Is it permissible to recite the Quran without ablution?

There is no objection to reciting the Quran or reading from a copy of it without ablution provided one does not touch it. God the Almighty says: "None touch it except the purified" (Quran 56: 79).

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite the Quran in any state except when he was in a state of major ritual impurity (janabah).

And God Almighty knows best.