In short: An Ijazah (also written Ijaza or Ijaazah) is a formal authorisation given by a qualified teacher to a student, certifying that the student has mastered the recitation of the Qur'an and can now teach it to others. The Sanad is the chain of teachers through which that authorisation reaches back, person to person, all the way to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. At Jamia Hafs, our Ijazah programme is Advanced Tajweed, a two-year course leading to Ijazah with Sanad in Riwayat Hafs.
What is an Ijazah?
An Ijazah is one of the oldest and most carefully preserved traditions in Islam. It is a direct licence from a qualified scholar (a Shaykh / Shaykha) to a student, given only after the student has recited the entire Qur'an correctly to the teacher, in accordance with the strict rules of Tajweed. Once the Ijazah is granted, the student is then permitted to teach that recitation to others, and their own students may in turn earn Ijazah from them.
The chain of teacher-to-student connections stretching back from a modern Ijazah to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is called the Sanad. At Jamia Hafs, our lead teacher's Sanad is 43 links long, from him back to the Prophet ﷺ — each name listed publicly on our Sanad page.
An Ijazah is not a certificate you can print from the internet. It is a living transmission of the Qur'an, passed from a qualified teacher to a trusted student, mouth to ear, for over 1,400 years.
— The tradition of Ijazah and Sanad
What is the Riwayat Hafs?
The Riwayat Hafs is the recitation of the Qur'an transmitted by Imam Hafs ibn Sulayman (90–180 AH), who received it from his teacher Imam 'Asim al-Kufi, in a chain going back to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Riwayat Hafs is the most widely recited narration of the Qur'an in the Muslim world today — it is what you hear in most mosques, most recordings, and most printed Mushafs. Our Ijazah is in this narration. (Read more: Who was Imam Hafs?)
Who can earn an Ijazah with us?
- You can already read the Qur'an fluently — not word by word, but in flowing recitation
- You are ready to commit to a two-year programme of regular live classes
- You are willing to recite the full Qur'an from Surah Al-Fatihah to Surah An-Naas, aloud, to your teacher, over the course of the programme
- You are serious about accurate pronunciation, rules of Tajweed, and the discipline this requires
If you cannot yet read the Qur'an fluently, you need to do Fluent Qur'an Reading or Basic Tajweed first — see all our Qur'an courses.
The programme — Advanced Tajweed leading to Ijazah
- Length: Approximately two years, depending on your pace
- Format: Live online classes — never pre-recorded
- Language of instruction: Urdu and Hindi (the Qur'an itself is in Arabic)
- Teacher: Mufti Ataul Rehman — qualified Aalim, Hafiz, Qari and Mufti, holding Ijazah with Sanad in Riwayat Hafs
- Female teachers: Available for sisters
- Outcome: Formal Ijazah with Sanad in Riwayat Hafs on completion
- Fee: See the fees page — paid monthly, no contract
- First trial class: Free — no card, no commitment
What you take away
At the end of the programme — after the full Qur'an has been recited to the Shaykh — you are formally given an Ijazah document stating that you are authorised to recite the Qur'an in Riwayat Hafs, and to teach it to others. Your own Sanad begins from that moment: your teacher's teachers become your Sanad, extending backwards to the Prophet ﷺ.
This is a rare and precious form of knowledge. It cannot be bought or rushed. It is given only when the Shaykh is satisfied that the recitation has been truly mastered.