A Critique of the Perspective of Alam Sabeet Nili on Identifying the Correct Quranic Recitation (Qira’at)

Quranic Recitation (Qira’at) is the most important key to accessing the treasury of Quranic knowledge. However, after the Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him), differences in Quranic recitations (Qira’at) increased, and experts in Quranic sciences presented various rules for finding the correct recitation (Qira’at). Among them, Alam Sabeet Nili, a Shiite scholar and Quranic researcher from Iraq, attempted to use phonetics, an intentional approach, and Quranic interpretation to refute the existence of synonymous and univocal in the Quran. He considered any determination or omission of words or changes in the word order in verses as indicative of a change in meaning and divine intent. He introduced a textual criterion for identifying the correct recitation (Qira’at). However, his views on identifying the correct Quranic recitation (Qira’at) are problematic, such as proposing the correct recitation (Qira’at) before examining various recitations (Qira’at) and mixing the establishment of one recitation (Qira’at) in the current Mushaf with preferring one recitation (Qira’at) over others. This article, using a descriptive-analytical and library-based approach, critiques and examines Nili’s criterion in this regard, emphasizing that one of the criteria for identifying the correct Quranic recitation (Qira’at) is the use of intra-textual relationships, including word co-occurrence, melody, and coherence of verses..