The rules for lam, ra, mim sakin, nun sakin, madd and hamzah

When lam and ra are pronounced heavy or light, how a silent mim and a silent nun behave before the next letter, the letters of prolongation, and two rules for hamzah.

Eight letters have their own special rules in tajweed: lam, ra, mim sakin (a silent mim), nun sakin (a silent nun), and the letters of madd (alif, waw and ya, which stretch a sound out longer) together with hamzah.

Lam and ra: heavy or light?

The lam in the word "Allah" is said heavy if the letter before it has a zabar or pesh (like in "Innal-laha"), and light if the letter before it has a zer (like in "Bismillahi"). Every other lam is said light.
Ra is said heavy when it has its own zabar or pesh, and usually light when it has a zer, with a few extra cases a teacher can show you.

When a nun or a mim has no vowel (is sakin), what happens to its sound depends on the very next letter.

The four rules for a silent nun (nun sakin) or tanween
Rule	Letters that trigger it	What happens
Izhar (clear)	ء ہ ع ح غ خ	The nun is said plainly, clear and on its own.
Idgham (merging)	ی ر م ل و ن	The nun's sound blends into the very next letter, so they sound like one.
Iqlab (swapping)	ب	The nun's sound changes into a hidden "m" sound.
Ikhfa (hiding)	The 15 other letters	The nun is neither said fully nor fully blended away; it's held lightly through the nose instead.

A hafiz or teacher can help you hear each one.

Eight letters carry rules of their own, beyond the general makharij and sifat: lam, ra, mim sakin and mushaddad, nun sakin and mushaddad, and the letters of madd (waw, alif, ya) together with hamzah.

Rules for lam

In the word Allah, the lam is pronounced heavy when preceded by a zabar or a pesh, as in "Inna'llaha" or "Nasru'llah", and light when preceded by a zer, as in "Bismi'llahi". The same applies to "Allahumma", since it contains the word Allah.
Every other lam, outside the word Allah, is pronounced light, as in "ma walla-hum" or "kulluhu".

Rules for ra

Ra is heavy in six cases: with a fatha (rabbana); with a dhamma (rusuluna); when sakin and the preceding letter has a fatha (barqun) or a dhamma (turji'u); when sakin and preceded by a temporary kasrah (irji'u); and when sakin, preceded by a permanent kasrah, and followed by a heavy letter (mirsadan).
Ra is light in three cases: with a kasrah (rijalun); when sakin, preceded by a permanent kasrah, and not followed by a heavy letter (wastaghfirhu); and when sakin, preceded by a ya sakin at a stopping point (khayrun).
Where both ra and the preceding letter are silent, the vowel on the letter before that decides it: fatha or dhamma makes ra heavy (sabrun, 'usrin), kasrah makes it light (dhikrun). Where ra carries a shaddah, its own vowel decides: heavy in sirran, light in durriyyun.

The four rules for a silent nun (nun sakin) or tanween
Rule	Letters	What happens
Izhar mutlaq (clear articulation)	ء ہ ع ح غ خ, the throat letters	The nun or tanween is pronounced clearly from its own makhraj, without ghunnah, e.g. an'amta, sawa'un 'alayhim.
Idgham (merging)	ر ل م ن و ی, the six letters of یرملون	The nun merges into the following letter so the two become one. With ن م و ی ("namu"), ghunnah is kept: idgham ma'al ghunnah, e.g. man yu'minu. With ر ل, no ghunnah is applied: idgham bila ghunnah, e.g. min ladunhu. This idgham applies only when the nun and the following letter are in different words; within a single word (dunya, qinwanun) there is no idgham.
Iqlab (conversion)	ب	The nun changes into a hidden mim and is pronounced with ghunnah, e.g. min ba'di, sami'un basirun.
Ikhfa haqiqi (concealment)	ت ث ج د ذ ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ف ق ك, the fifteen letters of ikhfa	The nun or tanween is hidden and pronounced with ghunnah, between izhar and idgham, e.g. man taba, qawlan thaqilan.

Where the nun itself is mushaddad, ghunnah is necessary, as with a mushaddad mim, and this is likewise called a harf ghunnah, e.g. inna rabbahum.

A silent mim (mim sakin) before the next letter
Next letter	Rule	What happens
م	Idgham	The two mims merge into one, pronounced with a shaddah, e.g. wahum muhtadun.
ب	Ikhfa shafawi (with ghunnah)	The mim's sound is held lightly through the nose, e.g. man ya'tasim billah.
Any other letter	Izhar shafawi	The mim is pronounced clearly from its own makhraj, without ghunnah, e.g. 'alayhim wa la'd-dallin.

A mushaddad mim requires ghunnah for the length of one alif, e.g. lamma, also called a harf ghunnah.

Alif, waw and ya, when sakin and preceded by a matching vowel, are the huruf maddah. If a harf maddah is followed by a hamzah within the same word, the madd is extended to two alifs: madd muttasil (madd wajib), as in sha'a, si'a, su'in. If the harf maddah ends one word and the hamzah begins the next, the madd is likewise extended to two alifs when the words are read joined together: madd munfasil (madd ja'iz), as in inna a'taina, alladhi at'amahum, qalu amanna; where a stop is made at the end of the first word, this madd does not apply.

