Ibn al-Zaghūnī (1) said, when addressing the issue of the letter (2) and the sound:

They argue: “If you claim that the Qur’an is a sound perceived by our ears, yet what we in fact perceive when the reciter voices it is nothing but his own sound—an accident that comes into being after not being (3), then vanishes after existing, inheres in him (4), and is proportionate to the measure of his bodily movements—then, if you say, ‘That sound is eternal,’ we answer: ‘Then it is the voice of God.’ Should you reply, ‘Yes,’ that is impossible (5), for we observe it directly and clearly recognize the reciter’s voice. But if you say, ‘It is the reciter’s voice,’ you have admitted that it is originated, which contradicts your position.”

He continued: “Our response is that your statement—that the sound we perceive with our ears during the recitation of the Qur’an is merely the reciter’s own sound produced as you have described—is precisely the very point in dispute. Rather, we maintain that what we perceive with our ears during his recitation is the eternal speech (kalām) itself; we therefore do not concede your premise. Your discussion of non-existence, subsequent existence, and annihilation after existence is unfounded. We affirm instead that it becomes manifest through the reciter’s movements, by means of his instruments (6), within the sphere of his capability; as for its alleged non-existence before or after, that is not the case. Concerning your claim that it is limited by his movements, we have already provided the answer. And with regard to your question, ‘Is that which we hear the sound of God, or…’”} (end)