Coming back to the beginning, I decide to begin in a fashion that has been adopted by the truthful and righteous ones throughout the ages. [Let me begin by stating here that neither am I a student of religion nor am I a very religious person. All that follows is what is known to Muslims across the world and anyone trying to learn something knowledgeable will be sorely disappointed. My words are just a reflection of my thoughts and hence criticism is welcome.] The holy Qur’aan, the speech of Allaah and the living miracle of His beloved Muhammad (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) [2] begins with the Chapter Surah Faatihaa – the Opening. This chapter, we learn from scholars, is the key to the treasures that lie within the Qur’aan. The Qur’aan was revealed unto the Beloved (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam) as a guidance to all mankind, a light to all those who would accept its message. Allaah chose to begin this divine guidance with a chapter that he filled with virtues and blessings and contains the gist of the way to lead our lives. Perhaps that is the reason why Islam is not just a religion but a deen, a way of life. Religion is translated as maDh-hab (mazhab). As per the famous tradition of Jibril [3], the deen Islam consists of three aspects, Islam, Imaan and Ihsaan. Islam in the second context consists of the aspects of worship like shahaadah, salaah, saum, zakaat and hajj [4]. These are the five pillars of Islam, the foundations on which the entire structure of Islam is built. However, as is evident, the structures are supporting an edifice, an entire palace which is the way of life. It is to be realized here that for muslims, religion is not just a personal thing. It encompasses the entire ambit of their existence. Sadly, there is a growing urge amongst muslims of today to take religion as a personal connection with spirituality and not try and implement its teachings on daily life. I have personally known such people even though my experience is limited, and if one reads various comments floating around the net, this idea gets reinforced. This stems from the influx of modern ideas that are readily accepted by ignorant people like us, without ever trying to ponder over them and weigh them in the crucibles of our minds and intellect. The world cannot be run by free will alone, for someone somewhere has to draw the line. If we believe in Allaah, the creator, it is only logical that we let that someone be Him, for He definitely is the best planner and disposer of affairs. The path shown by him should be the one that we should seek to traverse and not the one that our hearts and base selves choose.

Faatiha as a chapter has unique virtues, narrated by many scholars of traditions. Not being a scholar or even a student myself, I would refrain from quoting them in the traditional sense. Just to try and see its various qualities, I hereby quote some traditions: –

1. Surah Fatihah is the cure for every disease. [Darimi]

2. If one reads Surah Fatihah a 100 times and then supplicates (dua) to Allah for something, it is accepted by Allah. [Darimi] [5]

[I don’t have access to Sunan ad Daarimi. I read these in an exegesis of the Qur’aan.]

All chapters of the holy Qur’aan begin with the words “Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem” which are translated as “Beginning in the name of Allaah, the most compassionate and the most merciful”, except for one – chapter 9, Taubah. This is not a part of any chapter but of the Qur’aan as a whole. It is the reason why muslims don’t recite the Bismillaah loudly while offering salaah. Muslims across the world begin any good act that they do with these words. It is an expression of submission to Allaah’s will and trust in Him. Muslims are not allowed to say these words in case they are going to do something sinful, as we don’t expect the beneficial help of Allaah to guide us in our bad deeds. After Bismillah come two words – Rahmaan and Raheem. Both these words are the names of Allaah, signifying His attributes. Thus, we see that this sentence uses three names of Allaah – Allaah, Rahmaan and Raheem. There’s a reason why Allaah chooses to mention his names signifying mercy at the very beginning, and then have it repeated again and again. He wishes to tell us that all the things that we do in this world, all that we earn, all the luxuries we have, even the temporary hardships that we face, are His mercy. An interesting anecdote comes to mind. It’s an incident from the life of Caliph Haruun Rasheed[6]. A saint once asked him, “O Caliph, if all the water was to dry up and you were to feel very thirsty, and in this state were to find one man with a glass of water, what would you be willing to buy it for?” The caliph replied that he would give up half his kingdom. The wise man then put forward another question, “Let’s say that water isn’t digested by your system and causes you unbearable trouble, and there’s only man who can cure you with his medicine. What would you give him?” The caliph again said that he would gladly give up half his kingdom. The saint told him that his entire caliphate had been lost just to drink a glass of water and digest it properly. Isn’t it a great gift of Allaah? Even our breathing is His mercy. Remember, it takes one second to die. Qur’aan says again and again in Surah Rahmaan, “Which then, of the favours of Allaah will you deny?”

I hereby give an approximate translation of the chapter Faatihaa from Muhammad John Marmaduke Pickthall’s book [7]: –

Surah 1, THE OPENING

1. In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

2. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds,

3. The Beneficent, the Merciful.

4. Owner of the Day of Judgment,

5. Thee (alone) we worship; Thee alone we ask for help.

6. Show us the straight path,

7. The path of those whom Thou hast favoured; Not (the path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who went astray.

