The religion of Islam urges Muslims to pursue excellence and mastery in their deeds and what is more worthy of this pursuit than the book of Allah? Therefore, learning Tajweed rules is a key skill to this mastery and we hope that this article on Idgham rules in Tajweed will guide you on your way. This article will cover the definition of Idgham in Tajweed, types of Idgham with Noon Saakin and Tanween in addition to Meem Saakin.
Definition of Idgham
In Arabic, knowing the root of the word tremendously helps in understanding its meaning. Thus, to understand the linguistic Idgham meaning in Arabic, we’ll go back to the base form of the verb أدغم which is used as such: أدغمْتُ الفرس اللجام. This means to insert a rein into a horse’s mouth and this illustrates what Idgham is in Tajweed since it involves inserting or merging a non-voweled (saakin letter) with a voweled letter (letter with Harakah) so that they become one emphasized letter. Just as the rein is hidden inside the mouth of the horse, the first letter is hidden within the second one. Some examples of Idgham in Qur’an are:
- – (فِي جِيدِهَا حَبْلٌ مِن مَسَد)
- – (إنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لآيَاتٍ للمُتَوَسِّمِين)
Next, we’ll cover the rules of Idgham in Tajweed rules with Noon Saakin and Tanween in addition to Meem Saakin.
Idgham letters:
Let’s lay the groundwork for Idgham rules by first answering the question: how many letters of Idgham are there? The letters of Idgham that come after Noon Saakin and Tanween are as follows: (ي-ر-م-ل-و-ن) and they are grouped in the word (يرملون) to make them easier to remember.
Some Idgham examples in Qur’an are:
- – (فَذَكِّرْ إِن نفَعَت الذِكْرَى)
- – (لَيْلَةُ القَدْرِ خَيْرٌ منْ أَلْفِ شَهْر)
- – (فِي صُحُفٍ مُكَرَّمَة)
Types of Idgham in Tajweed:
Idgham is one of the four Tajweed rules that take place when Noon Saakin and Tanween are followed by certain letters. In this article, we’ll only focus on the case of Idgham. Idgham with Noon Saakin and Tanween has two types: Idgham with Ghunnah and Idgham without Ghunnah. So, what is meant by Ghunnah?
Definition of Ghunnah:
Ghunnah refers to the nasal sound that accompanies the pronunciation of the Noon and the Meem. To know if you are pronouncing the Ghunnah properly, try to close your nostrils while producing it. By closing the passage through which the air passes, you will not be able to pronounce the Ghunnah sound. The sound of the Ghunnah must not exceed two counts.
Idgham with Ghunnah:
The first type of Idgham is Idgham with Ghunnah and this occurs when Noon Saakin or Tanween are at the end of one word and are followed by one of these letters that are found in the word (ينمو) at the beginning of the next word. What happens is that the sound of Noon Saakin or Tanween is hidden because this is not a case of Izhar and what remains is only the sound of the Ghunnah. Afterwards, the sound of the Ghunnah, which lasts for 2 counts, is merged into the following letter. These are some Idgham with Ghunnah examples:
- – (أُولَئِكَ عَلَى هُدَى من رَّبِّهِم)
- – (وَمَا بِكُم مِن نعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ الله)
- – (لَيْلَةُ القَدْرِ خَيْرٌ منْ أَلْفِ شَهْر)
In these Idgham with ghunnah examples the Noon Saakin in (من نعمة) and tanween in (هدى من- خيرٌ من) are hidden and the remaining nasalization sound or Ghunnah is merged into the letter that starts the following word.
*Exceptions:
However, there are few exceptions to the cases found in the previous examples of Idgham with Ghunnah in the Qur’an, mainly:
1. When the aforementioned combination occurs within one word instead of two, the Noon Saakin remains clear without any Idgham or merging. This is exhibited in four examples in the Qur’an:
(دنْيا)- (صنْوان)- (قنْوان)- (بنْيان)
2. The other exception takes place when the Noon Saakin is accompanied by the letter و in these verses:
– (يس وَالْقُرْآنِ الْحَكِيم)
– (ن وَالْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ)
When the reader recites the first verse, the word يس ends with pronouncing سين which has the sound of Noon Saakin at the end and the following verse starts with و. Nonetheless, it is not a case of Idgham and the Noon Saakin in يس is not merged into the letter و. The same applies to the second verse (ن وَالقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرون) where (ن) also contains the sound of Noon Saakin and likewise, it is not merged into the letter و in the verse after it.
