Abī Mulayka say: ‘Ubayd Allah ibn Abī Yazīd said, “Abū Lubāba passed by us, and we followed him until he entered his house. He was a man of shabby appearance. I heard him say, ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, say: “Whoever does not recite the Quran melodiously is not one of us.”’” He said: I then asked Ibn Abī Mulayka, “Abū Muhammad, what if someone does not have a beautiful voice?” He replied, “He should make it as beautiful as he can.”

I say: This issue must be clarified, setting out the differing views, the arguments of each group, the strengths and weaknesses of their arguments, and the correct view, through Allah’s power (1) and assistance.

One group holds that recitation to melodies is disliked. Among those who explicitly stated this were Ahmad, Mālik, and others. In the report transmitted by ‘Alī ibn Sa‘īd, Ahmad (2) said concerning (3) recitation to melodies, “I do not like it; it is a newly introduced practice.” In the report transmitted by al-Marrūdhī, he said, “Recitation to melodies is an innovation and should not be listened to.” In the report transmitted by ‘Abd al-Rahmān al-Mutatabbib, he said, “Recitation to melodies is an innovation—an innovation.” In the reports transmitted by his son ‘Abd Allah, Yūsuf ibn Mūsā, Ya‘qūb ibn Bakhtān, al-Athram, and Ibrāhīm ibn al-Hārith, he said, “I do not like recitation to melodies unless it is