 

The first sentence is the translation of Bismillaahir-Rahmaanir-Raheem. This chapter is one of the best prayers and supplications, and captures the essence of a Muslim’s submission to Allaah and His will. We muslims begin everything with the praise of Allaah, for undoubtedly He is praiseworthy. The glorification of Allaah doesn’t show His desire for praise. Allaah is indifferent to praise. It is another mercy of His that He has given human beings a mind which can understand His bounties and praise Him for it and every such act of praising raises the station of the human beings and earns them rewards from Allaah. This shows the benevolence and magnificence of the Almighty. Muslims submit their will and desires to the will and desire of their creator when they worship him. Free will as a concept isn’t something that Islam negates in its entirety. Islam allows a human being free thought and free action, but only up to a limit that it doesn’t harm others or him. Sometimes, the harm that can be caused by a certain action isn’t apparent, but that doesn’t negate its existence. As creations, our knowledge can never be as much as that of the creator. We can only judge and perceive what our five senses make apparent to us, and not what lies beyond them. Therefore, it is better for us to accept the limits that Allaah has put upon us with an eager and accepting mind. The negation of asking of anyone but Him is an affirmation of the pure monotheistic creed that Islam professes and muslims practice. All help that human beings render each other is only through the will and grace of Allaah. Even the best of medicines fail to save someone whose end has come. This is because medicines, money or any other kind of help, material or spiritual, is only because Allaah has destined it to be so for us. A medicine cures if Allaah wishes, and hence it becomes necessary for a human being to use them, but the true cure is the will of Allaah. Muslims always seek the guidance of the almighty and hope to lead the righteous path shown by the Beloved (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam). The prayer to be led onto Siraat e Mustaqeem is a prayer that contains all the blessings of this world and the hereafter. The right path, when travelled by a human, irrespective of it being tough and filled with thorns or smooth and easy, earns him or her the respect of others and goodwill of the society. He would lead his life in such a manner that he would carefully tread through the mazes of life, taking care not to harm the interests of others in pursuit of his own interests. Obviously, treading the right path implies finding it first, and this is where people, irrespective of religion or other such considerations, are at a loss. The chapter itself answers this question by declaring the right path to be the path of the righteous, the truthful servants of Allaah. The path that was walked upon and shown by them is the way of the Qur’aan. If I remember correctly, It is narrated in a hadeeTh that when asked about the behaviour and etiquette of the holy Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam), HaDhrat Aa’ishaa (raDhi Allaahu anhu) [8] answered that it was the Qur’aan. The righteous path is nothing but the lives lived by the prophet, his companions and successors and the pious people and saints. Whenever in doubt, we should try and emulate the ways of these people, for verily they were upon the truth. The last verse indicates that merely doing good deeds is not enough. One should also stay away from bad deeds and sins, like hurting others, engaging in harmful activities or missing the obligatory duties enjoined upon us by the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam). Even to my ignorant senses that have received absolutely no theological education, this chapter comes across as a guidebook that will help me live this life successfully and in a matter that will please Allaah and earn me His mercy.

Talking of mercy, the event of the Prophet’s birth has just gone by us. This event is reminiscent of another beginning, the beginning of the life of the greatest life ever lived. It is the beginning of a revolution that eradicated darkness and despair from a world steeped into the dungeons of faithlessness. It is the beginning of a mission that replaced violence and hate with peace and love. It is the beginning of a reformation that changed the way the world treated the poor, the women and slaves. It is the beginning of a movement that liberated humankind from ignorance and established an atmosphere of education that gradually led to the foundation or development of sciences like astronomy, chemistry and economics. It is the beginning of Allaah’s mercy that He sent unto us. The Qur’aan addresses the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam) as Rahmat ul lil Aalameen – Mercy for all the worlds. Definitely, the prophet is a mercy, a mercy not only to all the human beings but also for all the other creatures. Great scholars have written tomes on this topic and spoken volumes about him. What new can be said and written here that hasn’t already been said? Read any biography, even those written by non-muslims, and the topic that they touch upon most is his mercy for everyone. Someone like HaDHrat Bilal (raDHi Allaahu anhu) [9] converted to Islam and became a devoted muslim for the rest of his life just because of the smiling personality of the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam). The story of the old woman who went on abusing the prophet as he carried her load and then, on realization, accepted Islam is oft-documented. The mercy of the Prophet for everyone, irrespective of religion, colour, gender, status and all such prejudices is an example to follow for everyone. The conquest of Makkaah and the general pardon to the biggest enemies of Islam is an example that will perhaps be never replicated. Most of us today have deviated from the true path that was shown to us and are emulating ways of others that please the Devil [10]. This glorious event should not just be reduced to another date on the calendar but should be used by the scholars to preach the beautiful Prophet’s beautiful ways and his conduct. His personal life is the best model to follow, and muslims across the world should hope to emulate him in all we do. It goes without saying that we won’t always be successful, but even a slight change will make us better human beings.