Idgham without Ghunnah:
The second type of Idgham with Noon Saakin and Tanween is Idgham without Ghunnah. If we omit the letters of Idgham with Ghunnah of the word (يرملون) that combines Idgham letters, we are left with two letters; Laam and Raa (ل-ر). When one of these two letters is found at the beginning of a word and the preceding word ends with Noon Saakin or Tanween, we hide the sound of Noon Saakin and Tanween and merge it into the Laam or Raa but without the nasalization or the Ghunnah sound that was found in the other type of Idgham that was mentioned earlier. These Idgham Noon Saakin examples serve as an illustration:
- – (أَن رءَاهُ اسْتَغْنَى)
- – (أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَن يقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ أَحَد)
- – (وَاحْلَلْ عُقْدَةً من لسَانِي)
In these examples, the Noon Saakin is not pronounced clearly, rather, it is hidden and merged into the next letter but without Ghunnah. Tanween also acts in accordance with the same rule as seen in these examples from the Qur’an:
- – (هَلْ فِي ذَلِكَ قَسَمٌ لذِي حِجْر)
- – (إِن كُلُّ نَفْسٍ لمَّا عَلَيْهَا حَافِظ)
- – (وَلَلآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لكَ مِنَ الأُولَى)
Since Tanween has the same pronunciation as Noon Saakin, this sound is also cancelled and leaves no trail of Ghunnah behind it; it is completely blended with the following letter, whether with Laam or Raa.
*Exceptions:
The only exception to the rule of Idgham without Ghunnah is found in a verse in surah Al-Qiyamah:
(وَقِيلَ مَنْ رَاق)
Here, the Noon Saakin comes at the end of the word (منْ) and the next word starts with Raa (راق) but in spite of that, the Noon Saakin was not merged into the Raa due to the presence of سكت or a short pause without taking a breath that occurs between the two words. Hence, this short pause created a hindrance to Idgham without Ghunnah and the Noon Saakin is clearly articulated.
Practice:
Try to identify the types of Idgham in these verses :
-(وَاللهُ غَفُورٌ رَحِيم)
-(مِن مارِجٍ من نَار)
-(وَيْلٌ للمُطَفِّفِين)
-(أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لمْ يَرَهُ أَحَد)
From the previously mentioned Idgham Noon Saakin examples, we could understand the cases of Idgham with Ghunnah which occurs when Noon Saakin or Tanween are at the end of a word and the following word starts with one of the letters of (ينمو). We could also understand that the Ghunnah is cancelled when Noon Saakin or Tanween are followed by Laam or Raa as in: (إن في ذلك لآياتٍ لقوم يؤمنون).
Idgham with Meem Saakin:
An additional case of Idgham is found with Meem Saakin when it is followed by another Meem that has a Harakah on it within one word or between two words. This case is called إدغام مثلين صغير since the Idgham takes place between the two same letter; two meems. These are some Idgham examples from Qur’an:
- (وَلَهُم مَا يَشْتَهُون)
- – (إِنَّهَا عَلَيْهِم مُؤْصَدَة)
- – (كَلا بَلْ رَانَ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِم ما كَانُوا يَكْسِبُون)
- – (وَلَكُم ما كَسَبْتُم)
In these examples, the Meem Saakin is merged into the voweled Meem that followed it and this merge is accompanied by the sound of Ghunnah.
We have discussed the definition of Idgham in Tajweed, Idgham letters in Arabic, an explanation of the most important Idgham rules in English along with examples of Idgham in Qur’an. Learning and applying these Idgham rules will help you improve and beautify your recitation of Qur’an as it was recited by the Prophet PBUH and his companions.
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