Secret of the Qur’an Sūrat Al-Munājāh (Chapter of The Private Invocation) (Chapter 1) secret -qur’an
Preface All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, The Most Merciful, The Most Compassionate, The Sovereign of the Day of Recompense,and may Allah's peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions.TheSūrat of al-Fātihah is the greatest surah whereby Allah addressed the creation.That is because the Qur’an is the best divinely-revealed book, and the Sūrat of al-Fātihah is the best surah in it.Thus, it is the best and most excellent surah that Allah Almighty has revealed,that is why it is prescribed to recite it in every prayer; rather, in each rak‘ah of every prayer.It is sufficient, when highlighting its excellence, to cite the Hadith narrated by Al-Bukhāri in his Sahih on the authority of Abu Sa‘eed ibn al-Mu‘alla, that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, said to him:"Indeed, I will teach you a surah that is the greatest surah of the Qur’an before you leave the mosque."Then he took my hand as he was leaving the mosque. So, I observed: "Have you not told me that you will teach me a surah that is the greatest surah of the Qur’an?" He said:"Sūrat al-Fātihah; it is the seven oft-repeated verses and the great Qur’an that I have been granted." [1] 1. [1] Narrated by Al-Bukhāri in the Book of Tafseer, under the chapter entitled: What Is Reported about al-Fātihah, Hadith no. 4204, and under the chapter entitled: We have certainly granted you the seven oft-repeated verses and the great Qur’an, Hadith no. 4426, and in the Book of Virtues of the Qur’an, under the chapter entitled: The Virtue of al-Fātihah, Hadith no. 4720. Al-Hāfizh Ibn Hajar said:"This explicitly indicates that Allah's statement in the Qur’an:{We have certainly granted you the seven oft-repeated verses }refers to Sūrat al-Fātihah." [2] 2. [2] Fat'h al-Bāri (8/9). Muslim and others reported that Ibn ‘Abbās, may Allah be pleased with both of them, said:"WhileJibrīl (Archangel Gabriel) was sitting with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, he heard a great noise coming from above his head. Thereupon, he said:This is a gate of the heaven that has been opened today. It has never been opened except today.'An angel descended from it, so he said:This is an angel that has come down to the earth and has never come down except today.'The angel offered the greeting of peace and said:Rejoice for being granted two lights which no other prophet before you has ever been granted: Sūrat al-Fātihah and the last verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah. You will not recite a letter thereof except that you will receive the reward for it (or whatever you ask Allah for by means of it.'" [3] 3. [3] Narrated by Muslim in the Book of Prayer of Travelers and Shortening it, Chapter on the Virtue of al-Fātihah and the Last Verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah, and Encouraging the Recitation of the Last Two Verses of Sūrat al-Baqarah, Hadith no. 806. The Hadiths reported on the excellence of al-Fātihah are numerous and weighty. What further indicates the honor and great status of al-Fātihah are the many names and glorious descriptions given to this great surah.Indeed, having many names indicates the high status of the named.Some of its names are: Umm al-Qur’an (Mother of the Qur’an), Fātihat al-Kitāb (Opening Chapter of the Book), As-Sab‘ al-Mathāni (The Seven Often-Repeated Verses), Sūrat al-Hamd (Chapter of Praise), Ash-Shāfiyah (The Healer), Al-Kāfiyah (The Sufficient), Sūrat as-Salāh (Chapter of Prayer), and Sūrat ad-Du‘aa’ (Chapter of Supplication).It is also called Sūrat Al-Munājāh (Chapter of the Private Invocation), because the Muslim recites it in each rak‘ah of his prayer, therewith conversing privately with his Lord and detaching himself from worldly affairs to speak to Him, supplicate Him, and implore Him.According to a Hadith in Sahih Al-Bukhāri:"When one of you stands in his prayer, he is in Private conversation with his Lord..." [4] 4. [4] Narrated by Al-Bukhāri in the Book of Prayer, Chapter of Directing One's Face toward the Qiblah. Hadith no. 397. Perhaps this brief commentary is limited to fulfilling this objective; so that a Muslim would bear in mind while offering his prayer that he is standing before his Lord and speaking to Him privately by reciting this great surah. It is reported that al-Fātihah is called As-Salāh (the prayer), as per the Hadith Qudsi reported by Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, wherein he said:"I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, say:Allah, The Exalted, said: I have divided prayer between Myself and My slave into two halves, and My slave shall have what he asks for. When the slave says: Al-hamdulillahirabb al-‘ālameen (All praise is for Allah, Lord of all worlds), Allah says: My slave has praised Me. And when he says: Ar-Rahmānar-Raheem (the Most Compassionate, Most Merciful), Allah says: My slave has extolled Me. And when he says: Mālikiyawm ad-deen (Master of the Day of Judgment), Allah says: My slave has glorified Me - and on one occasion He said: My slave has referred the affairs to Me. And when he says: Iyyākana‘buduwaiyyākanasta‘een (You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help), He says: This is between Me and My slave, and My slave shall have what he is asking for. And when he says: Ihdina as-sirāta al- mustaqeem, sirātalladheenaan‘amta ‘alayhim ghayr al-maghdūbi ‘alayhimwa la ad-dālleen (Guide us along the Straight Path, the Path of those You have blessed—not those You are displeased with, or those who are astray), He says: This is for My slave, and My slave shall have what he has asked for.'" [5] 5. [5] Narrated by Muslim, the Book of Prayer, Chapter on the Obligation of reciting al-Fātihah in each rak‘ah, and If he cannot recite it properly or learn it, he may recite what is easy for him, Hadith no. 395. This gives the impression that reciting al-Fātihah is the most important thing that one should pay attention to in his prayer.When we know that prayer is of such an influence that it deters one from committing immorality and wrongdoing, as stated by the Lord of the Worlds in the following Qur’anic verse:{and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer deters [one] from immorality and wrongdoing} [6] 6. [6] Sūrat Al-‘Ankabūt - part of verse 45. And since many people do not find that influence in their lives,then this means that they do not perform prayer in the way that achieves its purpose,and that their recitation of al-Fātihah needs a pause of reflection and submissiveness.Sūrat al-Fātihah highlights the right of the Creator and creation, and calls the slave to achieve perfect servitude to Allah Almighty.So, he stands before his Lord in the prayer expressing praise, exaltation and glorification,then he proclaims that his worship is sincerely devoted to Him alone, and asks Him for help,for, indeed, a slave has no ability to do anything and complete it except by Allah's help and granting of success.Since worship is not validly performed except by doing what Allah has ordained and accepted, the slave has to ask his Lord to guide him to the Straight Path,because it is the way to salvation and permanent success. He also asks his Lord to keep him away from the way of those who have incurred His wrath and those who have gone astray and swerved from the straight path by following ignorance and personal inclination.Thus, they deserved Allah's anger and punishment. That is because Allah's right upon the slave is that he worships Him sincerely, and the slave's right upon his Lord is that He helps him, guides him, and keeps him away from the path of error, if the slave fulfills His right of sincere worship |