The source's closing words

وَ اٰخِرُ دَعْوَانَا أَنِ الْحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ وَ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَّ اٰلهٖ وَ أَصْحَابِهٖ أَجْمَعِينَ

Wa ākhiru daʿwānā ani'l-ḥamdu li'llāhi rabbi'l-ʿālamīn, wa ṣalla'llāhu ʿalā sayyidinā Muḥammadin wa ālihī wa aṣḥābihī ajmaʿīn

And our last call is that all praise is for Allah, Lord of the worlds; and may Allah send blessings upon our master Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions.

Eight letters carry temporary (occasional) qualities beyond the general makhraj and sifat: lām, rāʾ, mīm sākinah and mushaddadah, nūn sākinah and mushaddadah, and the ḥurūf maddah (wāw, alif, yāʾ) together with hamzah.

Rules for lām

In the ism of Allāh, lām is tafkhīm (heavy) when preceded by fatḥah or ḍammah (Inna'llāha, Naṣru'llāh), and tarqīq (light) when preceded by kasrah: Bismi'llāhi. Allāhumma follows the same rule, being itself built on the ism Allāh.
Every lām outside the ism Allāh is tarqīq, e.g. mā wallāhum, kulluhū.

Rules for rāʾ

Rāʾ is tafkhīm in six cases: bearing its own fatḥah (Rabbanā); bearing its own ḍammah (Rusulunā); sākinah with the preceding letter bearing fatḥah (Barqun) or ḍammah (Turjiʿu); sākinah preceded by a temporary (ʿāriḍī) kasrah (Irjiʿū); and sākinah preceded by a permanent (aṣlī) kasrah while followed by a mustaʿlī (heavy) letter (Mirṣādan).
Rāʾ is tarqīq in three cases: bearing its own kasrah (Rijālun); sākinah preceded by a permanent kasrah and not followed by a mustaʿlī letter (Wastaghfirhu); and sākinah preceded by a yāʾ sākinah at a waqf (Khayrun).
Where rāʾ and the preceding letter are both sākin, the vowel of the letter before that governs: fatḥah or ḍammah yields tafkhīm (Ṣabrun, ʿUsrin), kasrah yields tarqīq (Dhikrun). Where rāʾ is mushaddadah, its own vowel governs directly: tafkhīm in Sirran, tarqīq in Durriyyun.

The four rules for nūn sākinah and tanwīn
Rule	Letters	Effect
Iẓhār muṭlaq	ء ہ ع ح غ خ (the ḥalq letters)	Clear articulation from the nūn's own makhraj, no ghunnah: Anʿamta, Sawāʾun ʿalayhim.
Idghām	ر ل م ن و ی (the six of یرملون)	The nūn merges into what follows. With ن م و ی ("namū"), ghunnah is retained: idghām maʿal-ghunnah, e.g. Man yuʾmin. With ر ل, no ghunnah: idghām bilā ghunnah, e.g. Min ladunhu. This idghām is conditioned on the nūn and the following letter belonging to two different words; within a single word (Dunyā, Qinwānun) no idghām occurs, and iẓhār applies instead.
Iqlāb (also called qalb)	ب	The nūn is converted to a concealed mīm, pronounced with ghunnah: Min baʿdi, Samīʿun baṣīrun.
Ikhfāʾ ḥaqīqī	ت ث ج د ذ ز س ش ص ض ط ظ ف ق ك (the fifteen ikhfāʾ letters)	The nūn or tanwīn is concealed, pronounced with ghunnah, at a point between iẓhār and idghām: Man tāba, Qawlan thaqīlan.

A mushaddadah nūn independently requires ghunnah, a ḥarf ghunnah, as with a mushaddadah mīm, e.g. Inna rabbahum.

Mīm sākinah before the following letter
Next letter	Rule	Effect
م	Idghām	The two mīms merge, pronounced with a shaddah: Wahum muhtadūn.
ب	Ikhfāʾ shafawī	The mīm's ghunnah is retained but its full articulation is concealed: Man yaʿtaṣim bi'llāh.
Any other letter	Iẓhār shafawī	Clear articulation from the mīm's own makhraj, without ghunnah: ʿAlayhim wa lā'ḍ-ḍāllīn.

A mushaddadah mīm requires ghunnah for the duration of one alif, Lammā, likewise termed a ḥarf ghunnah.

Alif, wāw and yāʾ, sākin and preceded by their corresponding vowel, constitute the ḥurūf maddah. Madd muttaṣil (also madd wājib) obtains where a ḥarf maddah is followed by hamzah within the same word, extending the madd to two alifs: Shāʾa, Sīʾa, Sūʾin. Madd munfaṣil (also madd jāʾiz) obtains where the ḥarf maddah closes one word and the hamzah opens the next, likewise extended to two alifs, but only on condition that the two words are recited joined (waṣl): Innā aʿṭaynā, Alladhī aṭʿamahum, Qālū āmannā; a waqf at the end of the first word removes the madd's applicability entirely.

The source's closing words

Wa ākhiru daʿwānā ani'l-ḥamdu li'llāhi rabbi'l-ʿālamīn, wa ṣalla'llāhu ʿalā sayyidinā Muḥammadin wa ālihī wa aṣḥābihī ajmaʿīn

And our last call is that all praise is for Allah, Lord of the worlds; and may Allah send blessings upon our master Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions.

Terms on this page

ghunnah idgham ikhfa iqlab izhar madd