The Rāʾ — Heavy or Light
Heavy, light, and where both are read
Core idea
The rāʾ is heavy by default. It is light when it has kasra, or when it is sākin after kasra under the conditions listed; in two cases both can be read.
Why it matters
Rāʾ comes up very often, and mistakes are heavy when it should be light, or light when it should be heavy. Its own vowel decides most cases.
Lesson
The default for rāʾ is tafkhīm. The light cases and the two-way cases follow from the rāʾ’s own vowel and the letters around it in the word. The book lists eight heavy cases, four light cases and two where both are read.
In detail, with examples
Tafkhīm (heavy)
This is the default for rāʾ. The rāʾ is heavy when it has fatḥa or ḍamma, when it is sākin after fatḥa or ḍamma, and in the special cases below.
عَصْرِsākin at pause, after a sākin after fatḥa
At pause the rāʾ is sākin; the letter before it is sākin and not yāʾ, and the letter before that has a fatḥa. In waṣl the rāʾ keeps its own ḥaraka and follows that rule.
خُسْرْsākin at pause, after a sākin after ḍamma
At pause the rāʾ is sākin; the letter before it is sākin and the letter before that has a ḍamma. In waṣl the rāʾ follows its own ḥaraka.
Tarqīq (light)
The rāʾ is light when it has kasra, when it is sākin after an original kasra with no istiʿlāʾ letter after it, when it is sākin after a sākin letter that has a kasra, or after a yāʾ of līn.
حِجْرْsākin at pause, after a non-istiʿlāʾ sākin after kasra
At pause the rāʾ is sākin; the letter before it is sākin and not an istiʿlāʾ letter, and the letter before that has a kasra. In waṣl the rāʾ follows its own ḥaraka.
يْرْsākin at pause, after a yāʾ of līn
At pause the rāʾ is sākin after a sākin yāʾ of līn. In waṣl the rāʾ follows its own ḥaraka.
Both can be read
In two cases both heavy and light are allowed. In the first, stopping with a sukūn keeps tafkhīm; in the second, both are allowed at pause, and Ibn al-Jazarī’s choice is noted in the book.
How do I know heavy or light?
Answer in order. The first «yes» decides the ruling; on «no», go to the next question.
- 1
Do you stop on the rāʾ, making it the last letter of the āyah?
- yes, the letter before is sākin and not yāʾ, and the one before it has fatḥa or ḍammatafkhīm
- yes, the letter before is a sākin yāʾ after fatḥa (yāʾ of līn)tarqīq
- yes, the letter before is sākin and not istiʿlāʾ, with kasra before ittarqīq
- yes, the letter before is a sākin istiʿlāʾ letter, with kasra before itboth
- no: → next question
- 2
Does the rāʾ itself have a kasra or tanwīn kasr?
- yes, the rāʾ itself moves with kasratarqīq
- no: fatḥa or ḍamma: tafkhīm. If it is sākin, the next question.
- 3
Is the rāʾ sākin, with a fatḥa or ḍamma on the letter before it?
- yes, sākin after fatḥa or ḍamma, in waṣl or at pausetafkhīm
- no: → next question
- 4
Is the rāʾ the first letter of the word, with a passing kasra from a hamzat waṣl?
- yes, ٱرْ: the kasra is passing, and the rāʾ stays heavytafkhīm
- no: → next question
- 5
Is the rāʾ sākin, with a kasra before it in the same word?
- yes, no istiʿlāʾ letter follows it in the wordtarqīq
- yes, an istiʿlāʾ letter with kasra follows itboth
- yes, an istiʿlāʾ letter without kasra follows ittafkhīm
- no: no: the basic rule, tafkhīm.
Ḥafṣ and Qālūn
Warsh's extra tarqīq does not apply to Qālūn
Warsh makes light some rāʾ beyond the common rule, such as one followed by a sākin yāʾ or a joined kasra. That does not apply to Qālūn: the rāʾ of rabbi is light by its own kasra, and the rest are heavy by the basic rule.
Qālūn: tafkhīm is the basic rule; tarqīq only by kasra
In your mushaf
Tafkhīm has its own colour in the app’s mushaf. Tarqīq has no separate colour there, so the rāʾ keeps the text colour. Change the tafkhīm colour in Settings and the examples here change too.
Key points
- 1
Does the rāʾ have fatḥa or ḍamma? Then it is heavy. If it has kasra, it is light.
- 2
If it is sākin: what is before it? A fatḥa or ḍamma makes it heavy (with the exceptions above); a kasra sends you to the next question; after a yāʾ of līn it is light.
- 3
If there is a kasra before it: is there an istiʿlāʾ letter after it in the word? If not, it is light; if that letter is kasra, both can be read; if not kasra, it is heavy.
- 4
If it is sākin and the letter before it is also sākin: look at the letter before that. A fatḥa or ḍamma there makes it heavy; a kasra makes it light; if the sākin letter is an istiʿlāʾ letter, follow the two-way cases above.
- 5
Are you stopping on it with sukūn? In the first two-way case tafkhīm stays; in the second both are allowed. Otherwise the ruling does not change.
Glossary
التَّفْخِيم
al-tafkhīm
saying the letter full and heavy
التَّرْقِيق
al-tarqīq
saying the letter light and thin
الاسْتِعْلَاء
al-istiʿlāʾ
a quality of some letters that raises the tongue, and calls for tafkhīm
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