Abd al-Basit Abd al-Samad (1345 - 1409 AH), an Egyptian Quran reader and one of the most prominent figures in this field, was nicknamed "The Voice of Mecca", He memorized the Noble Qur’an at the hands of Sheikh Muhammad al-Amir, the sheikh of his village book, and took the readings at the hands of the masterful Sheikh Muhammad Salim Hamadeh.
He was appointed as a reciter for the Imam al-Shafi’i Mosque in 1952, and then for the Imam al-Hussein Mosque in 1958, succeeding Sheikh Mahmoud Ali al-Banna.
He entered the Egyptian radio in 1951 AD, and his first recitation was from Surat Fatir, he left for the radio a wealth of recordings, along with the recited and recited Qur’anic copies of the Qur’an, as well as the recitation of the Qur’an for Arab and Islamic countries, He traveled the world as an ambassador for the Book of God, and was the first captain of Egypt's readers in 1984.
Birth and upbringing
The reciter Sheikh Abdel Basset Mohamed Abdel Samad was born in 1927 AD in Armant, Qena Governorate (Armant was annexed to Luxor Governorate in 2009 ) in southern Upper Egypt. Where he grew up in an environment concerned with the memorization and recitation of the Noble Qur’an. The grandfather, Sheikh Abdul Samad, was one of the memorizers known for his ability to memorize the Qur’an and its recitation with rulings. The talented child Abdul Basit joined the book of Sheikh Al-Amir in Armant, and his Sheikh received him the best. Because he was marked by all the Qur’anic qualifications that were polished through listening to the Qur’an, which is recited at home day and night, morning and evening.
Sheikh Ali noticed his talented student that he is distinguished by a set of talents and brilliance represented in his quick comprehension of what he took from the Qur’an, his intense attention and his keenness to follow his Sheikh with passion and love, the accuracy of controlling the exits of words, stopping and starting, and a sweetness of sound that makes the ears listen and listen. On his return home, he was reciting what he heard from the sheikh, and he raised his strong and beautiful voice, enjoying a good performance that stopped everyone who heard.
Sheikh Abdul Basit says in his memoirs: “I was ten years old, during which I completed the memorization of the Qur’an, which was flowing on my tongue like a flowing river. And the readings were by Sheikh (Mohammed Selim), but the distance between Armant, a city in southern Egypt, and Tanta, a city in Delta Egypt, was very far, but it was related to formulating my future and drawing its features, which made me prepare to travel, and one day before heading to Tanta, we learned of the arrival of Sheikh Mohammed Selim To (Arment) to settle there as a teacher of readings at the religious institute in Armant, and the people of Armant received him in the best way and celebrated him, because they know his abilities and capabilities because he is one of the people of knowledge and the Qur’an, as if fate had brought this man to us at the right time. Asfoun al-Muta’na) and he memorized the Qur’an and taught its sciences and readings. So I went to him and reviewed the entire Qur’an on him, then I memorized the Shatibia, which is the text of the science of the seven readings.
After Sheikh Abdul Basit reached the age of twelve, supplications poured in from all the cities and villages of Qena Governorate, especially Asfoun Al-Muta’na, with the help of Sheikh Muhammad Salim, who recommended Sheikh Abdul Basit everywhere he went, and the testimony of Sheikh Salim was trusted by all of the people, may God have mercy on his honorable soul and dwell in him May he rest in peace.
Entering the Egyptian radio
At the end of 1951, Sheikh Al-Dabaa asked Sheikh Abdul Basit to apply to the radio as a reader in it, and presented this recording to the Radio Committee, so everyone was impressed by the strong, high, high, courteous and capable performance. Sheikh Abdul Basit was adopted on the radio in 1951 to be one of its reciters. After the fame that Sheikh Abdul Basit achieved in a few months, it was necessary to permanently reside in Cairo with his family, which he moved with him to the Sayeda Zeinab neighborhood.
Because of his joining the radio, the demand for radio equipment increased and its production doubled at that time, and it spread in most homes to listen to the voice of Sheikh Abdul Basit, and the one who owned a (radio) in an area or village used to raise the radio volume to the highest degree so that the neighbors could hear Sheikh Abdul Basit. Al-Basit are in their homes, especially every Saturday, on the waves of the general program from eight until 8:30 in the evening.
