Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| Understanding Surah Al Fatiha |
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| Anonymous |
| 04/17/01 at 09:08:49 |
| Assalammualikum Moderator Please post this as a new thread I would appreciate your comments, insha'Allah SURAH FATEHA-THE OPENING Surah AL-FATEHA or THE OPENING has been so called since it is literally the opening chapter or surah of the Qur’an, the chapter that opens up the beauty of the Quran to us. The Prophet s.a.w. also called it UMMULKITAB i.e. THE ESSENCE OF THE QURAN and it has several other names as well. But why is this surah called the essence of the Quran? What is the deep significance of these verses that makes their recitation in every rakat of the five daily prayers compulsory? Surah Fateha sums up our relationship of utter dependency on our Creator and our humility before His majesty. In it we admit our incapacity to do anything for ourseleves, ‘You alone we ask for help, and You alone we worship.’ According to Khurram Murad, Al-Fateha may be considered the introduction to the Qur’an, “The deepest cry of the human heart before its Creator, outpouring its urgent need and its utter dependence upon Him for being guided to live right this earthly life.” Truly Fateha is the perfect summary of our basic beliefs and needs. Fateha in essence is a dua, one that Allah has taught us how to do. We begin by praising Allah. 1. ALL PRAISE IS FOR ALLAH SUSTAINER OF THE WORLDS. All praise is for Allah…but why? Because everything in this universe, whether it be the beauty of the earth we see around us, whether it be our parents, children, our talents, the list is endless…all are from Allah. Any achievements that we make stem from the gifts that Allah has bestowed upon us and it therefore follows that the only One worthy of praise is Allah. And why else is Allah worthy of all praise? Because He Alone is Rabb-ul-Alameen, Sustainer of the worlds. The word Rabb is beautiful, it stands for one who nurtures and sustains. Think about it, today there is much talk of governments unable to balance their budgets. Massive governments, with great spending power are still unable to look after all their citizens and provide for them what they need. Is not then praise due to the One Who nurtures not only the citizens of one country, but all of creation? From humans down to the minutest creatures that may exist in the depths of seas where we cannot even see? Subhan Allah! Allah sustains those who believe in Him and those who do not. His bounty in this world is not restricted to one group of people, for that is what Rabb-ul-Alameen means. We find it difficult looking after ourselves let alone other people and Allah in His mercy looks after everything that exists, whether it be life on this planet or on another. 2. THE MOST MERCIFUL, THE REPEATEDLY MERCIFUL. It is interesting how many scholars interpret Islam as a chauvinistic religion and yet the qualities that Allah chooses to describe Himself at the beginning of every surah are feminine qualities of mercy. The Arabic words Rahman, and Raheem come from the root word ‘Rahm’ which has two meanings. One is mercy and the other is womb. Think about all the functions that the womb performs. When the egg gets fertilised the body responds by sending blood, vitamins etc to the womb in preparation for the embryo. In fact the body will send a surplus of everything to the womb. And Allah in His infinite mercy gives us things in abundance and He gives us things that we never even thought of asking Him for. Have you every thought why Allah made flowers so beautiful? Perhaps so that we could enjoy the adornment of the earth. How many of us asked Allah to give us the gift of eyesight or hearing or speaking? How many blessings do we take for granted? Just as the womb takes care of the growing embryo so Allah’s mercy takes care of our needs. Furthermore, if a child lacks something while it is developing in the embryo it is unlikey that this deficiency will be made up once it is born, for eg a child that is born blind. Similarly if Allah withholds His mercy from us, from where will be able to gain the blessings that He has withheld from us? Allah is AR Rahman, the Most Merciful to all creation, and then again AR RAHIM, One who is repeatedly Merciful. We sin and sin, and Allah in His Mercy repeatedly forgives. As Allah says in a hadith qudsi, ‘My Mercy has preceded My Wrath.’ 3. MASTER OF THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. After speaking about His Mercy, Allah immediately describes Himself as Master/Owner of the Day of Judgement. Why? Don’t take Allah’s mercy for granted and assume that it gives you the right to treat others how you wish. Verse 2 encourages us to hope for and trust in Allah’s Mercy but simultaneously Verse 3 reminds us of Allah’s Supreme Power on the day when we will be answerable to Him alone. It is thus a reminder that in all our actions we should remember that there is an authority above us and that we cannot hurt others and take away their rights. It seems that this verse is the one that stands most forgotten today by the Muslim Ummah. We find that Muslims today are those who cheat, lie, and so on and then turn around and say well we’re going to heaven because we have said ‘LA ILAHA ILLA ALLAH’. It is Allah Alone Who shall decide our faith for on that day the decision shall belong to Him Alone. 