In the name of Allah The Compassionate The Loving.
HALQ (THROAT) LETTERS
Salam alaikum wa rahmatu Allahi wa BarakatuHu. Peace be upon the followers of guidance.

letters of the throat


There are six letters that are emitted from the throat, as taught to us by our ulema. They are divided into three sections with two letters in each section. Asfal halq (lowest throat), wasatal halq (middle throat), adnal halq (closest top throat).

It is incumbant on all students of tajwid to memorize the following sentence, which is taught to us by our shuyukh in order to help us remember the letters of the throat:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ


Look at the first letter of each of the words above. The first letter of each word represents the letters of the throat, starting with the lower throat, then the middle throat, and then the top throat. There are 2 letters in each section.

Lower Throat: ا and ه , that is أَخِي هَاكَ .
Middle Throat: ع and ح , that is عِلْمً حَازَهُ .
Top Throat: غ and خ , that is غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ .


The meaning of the sentence above is: "My brother take knowledge (the one that) acquires it (is) without loss." Repeat the sentence, until you have memorized it by heart. Also repeat it tommorow and the following day and days afterwards so that it becomes thabit (firm). It will be used in a few places in the rules of tajwid.


أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ



ا


The ا (Alif) is actually the same letter as ء (hamza). Somtimes you find the ء written above , like ئ ؤ أ . The ء (hamza) is a completely different letter than the ع (ain), and is pronounced in the lower throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The ا or ء corresponds to أَخِي , the bottom of the throat.

Listen to the following ayat from surah fatihah:

{ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ}

Listen to the sound of ا in ٱلۡحَمۡدُ and ع in ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ . The ا emits from the lower throat, and the ع emits from the middle throat.



Listen to the following word:

{أَنۡعَمۡتَ}

Listen to the sound of ا and ع . The ا emits from the lower throat, and the ع emits from the middle throat.

Here are some more examples:

{ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ}

(أَعُوذُ بالله مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ)

{إِيَّاكَ نَعۡبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسۡتَعِينُ }

{صِرَٲطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنۡعَمۡتَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ}

{عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ}



ه


The ه (ha) and is pronounced in the lower throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The ه corresponds to هَاكَ , the bottom of the throat.

Listen to the following ayat from surah Shams:

{وَٱلشَّمۡسِ وَضُحَٮٰهَا}

Listen to the sound of ه and ح in ضُحَٮٰهَا . The ه emits from the lower throat, and the ح emits from the middle throat. The ه (ha) has a sound with little breath. It sound like a person that laughs because of the enjoyment of learning the tajwid from our noble ulema, like ha ha ha.

On the other hand the ح has a sound with a lot of breath, like after one has completed learning the tajwid from our noble ulema, like aaaaahhhhhhhhhh.

Listen to the the basmallah:

{بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ}

Do you notice how the هِ is pronounced in ٱللهِ ? It is pronounced with less breath. Also if you listen carefully, you can distinguish the sound of هِ in ٱللهِ and the حِ in ٱلرَّحِيمِ . The هِ in ٱللهِ is pronounced with less breath than the حِ in ٱلرَّحِيمِ .

Here are some more examples:

{ٱهۡدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٲطَ ٱلۡمُسۡتَقِيمَ}

(أَعُوذُ بالله مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ)

{قُلۡ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ}

{صِرَٲطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنۡعَمۡتَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ}

{وَلَمۡ يَكُن لَّهُ ۥ ڪُفُوًا أَحَدٌ}

{طه}



ع


The ع (Aain) is pronounced similar to ا , but slightly above the throat. The sound is bit more stressed. The ع (ain) is a completely different letter than the ء (hamza), and is pronounced in the middle throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The ع corresponds to عِلْمً , the middle of the throat.

Listen to the following ayat from surah fatihah:

{ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ}

Listen to the sound of ع in ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ and ا in ٱلۡحَمۡدُ. The ع emits from the middle throat, and the ا emits from the lower throat.



Listen to the following word:

{أَنۡعَمۡتَ}

Listen to the sound of ع and ا . The ع emits from the middle throat, and the ا emits from the lower throat.

Here are some more examples:

{ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ}

(أَعُوذُ بالله مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ)

{إِيَّاكَ نَعۡبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسۡتَعِينُ }

{صِرَٲطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنۡعَمۡتَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ}

{عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ}



ح


The ح (hha) and is pronounced in the middle throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The ح corresponds to حَازَهُ , the middle of the throat.

Listen to the following ayat from surah Shams:

{وَٱلشَّمۡسِ وَضُحَٮٰهَا}

Listen to the sound of ح and ه in ضُحَٮٰهَا . The ح emits from the middle throat and the ه emits from the lower throat. The ح has a sound with a lot of breath, like after one has completed learning the tajwid from our noble ulema, like aaaaahhhhhhhhhh.

