21/07/2026
Mabudin Littafi 1:1
بِسۡمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
English - Sahih International
In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
English - Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
Introduction to Fatihah
Which was revealed in Makkah
The Meaning of Al-Fatihah and its Various Names
This Surah is called
- Al-Fatihah, that is, the Opener of the Book, the Surah with which prayers are begun.
- It is also called, Umm Al-Kitab (the Mother of the Book), according to the majority of the scholars.
In an authentic Hadith recorded by At-Tirmidhi, who graded it Sahih, Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,
الْحَمْدُ للهِ رَبَ الْعَالَمِينَ أُمُّ الْقُرْآنِ وَأُمُّ الْكِتَابِ وَالسَّبْعُ الْمَثَانِي وَالْقُرْآنُ الْعَظِيمُ
Al-Hamdu lillahi Rabbil-`Alamin is the Mother of the Qur'an, the Mother of the Book, and the seven repeated Ayat of the Glorious Qur'an.It is also called Al-Hamd and As-Salah, because the Prophet ﷺ said that his Lord said,
قَسَمْتُ الصَّلَاةَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي نِصْفَيْنِ، فَإِذَا قَالَ الْعَبْدُ:الْحَمْدُ للهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِنَ، قَالَ اللهُ: حَمِدَنِي عَبْدِي
The prayer (i.e., Al-Fatihah) is divided into two halves between Me and My servants. When the servant says, `All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of existence,' Allah says, 'My servant has praised Me. Al-Fatihah was called the Salah, because reciting it is a condition for the correctness of Salah - the prayer. Al-Fatihah was also called Ash-Shifa' (the Cure).It is also called Ar-Ruqyah (remedy), since in the Sahih, there is the narration of Abu Sa`id telling the story of the Companion who used Al-Fatihah as a remedy for the tribal chief who was poisoned. Later, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to a Companion,
وَمَا يُدْرِيكَ أَنَّهَا رُقْيَةٌ
How did you know that it is a Ruqyah?Al-Fatihah was revealed in Makkah as Ibn Abbas, Qatadah and Abu Al-Aliyah stated.Allah said,
وَلَقَدْ ءاتَيْنَـكَ سَبْعًا مِّنَ الْمَثَانِي
