Prayer: Is Tajwīd Pronunciation Obligatory for Valid Prayer?

Practical Laws of Islam as per the teachings of Imam Khamenei

Prayer: Is Tajwīd Pronunciation Obligatory for Valid Prayer?

English:

Question #463:

The following question had been directed to Imam Khomeini (q.): “Considering that there are several opinions on the pronunciation of the Arabic letter ‘Ḍād’ in the science of tajwīd, what is your view?” Imam replied: “It is not obligatory to know the points of articulation of letters according to the opinions of tajwīd experts; rather, one should pronounce every letter in a way that it is considered correct according to the common view of the Arabs.”
My question is:

i) What is the meaning of the phrase “that it is considered correct according to the common view of the Arabs”? And is it not correct that the rules of tajwīd — like Arabic grammar rules — have been derived from the Arabs’ usage of the language? If so, how can we say that the two are separated from their root?

ii) If someone is sure — based on a reliable method — that he does not pronounce or articulate the letters correctly from their appropriate places while he has the ability and opportunity to learn this science, would it be obligatory for him to learn the proper pronunciation as much as possible?

Answer #463:

The standard for correct pronunciation is its compliance with the way the native speakers, from whom the rules of tajwīd have been derived, pronounce the letters when they read. Therefore, if a difference of opinions among scholars of tajwīd as to what constitutes the correct pronunciation stems from a difference in understanding of how native readers recite, the practice of the native readers itself will be the standard. But if the difference of opinion stems from the actual diversity of their method of pronunciation, the mukallaf may choose the opinion he wishes to follow. The person, who thinks that his recitation is incorrect, is obliged, as far as he can, to learn the correct recitation of the Qur’an.

-Imam Khamenei, Practical Laws of Islam, Importance and Conditions of Prayer