41 - The Forty-First Section - Warsh's narration from Nafi' - Reciter: Abd al-Rahman ibn Musa
He is Abdurrahman ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Bashir ibn Musa al-Hamsasi al-Hasnawi al-Salawi, born in the city of Salé on August 28, 1908. Abdurrahman ibn Musa grew up in a scholarly household, as his father, the renowned Ahmad ibn Musa, was a jurist and hadith scholar. He memorized the Quran and then moved on to memorizing al-Jurumiyya, Lamiyyat al-Af'al, and Risala Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani under Sheikh Abd al-Hadi Atubi. He also studied under a number of sheikhs, including Sayyid Ahmad ibn Abd al-Nabi and the two sheikhs Abu Shu'ayb al-Dukkali and Muhammad ibn al-Arabi al-Alawi. One day during Ramadan, the judge of the court contacted him and informed him that it was his turn to lead the prayer for King Muhammad V. At the end of the prayer, the royal chamberlain called him and told him that his recitation and intonation had impressed the king. The king then summoned him to the royal palace and asked him to reside in the royal residence, which he did. Hajj Abdurrahman ibn Musa led the prayers during Ramadan for the king, his sons, and his tribe. As part of the construction of the Moulay School, King Mohammed V entrusted him with teaching the then Crown Prince, Hassan II. To bring the Sheikh closer to the Moulay School, the King gifted him a house within the Royal Palace. Siddiq Maaninou (former director of Moroccan television) said: "Whenever King Mohammed V faced difficulties and saw the colonial conspiracies affecting him and causing him distress, he would summon Professor Abdel Rahman Benmoussa to sit beside him, recite the Quran, and beautifully chant verses." When King Mohammed V was exiled to Madagascar, the scholar refused to remain in the Royal Palace and returned to the city of Salé. People first became familiar with his voice through the national radio, and then with his image on Moroccan television in the early 1960s, where he would open and close broadcasts with verses from the Holy Quran. He passed away on Monday, the 17th of Shawwal, 1417 AH (February 24, 1997 CE), at the age of approximately eighty-nine. A documentary about the Sheikh from Al Jazeera Documentary can be found at this link: • أصوات من السماء - عبد الرحمان بن موسى