On the other hand the ه (ha) has a sound with little breath. It sound like a person that laughs because of the enjoyment of learning the tajwid from our noble ulema, like ha ha ha.



Listen to the the basmallah:

{بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ}

Do you notice how the ح is pronounced in ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ? It is pronounced with breath. Also if you listen carefully, you can distinguish the sound of the حِ in ٱلرَّحِيمِ and the هِ in ٱللهِ. The حِ in ٱلرَّحِيمِ is pronounced with more breath than the هِ in ٱللهِ.



Here are some more examples:

{ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ}

{ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ}

{حمٓ}

{قُلۡ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ}

{وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ}



غ


The غ (gha) and is pronounced in the top throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The غ corresponds to غَيْرُ , the top of the throat.

Repeat the following three times:

غَ (gha) غِ (ghe) غُ (ghu) اَغْ (agh)

غَ (gha) غِ (ghe) غُ (ghu) اَغْ (agh)

غَ (gha) غِ (ghe) غُ (ghu) اَغْ (agh)

Can you feel the sound resonating from the top of the throat? Pronounce the غ like agggghhhhhhhh, when one is gargling. Keep in mind that the غ is not a qalqala letter like ج and it does not not have a slight "a" sound after. One should not pronounce the غ like aggggggghhhhhhhha .

Also the غ is a thick letter. The thick letters are:

خص ضغط قظ

When the غ is followed by an ا , one must pronounce it with a thick sound, more like an "o" sound than an "a" sound. One should keep the side of the lips together.

Listen to the following ayats, paying attention to the غَا and the جَا:

{كَلَّآ إِنَّ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ لَيَطۡغَىٰٓ}

{إِذَا جَآءَ نَصۡرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلۡفَتۡحُ}

Notice the غَا in surah alaq is thick with an "o" sound, and the جَا is surah nasr is thin more like an "a" sound. Also do not pronounce the غ like only a "g" sound, but also with a slight gargling sound after like "gh" .



Here are some more examples:

{غَيۡرِ ٱلۡمَغۡضُوبِ عَلَيۡهِمۡ وَلَا ٱلضَّآلِّينَ}

{مَآ أَغۡنَىٰ عَنۡهُ مَالُهُ ۥ وَمَا ڪَسَبَ}

{فَٱلۡمُغِيرَٲتِ صُبۡحً۬ا}

{كَلَّآ إِنَّ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ لَيَطۡغَىٰٓ}

{أَن رَّءَاهُ ٱسۡتَغۡنَىٰٓ}



خ


The خ (kha) and is pronounced in the top throat.

Remember the sentence:

أَخِي هَاكَ عِلْمً حَازَهُ غَيْرُ خَاسِرٍ

The خ corresponds to خَاسِرٍ , the top of the throat.

Repeat the following three times:

خَ (kha) خِ (khe) خُ (khu) اَخْ (akh)

خَ (kha) خِ (khe) خُ (khu) اَخْ (akh)

خَ (kha) خِ (khe) خُ (khu) اَخْ (akh)

Can you feel the sound resonating from the top of the throat? Pronounce the خ like akkkkkkkhhhhhhhh. Keep in mind that the خ is not a qalqala letter like ج and it does not not have a slight "a" sound after. One should not pronounce the غ like akkkkhhhhhhhha .

Also the خ is a thick letter. The thick letters are:

خص ضغط قظ

When the خ is followed by an ا , one must pronounce it with a thick sound, more like an "o" sound than an "a" sound. One should keep the side of the lips together.

Listen to the following ayats, paying attention to the خَا and the جَا:

{خَـٰلِدِينَ فِيہَآ أَبَدًا}

{إِذَا جَآءَ نَصۡرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلۡفَتۡحُ}

Notice the خَا in surah alaq is thick with an "o" sound, and the جَا is surah nasr is thin more like an "a" sound. Also do not pronounce the خ like a "k" sound, but also with a slight gargling sound after like "kh" .



Here are some more examples:

{مِن شَرِّ ٱلۡوَسۡوَاسِ ٱلۡخَنَّاسِ}

{مِن شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ}

{وَرَأَيۡتَ ٱلنَّاسَ يَدۡخُلُونَ فِى دِينِ ٱللَّهِ أَفۡوَاجً۬ا}

{يَحۡسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ ۥۤ أَخۡلَدَهُ}

{وَلَلۡأَخِرَةُ خَيۡرٌ۬ لَّكَ مِنَ ٱلۡأُولَىٰ}