of Allah; whoever enters it is safe.

He said: The purport of this ḥadīth is that it is a parable. The Qur’an is likened to a banquet that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has laid out for mankind—one that contains good and benefit for them—and then He invited them to partake of it.

The word is pronounced both maʾdubah and maʾdabah. Whoever says maʾdubah means a feast that a person prepares and to which he invites the people; whereas whoever says maʾdabah connects it to adab (refinement), treating it as a noun of the pattern mafʿalah derived from adab, and he cites as proof the other report: “Indeed this Qur’an is the maʾdabah of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, so learn from His maʾdabah.”

Al-Aḥmar regarded the two vocalisations as simply two dialectal forms with the same meaning, and I have heard no one else state this. The first interpretation is the one I find more compelling.

Al-Bukhārī narrated from ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān that the Prophet—may blessings and peace be upon him—said: “The best of you is the one who learns the Qur’an and teaches it.”

Muslim narrated from Abū Mūsā that the Messenger of Allah—blessings and peace be upon him—said:

“The likeness of the believer who recites the Qur’an is that of the utrujjah: its fragrance is pleasant and its taste is pleasant. The likeness of the believer who does not recite the Qur’an is like the date: it has no scent yet its taste is sweet. The likeness of the hypocrite who recites the Qur’an is like the basil: its fragrance is good while its taste is bitter. And the likeness of the hypocrite who does not recite the Qur’an is like the colocynth: it has no scent and its taste is bitter.”

In another wording the term “sinner” appears in place of “hypocrite.”

Al-Bukhārī likewise said: “The likeness of the believer who recites the Qur’an is like the utrujjah—its taste is good and its fragrance is good—and the likeness of the believer who does not recite the Qur’an is like the date …,” and he reproduced the remainder of the ḥadīth.

Abū Bakr al-Anbārī said: Aḥmad ibn Yaḥyā al-Ḥalwānī informed us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd narrated to us, Hushaym narrated to us …; and Idrīs also informed us, saying: Khalaf narrated to us, Hushaym narrated to us, from al-ʿAwwām ibn Ḥawshab, that Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān