Madd Silah Sughra And Kubra

Q: What Is the Difference Between Madd Silah Sughra and Madd Silah Kubra?

Madd Silah Sughra occurs when Ha' al-Kinayah falls between two voweled letters and is followed by a non-Hamzah letter — extending two counts like Madd Tabi'i. Madd Silah Kubra occurs in the same position but is followed by a Hamzah, extending four to five counts exactly like Madd Ja'iz Munfasil.

Q: Is Ha' al-Isharah in "هذه" Subject to Madd Silah Rules?

Yes. The Ha' in هَذِهِ (the demonstrative pronoun) follows the same Madd Silah rules as Ha' al-Kinayah. It receives Madd Silah Sughra, Madd Silah Kubra, or no extension at all — depending on whether the surrounding letters are voweled or saakin and whether the following letter is a Hamzah.

Q: Is Madd Silah Kubra Mandatory or Variable in Hafs Recitation?

Madd Silah Kubra follows the same ruling as Madd Ja'iz Munfasil in Hafs 'an 'Asim — meaning four or five counts are both valid. However, whichever count you choose must be maintained consistently throughout your entire recitation. Mixing counts without a consistent principle is considered a recitation error (lahn khafi). See more on lahn in Tajweed for a detailed breakdown of recitation-level errors.

Key Takeaways

Madd Silah occurs when Ha’ al-Kinayah (pronoun ه) falls between two voweled letters, connecting it with a corresponding long vowel sound.

Madd Silah Sughra extends the Ha’ pronoun two counts when the following letter is not a Hamzah, making it a natural-length Madd.

Madd Silah Kubra extends the Ha’ pronoun four to five counts when the following letter is a Hamzah, classifying it under Madd Ja’iz Munfasil.

Three specific words — يَرْضَهُ، فَأَلْقِهْ، and أَرْجِهْ — are exceptions where Hafs recites the Ha’ without any connecting vowel extension.

Ha’ al-Ishah (هذه) follows the same Silah rules as Ha’ al-Kinayah when it falls between two voweled letters.

Every student who reaches the Madd chapter in Tajweed study eventually encounters a rule that feels invisible — because it involves a letter that barely seems to exist in the written text. Madd Silah Sughra and Kubra govern the extension of Ha’ al-Kinayah, the third-person masculine singular pronoun ه, when it falls between two voweled letters. Miss this rule and your recitation loses a layer of precision that every certified instructor listens for.

Madd Silah is divided into two categories based on what follows the Ha’. If a non-Hamzah letter follows, the Ha’ connects to a short vowel extension of two counts — this is Madd Silah Sughra. If a Hamzah follows, the connection extends to four or five counts, producing Madd Silah Kubra, which behaves exactly like Madd Munfasil.

What Is Ha’ al-Kinayah and When Does It Receive Madd Silah?

Ha’ al-Kinayah is the pronoun ه used to refer to a singular absent masculine entity — appearing in words like عِنْدَهُ, كَمِثْلِهِ, and بَعْدَهُ. It receives Madd Silah only when it falls between two voweled (moving) letters — meaning the letter before it carries a harakah and the letter after it also carries a harakah.

When this condition is met, the Ha’ is not simply pronounced with its own dammah or kasrah. Instead, a connecting long vowel is added: a Waw Maddiyyah (وْ) if the Ha’ carries dammah, or a Ya’ Maddiyyah (يْ) if it carries kasrah.

When Does Ha’ al-Kinayah NOT Receive Any Madd?

Ha’ al-Kinayah is not extended in three specific phonetic environments:

When it falls between two sukoons — e.g., وَهَدَيْنَاهُ النَّجْدَيْنِ (Al-Balad 90:10)
When the letter before it has a harakah but the letter after it carries sukoon — e.g., فَيُعَذِّبُهُ اللَّهُ الْعَذَابَ الْأَكْبَرَ (Al-Ghashiyah 88:24)
When the letter before it has sukoon but the letter after it carries a harakah — e.g., إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ (Al-Qadr 97:1)

Understanding these non-Madd positions is the essential first step. At Learn Quran Tajweed Academy, students in the Intermediate Tajweed Course spend focused time on these three environments before moving to the Silah categories — because applying Silah where it does not belong is an error just as serious as missing it.

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What Is Madd Silah Sughra?

Madd Silah Sughra (Minor Connecting Madd) occurs when Ha’ al-Kinayah falls between two voweled letters and the letter immediately following it is not a Hamzah. The Ha’ is connected to a long vowel — Waw or Ya’ — and extended for two counts, identical to Madd Tabi’i (Natural Madd).

