The two positions:
- Al-Araf (69): "And He increased you in bodily stature (bastatan with sad)" — the mushaf writes it with sad
- Al-Shuara (45): "And He increased you in bodily stature (bastatan with sin)" — the mushaf writes it with sin
Reason for the spelling difference:
The Uthmani mushaf wrote the first with sad and the second with sin — reflecting the dialect differences in reading that the writing committee documented.
Reader preferences:
- Hamza, Al-Kisai, and Khalaf: read Al-Araf with sin despite the written sad — following the narration
- Remaining readers: follow the written form — sad in Al-Araf and sin in Al-Shuara
- Shuaba (from Asim): reads Al-Araf with sad following the written form
The derived principle:
Narration takes precedence over written form when they conflict — the mushaf was written without dots or diacritics, so the oral mutawatir narration determines the correct pronunciation. Ibn Al-Jazari: "Reading is a followed Sunna — it takes precedence over script and orthography."
Question: How does "bastatan" in Al-Araf differ from "bastatan" in Al-Shuara in terms of script and reading?
Answer: Al-Araf: written with sad — Hamza and Al-Kisai read it with sin. Al-Shuara: written with sin — all read it with sin. Narration takes precedence over written form.