What is the ruling on reversing the recitation of the Qur'an for memorization, meaning starting from the end of the surah or verses and then going back to the beginning, knowing that the recitation for others (tasmīʿ) is done in the usual order?

Reciting verses in reverse order during recitation is forbidden, both inside and outside of prayer. This is because it diminishes the miraculous nature of the Quran and removes the wisdom of its arrangement. It was narrated from Ibn Mas'ud that whoever recites the Quran in reverse order has a heart that is reversed. However, if the reversal occurs during memorization, not during recitation or recitation aloud—meaning one begins by memorizing a later verse then proceeds to an earlier one, and then recites them in their correct order—there is no harm in that.