Sheikh Al-Batikhi narrated about the beginning of Abdul Basit’s fame, he said: In the month of Ramadan, Sheikh Abdul Basit used to live his nights in the offices of the village, then he began to move between the provinces, and on one occasion he read in the reciters’ council At Al-Hussein Mosque in Cairo, and when his turn came to read, he had a quarter of Surat Al-Nahl, and people liked him to the extent that the sheikhs were waving their turbans, then people flocked to his request until Syria requested him to celebrate the month of Ramadan, but he refused until after his sheikh authorized him. Sheikh Abdul-Sabour adds: Once we were on a visit to the Great Mosque of Mecca and the Sheikh of the Meccan Haram at that time was reciting from Surat Al-Baqarah to Surat Al-An’am. Sheikh Abdul Basit was keen to meet him to correct his omission in recitation, so the Sheikh approved him for this omission in reciting and asked him to stay in the Great Mosque with them.
It was the first visit of Sheikh Abdul Basit outside Egypt after joining the radio in 1952, during which he visited Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj with his father. The Saudis considered this visit prepared by God, as it is an opportunity that must be reaped the fruits, so they asked him to record several recordings of the Kingdom to be broadcast via radio waves. Sheikh Abdul Basit did not hesitate and recorded several recitations for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the most famous of which were recorded in the Holy Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque. (A title after that, the voice of Mecca). This was not the last time he visited Saudi Arabia. Rather, the visits varied between official invitations, missions and visits to the Hajj.
He added an atmosphere of joy and happiness to the place he was staying in, This is shown by the peoples of the world receiving him officially at the leadership, governmental and popular levels. The Pakistani President greeted him at the airport and shook hands with him as he got off the plane. In Jakarta, Indonesia, he recited the Noble Qur’an in its largest mosques, and the mosque’s sides were filled with attendees, and the council extended outside the mosque for an area of approximately one square kilometer, and the square opposite the mosque was filled with more than a quarter of a million Muslims listening to it standing on foot until dawn. In South Africa, when officials learned of his arrival, they sent a media team of press, radio and television men to conduct interviews with him .
Sheikh Abdul Basit was not limited in his travels to Arab and Islamic countries only, but also toured the world east and west, north and south, to reach Muslims in any place in the vast land of God. Likewise, the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron in Palestine, the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus and the most famous mosques in Asia and Africa, the United States, France, London, India, Iraq and most countries of the world. An official or unofficial newspaper was not devoid of pictures and comments showing that it is a legend worthy of appreciation and respect.
honor him
Sheikh Abdul Basit is considered the only reciter to have received this honor, fortunate enough that no one has obtained this much fame and status, with which he sat on the throne of reciting the Noble Qur’an for nearly half a century, during which he won a measure of love that made him a legend that will not be affected by the passage of years but by the more Time passed by, its value increased and its value rose like precious jewels, and neither alive nor dead was forgotten.
His honor was alive in 1956, when Syria honored him by giving him the Order of Merit, the Cedar Medal from Lebanon, the Golden Medal from Malaysia, an order from Senegal and another from Morocco.
The last honor he received was before his departure from President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak in the celebration of Laylat al-Qadr in 1987.
The honors he received
Medal from the Prime Minister of Syria in 1959.
Medal from the Prime Minister of Malaysia in 1965.
The Order of Merit from the Senegalese President in 1975.
The Order of the Cedars from the Lebanese Republic.
Honorary Medal from the Republic of Iraq.
The Golden Medal of Pakistan in 1980.
The Ulama Medal from Pakistani President Zia-ul-Haq in 1984.
The Egyptian Radio Medal on its fiftieth anniversary
Medal of Merit from former Egyptian President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak during the celebration of the Day of Preachers in 1987.
illness and death
He suffered from complications of diabetes in his late days, but liver laziness coincided with diabetes, and he was unable to resist these two diseases together. He died on Wednesday, November 30, 1988 AD, and his funeral was national and official at the local and international levels. A large gathering of people attended the funeral, including ambassadors of the world on behalf of their peoples, kings and heads of state, in appreciation of his role in the field of advocacy in all its forms.
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