An Analysis of the Evolution of Shiite Scholars’ Views on the Continuity of Quranic Recitations (Qira’at)

After the emergence of variations in Quranic recitations (Qira’at) and their restriction to the Seven and Ten Recitations (Qira’at) in the fourth century AH, Shiite scholars have demonstrated different approaches to deal with the massive reporting of Recitations (Qira’at) over the years. Some contemporary scholars believe that Shia Muslims have unanimously agreed on Quranic Recitations (Qira’at) from the beginning of the Quran’s revelation to the present day. However, a closer examination of sources reveals not only the absence of such unanimity but also significant changes in the views of Shiite scholars on the massive reporting of Quranic recitations (Qira’at) over the past fourteen centuries. Some have denied the massive reporting of Quranic recitations (Qira’at), while others have explicitly considered them massive reports. In this research, we have attempted to extract the opinions of renowned Shiite scholars from their remaining works and clarify the differences in their approaches to the issue of the massive reporting of the Quranic recitations (Qira’at) over the years. We have also analyzed and compared these viewpoints to illustrate the historical evolution of their views on this topic. The results of this study indicate that the perspectives of Shiite scholars regarding the massive reporting of Quranic recitations (Qira’at) vary. In the first to fifth centuries, the permissibility of famous recitations (Qira’at) was discussed, and from the sixth century onwards, the issue of the massive reporting of Quranic Recitations (Qira’at) was raised. From the 11th century onwards, Shiite scholars began to deny the massive reporting of Quranic recitations (Qira’at).