Study:
◈ “Juzʾ al-Qirāʾah” by Imām al-Bukhārī (with Taḥqīq by Naṣr al-Bārī)
◈ “Taḥqīq al-Kalām fī Wujūb Qirāʾat al-Fātiḥah Khalf al-Imām” by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Mubārakpūrī
◈ “Al-Kawākib al-Durriyyah fī Wujūb al-Fātiḥah Khalf al-Imām fī al-Jahriyyah” by the article’s author
Published in Shahādat Magazine, February 2000
Conclusion:
The Qur’anic verse ﴿فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ وَأَنْصِتُوا﴾ commands attentive listening and silence during general recitation and preaching of the Qur’an,
not during Salah, and not as a basis to oppose recitation of al-Fātiḥah behind the Imām.
This verse was revealed regarding disbelievers' disruptive behavior, and applying it to prohibit reciting Fātiḥah is a misapplication of the text.
هٰذا ما عندي، والله أعلم بالصواب
