Sifat Al-Hams — The Ten Letters of Whispering

Definition of Hams:
Linguistically: a hidden sound. Technically: the flow of breath when pronouncing the letter due to weakness of reliance on its articulation point — breath is not held back.

Its ten letters:
Gathered in the mnemonic: "Fahathahu shakhsun sakata"
ف — ح — ث — هـ — ش — خ — ص — س — ك — ت

How to recognize it:
Pronounce the letter and hold your hand in front of your mouth — if you feel airflow the letter is whispered. Try "s" compared to "z" — you will find airflow in "s" but not "z."

Source note:
Ibn Al-Jazari states in Al-Jazariyya that hams is opposite to jahr — one of the well-known pairs of opposing letter attributes.

Tajweed importance:
Knowing hams prevents the reader from forcefully holding breath on these letters and helps produce them with natural lightness without extra effort.