4. YOU ALONE DO WE WORSHIP AND TO YOU ALONE DO WE TURN FOR HELP. Subhan Allah, this verse defines our central beliefs, the core of our being. ‘You Alone we worship’. What is worship? The word for worship in Arabic is IBADAH. Unlike the English word ‘Worship’ which conjures up images of Sunday Church or Friday Mosque, the word ibadah means to serve, obey and worship and encompasses all human activities done for the pleasure of Allah. Thus choosing not to eat a Big Mac at McDonalds because the meat is not halal is an act of worship! Choosing to marry because you fear that without marriage you will become involved in extra marital relationships is an act of worship! It is amazing how Allah makes it so easy to earn His pleasure and His reward, even for acts we perform without thinking. Of course the fundamental pillars of fasting, zakat, etc also come under worship. Since IBADAH also means to obey and serve, we can all think for a minute who it is that we obey and who are our gods? Do we obey the whims of our desires or do we obey the commands of Allah? Do we follow society fashions in the way we dress or do we follow the law of Allah? Who are we worshipping when we say ‘log kya kehin gay’? or I won’t be hip and cool if I wear a hijab? Or when we drink to fit in with our social circle? You Alone we worship means that we renounce all other forms of authority upon us except for Allah’s. It follows, ‘You Alone we ask for help.’ Think about it. Today we spend our time running after people to help us, to have mercy upon us. Subhan Allah only Allah can help us if only we could realise. Look at all the Muslim countries who are so scared of global powers and go running to them every time they need some help. Allama Iqbal said that it was better to survive on a little than to spread your hands before someone else. The companions used to ask Allah for something as small as a shoe lace and then search for a worldly means to fulfil their needs. This verse also tells us that dua is the essence of worship. Our duas are a reflection of our inner state and our priorities. Who do we ask from? Do we ask at the grave of a pious saint who can do nothing for himself, or do we ask Allah Who gave life and death to that pious saint? There is no barrier between us and our Creator, Islam instils the belief that we have a direct line to Allah which we can dial at any time of the day no matter where we are. What then do these verses imply. FREEDOM. Total and utter freedom from the shackles that tie us, from dependency on others. We are freed from asking others and facing possible disappointment and humiliation and instead are able to pour our heart out as we could never do in front of a human. Imagine all your deepest secrets which you could never tell your best friend and yet you can tell and ask Allah. Islam is a religion that frees the human soul. Isn’t this what the modern age is trying to teach us? ‘Free yourself’? True freedom lies in submitting ourselves to the One and Only and freeing ourselves from the varying desires of all others. You Alone we ask for help. What is the greatest thing we can ask for? What shall make this life and the next an existence of eternal bliss? Allah in His mercy, not only teaches us how to do dua but what to ask for. GUIDE US TO THE STRAIGHT PATH. Whoever has pondered the purpose of life will find the answer in this. If we follow the straight path then we have achieved success not only in this life but in the next. Guidance is also a gift from Allah, one has to seek it to attain it. If we want something in this world we don’t just sit back placidly and think that it will come to us without any effort. If we want a degree we have to go through years of school to get it. The prophets struggled long and hard in their missions. We must seek guidance actively and ask Allah for it. It is more important than our careers, our children etc because it is this that will give us the spiritual contentment that we are looking for and it is this that will give us the strength to brave any problems that we face in this world. But what is the right path? THE PATH OF THOSE WHOM YOU HAVE BLESSED. The ‘blessed’ is generally taken to refer to those righteous beings whose efforts have been accepted by Allah (SWT) such as the prophets, martyrs etc. NOT OF THOSE WHO INCURRED YOUR WRATH, NOR OF THE MISGUIDED. The first category, ‘those who incurred Your Wrath’ is generally taken to mean those who received the Divine Guidance, but did not act upon it. Whereas the second category, ‘ the misguided, are taken to mean those whose knowledge was corrupted from its true form; thus they are following a totally misguided course. In Islam having knowledge means to act upon it. Knowledge and action do not exist separately. Thus whatever knowledge we have of the Quran should be implemented in our lives otherwise it becomes an argument against us. Ameen: Though not part of the quran’ic text, sunnah proves that we, the readers of the qur’an, as well as any who might be listening, are supposed to utter these words at the end of al-fatiha. simply, the words mean: “O Allah, accept our prayer’ and signify total reliance on Allah, after we have asked Him of our needs’. |
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