This makes Madd Silah Sughra a natural-length Madd governed by the same two-count principle that applies to all foundational Madd rules.

Madd Silah Sughra Example in the Quran

وَلَمْ يَكُن لهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ

Wa lam yakul laho kufuwan ahad

“And there is none comparable to Him.” (Al-Ikhlas 112:4)

Notice that لَّهُ is followed by كُفُوًا — a non-Hamzah letter. The Ha’ therefore connects to a Waw Maddiyyah and is read with two counts. This Waw does not appear in the Mushaf text — it is a recitation addition governed by Tajweed rule.

The Written vs. Recited Distinction

One of the most instructive teaching moments I encounter repeatedly with students at Learn Quran Tajweed Academy is the shock on their face when they realize the Waw or Ya’ in Madd Silah is not written in the Mushaf.

They scan the page and cannot find it. This is precisely why Tajweed cannot be learned from text alone — the oral transmission tradition (tawatur) carries what the script does not show.

What Is Madd Silah Kubra?

Madd Silah Kubra (Major Connecting Madd) occurs when Ha’ al-Kinayah falls between two voweled letters and the letter immediately following it is a Hamzah (ء). In this case, the connecting long vowel extends to four or five counts, exactly like Madd Munfasil (Disconnected Madd), because the Hamzah triggers elongation in a separate word.

Hafs ‘an ‘Asim recites Madd Munfasil at four or five counts. Madd Silah Kubra follows this identical ruling — making it one of the Madd Ja’iz (Permissible) categories where the reader has a valid range, provided consistency is maintained throughout the entire recitation.

Madd Silah Kubra Example in the Quran

وَمَا يُكَذِّبُ بِهِ إِلَّا كُلُّ مُعْتَدٍ أَثِيمٍ

Wa mā yukadhdhibu bihī illā kullu mu’tadin athīm

“And none denies it except every sinful transgressor.” (Al-Mutaffifin 83:12)

Here بِهِ is followed by إِلَّا — a Hamzah-initiated word. The Ha’ connects to a Ya’ Maddiyyah and extends four to five counts. Students working toward Ijazah certification must be precise and consistent in this measurement.

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How Madd Silah Kubra Compares to Madd Munfasil

Feature	Madd Silah Kubra	Madd Munfasil
What precedes	Ha’ al-Kinayah	Any Madd letter
What triggers extension	Hamzah in next word	Hamzah in next word
Count (Hafs)	4–5 counts	4–5 counts
Written in Mushaf?	No (Waw/Ya’ added in recitation)	Yes
Classification	Madd Ja’iz	Madd Ja’iz

Working with Ijazah-certified instructors through Learn Quran Tajweed Academy’s Advanced Tajweed Course is the most reliable way to calibrate these count lengths with precision, especially for students targeting full Ijazah.

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What Are the Exceptions to the Madd Silah Rules?

The Madd Silah framework, despite its clarity, carries exceptions in the recitation of Hafs ‘an ‘Asim that every serious student must memorize individually.

The Three Words Where Silah Is Dropped Despite the Rule

These three words appear between two voweled letters — the condition for Silah — yet Hafs does not apply the extension:

يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ — وَإِن تَشْكُرُوا يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ (Az-Zumar 39:7)

The Ha’ in يَرْضَهُ carries dammah, is preceded by a voweled letter, and followed by لَ — a voweled letter. Yet Hafs reads it with a plain dammah, without connecting it to a Waw Maddiyyah. This is called qasr al-silah al-sughra (shortening of Silah Sughra) — a specific exception transmitted directly from the chain of recitation.

فَأَلْقِهْ إِلَيْهِمْ — اذْهَب بِّكِتَابِي هَذَا فَأَلْقِهْ إِلَيْهِمْ (An-Naml 27:28)

Hafs recites فَأَلْقِهْ with a saakin Ha’ (sukoon), rather than a voweled Ha’ that would trigger Silah. What would logically be Madd Silah Kubra (because إِلَيْهِمْ begins with a voweled Hamzah after the Ha’) is instead replaced by a complete stillness on the Ha’.

أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ — appearing in both Al-A’raf 7:111 and Ash-Shu’ara 26:36

Hafs again reads the Ha’ with sukoon — أَرْجِهْ — halting on the Ha’ rather than extending it, despite the following Waw being voweled.

These three words are non-negotiable in the Hafs recitation tradition. Any student pursuing Ijazah must recite them exactly as transmitted — no deduction from rule logic can override the chain of narration.

For a deeper look at how these rule interactions function across the Madd family, the complete guide to Tajweed rules at Learn Quran Tajweed Academy provides structured coverage.

How Does Ha’ al-Isharah (هذه) Follow Madd Silah Rules?

Ha’ al-Isharah — the Ha’ in the demonstrative pronoun هَذِهِ — is attached to the Madd Silah framework by scholars and treated identically to Ha’ al-Kinayah. The same three conditions apply: the Ha’ must fall between two voweled letters for Silah to occur.

The following table summarizes its application across three distinct Quranic contexts:

Verse	Context	Ruling	Count
إِنَّ هَذِهِ تَذْكِرَةٌ (Al-Insan 76:29)	Ha’ followed by تَ (non-Hamzah)	Madd Silah Sughra	2 counts
وَإِنَّ هَذِهِ أُمَّتُكُمْ (Al-Mu’minun 23:52)	Ha’ followed by أُ (Hamzah)	Madd Silah Kubra	4–5 counts
هَذِهِ النَّارُ (At-Tur 52:14)	Ha’ followed by ن with sukoon (Al- prefix)	No Madd Silah	0 counts

The third example is particularly instructive. Students sometimes assume that because هذه ends with a kasrah, it should always carry Silah.

The sukoon on the Lam of the definite article نَّارُ — after the Alif Lam assimilation — is what closes the door on Silah here.

Correct identification requires listening carefully to the phonetic environment, not reading mechanically from the written form.

For students working to build this kind of analytical listening ability, our Quran Tarteel Course at Learn Quran Tajweed Academy trains measured, attentive recitation that makes these distinctions second nature over time.

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How Does Madd Silah Fit Within the Broader Madd Framework?

Madd Silah Sughra is classified under Madd Tabi’i (Natural Madd) — the two-count foundation of all Madd rules. Madd Silah Kubra is classified under Madd Ja’iz Munfasil — the four-to-five-count Madd triggered by a Hamzah in a separate word.

Madd Type	Classification	Count	Trigger
Madd Silah Sughra	Madd Tabi’i	2	Ha’ between two voweled letters; non-Hamzah follows
Madd Silah Kubra	Madd Ja’iz Munfasil	4–5	Ha’ between two voweled letters; Hamzah follows

This integration matters for Ijazah students because any inconsistency between how you recite Madd Silah Kubra and how you recite Madd Munfasil is flagged immediately. Both must be held to the same count throughout the entire Quran.

Understanding Madd Muttasil and Madd Munfasil in depth before approaching Silah Kubra is the sequence we follow in all advanced courses at Learn Quran Tajweed Academy.

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Conclusion

Madd Silah Sughra and Kubra reveal a layer of precision in Quranic recitation that written text alone cannot convey. The Ha’ pronoun — small and often overlooked — carries a full set of rules governing when it extends, by how much, and when it remains still. Mastering it requires both analytical understanding and trained listening.

The four exceptions in Hafs’s recitation make clear that transmitted knowledge always takes precedence over deductive rule application. No amount of pattern recognition replaces the oral chain of narration that authentic Tajweed scholarship preserves.

Alhamdulillah, these rules are learnable — and with consistent practice under qualified guidance, they move from conscious effort to natural fluency in recitation.

Frequently Asked Questions About Madd Silah Sughra and Kubra

What Is the Difference Between Madd Silah Sughra and Madd Silah Kubra?

Madd Silah Sughra occurs when Ha’ al-Kinayah falls between two voweled letters and is followed by a non-Hamzah letter — extending two counts like Madd Tabi’i. Madd Silah Kubra occurs in the same position but is followed by a Hamzah, extending four to five counts exactly like Madd Ja’iz Munfasil.

Is Ha’ al-Isharah in “هذه” Subject to Madd Silah Rules?

Yes. The Ha’ in هَذِهِ (the demonstrative pronoun) follows the same Madd Silah rules as Ha’ al-Kinayah. It receives Madd Silah Sughra, Madd Silah Kubra, or no extension at all — depending on whether the surrounding letters are voweled or saakin and whether the following letter is a Hamzah.

Is Madd Silah Kubra Mandatory or Variable in Hafs Recitation?

Madd Silah Kubra follows the same ruling as Madd Ja’iz Munfasil in Hafs ‘an ‘Asim — meaning four or five counts are both valid. However, whichever count you choose must be maintained consistently throughout your entire recitation. Mixing counts without a consistent principle is considered a recitation error (lahn khafi). See more on lahn in Tajweed for a detailed breakdown of recitation-level errors.

What Is Ha’ al-Kinayah and When Does It Receive Madd Silah?

When Does Ha’ al-Kinayah NOT Receive Any Madd?