and likewise, when someone recites the poetry of a poet—such as Imruʾ al-Qays (1) or anyone else—and says:

Qifā nabki min dhikrā ḥabībin wa-manzil (2)
Stop, let us weep for the memory of a loved one and a dwelling…

that verse is still the poetry of Imruʾ al-Qays, even though the reciter has brought it forth with his own motions and sounds. This is a truth ingrained in the innate nature (3) of all people: they recognize that speech belongs to the one who originated it—who first uttered it, commanded by it, informed through it, and arranged its letters and meanings. When another merely conveys it from him, everyone knows that the words belong to the one on whose behalf they are transmitted, not to the transmitter himself. People therefore distinguish between hearing it from the original speaker and hearing it from the intermediary.

For this very reason it is firmly established among Muslims that the Qur’an they hear is the Speech of Allah, as the Exalted says:

“If any of the idolaters seeks your protection, grant him protection until he hears the Speech of Allah.” (4)

All the while they are fully aware that the reciter is voicing it with his own sound, just as the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said, “Adorn the Qur’an with your voices.” (5)

Thus, the speech