"I heard 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud saying: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "[Whoever recites a letter] from Allah's Book, then he receives the reward from it, and the reward of ten the like of it. I do not say that Alif Lam Mim is a letter, but Alif is a letter, Lam is a letter and Mim is a letter."
Hadith Commentary: The Immense Reward of Qur'anic Recitation
This profound narration from Jami' at-Tirmidhi (2910) illuminates the extraordinary spiritual merit attached to reciting the Qur'an, even at the most fundamental level of individual letters.
The Multiplication of Reward
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) establishes that for every single letter recited from the Book of Allah, a believer is granted the reward of one good deed, multiplied tenfold. This divine generosity is rooted in Allah's infinite mercy, as mentioned in Surah Al-An'am: "Whoever comes with a good deed will have ten times the like thereof" (6:160). The Qur'an, being Allah's direct speech, carries a reward that transcends ordinary acts of worship.
Clarification on Letter Count
The Prophet's specific clarification regarding "Alif Lam Mim" serves a crucial pedagogical purpose. He explicitly states that these three Arabic characters are not to be counted as one collective unit, but rather as three distinct letters, each carrying its own individual reward. This meticulous explanation prevents any potential misunderstanding and emphasizes that the multiplication applies to every discrete phoneme and orthographic unit of the Qur'anic text.
Scholarly Insights
Classical scholars like Imam An-Nawawi explain that this multiplication applies to both the Arabic-literate and non-Arabic speaker who recites with proper intention. Ibn Al-Qayyim elaborates that the reward is compounded further when the recitation is accompanied by understanding, reflection, and implementation. The hadith thus serves as a powerful incentive for Muslims to engage consistently with the Qur'an, regardless of their level of proficiency.
Practical Implications
This teaching encourages the Ummah to make Qur'anic recitation a daily practice. Even a few verses recited with presence of heart can accumulate immense spiritual capital. It demonstrates that Islamic worship values sincerity and consistency over mere quantity, making the treasures of the Qur'an accessible to every believer, young or old, scholar or layperson.