Muslims: Tafseer - Alhamdolilllah

[tariqkhwaja]

Assalamualaikum.

Alhamdolillah means "All Praise Belongs to Allah". Now this can mean two things.

It can mean that Allah owns all praise that exists and He is the only one with a right to distribute it. An owner who grows fruits on his farm is the only one who is allowed to give those fruits away to other people. So one meaning of Alhamdolillah, then, is that all praise comes from Allah in the sense that He owns and distributes it. And that someone who is really praiseworthy is one who gets praise from Allah. So if I praise you it really is not worth anything. The real and only worthy praise is the one that comes from Allah.

The second meaning is that All Praise belongs to Allah in the sense that any praise belongs to Allah. So, for example, Mercifulness is a praise and it is truly and wholly manifested in Allah. Beauty is another praise and it is truly and only manifested in Allah. So the second meaning is that any words of prayer that exist can only be attributed to Allah.

Therefore, there are two side to "All Praise Belongs to Allah". One that Allah is the true and only bestower of Praise and secondly that any praise that exists should be attributed to God. Allah gives praise and all praise belongs to Him. A two-way that I hope those reading this have understood.

If you have understood the above then I will continue to develop on this. Please let me know if there is something you have not understood.

But for those who have understood here is a hint to the next point:
Apply the above to the two names of our Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and Ahmad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

[tariqkhwaja]

So ... errr ... I assume you all agree with this explanation?

[tariqkhwaja]

I guess I assume correctly.

The point being that "All Praise Belongs to Allah" has a two-way meaning. One that God owns the praise and is the Sole Distributor while the other being that God deserves the praise and is the Sole Deserver. But atheists often claim theists give too much meaning to simple sentences. That is one reason why it is common practice among Islamic scholars to prove the meanings they attribute to the Quran using the Quran itself. That proves that the meaning was not just concocted but meant by the author when the statement "All Praise Belongs to Allah" was penned. Unfortunately, I could not find the relevant verses (but I will keep trying). I do, however, have the following to negate the atheist opinion:

"Ahmad" in Arabic refers to one who praises. We can assume, therefore, that before being granted the status of Prophethood, Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was the one who praised. And we find this in his life of worship.

"Mohammad" in Arabic refers to the one who is praised. Thus, by praising God, he was rewarded by God. Ahmad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) worshipped God better than any man we ever knew or ever will know. That is why God bestowed upon him the name at his birth, Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the one who is oft praised.

That is one reason why it is said that Alhamdolillah is the summary of the Quran and of Islam. Indeed, that is the case. Our goal in life is to praise Allah and, in turn, to earn His praise. I pray that we, Muslims, too try to be Ahmad so that God makes us Muhammad. Ameen.

[TashaN]

I came here because you were complaining in the other thread in the Quranic Debates that no body replied to this thread. I didn't see this thread till you mentioned it there. So, what you wanted to prove here?

Is it all about how Muslims should be like Prophet Mohammed, or i'm missing something?

[tariqkhwaja]

What am I trying to prove? Does this impress you at all ... what I typed above? The way Alhamdolillah summarizes the Quran and its link to our Holy Prophets primary names?