Some of the Benefits of Sooratul-Faatihah
By Shaykhul-Islaam Muhammad Ibn 'Abdil-Wahhaab
Explanation by Shaykh Saalih Ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan
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1st Edition: May 2011 | E-Book Edition: September 2013
ISBN: 978-1-927012-25-3
Translator's Foreword
A Brief Biography of Shaykhul-Islaam Muhammad Ibn 'Abdul-Wahhaab
A Brief Biography of Shaykh Saalih Ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan
The Text: Explanation and Benefits of Sooratul-Faatihah by Shaykhul-Islaam Muhammad Ibn 'Abdul-Wahhaab
The Explanation: Some of the Benefits of Sooratul-Faatihah by Shaykh Saalih Ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan
An Introduction to Sooratul-Faatihah: It's Names, It's Virtues and an Explanation of the First Three Verses
It Comprises the Three Categories of Tawheed
It Contains the Two Types of Du'aa; Du'aa al-Ibaadah and Du'aa al-Mas'alah
It Contains Confirmation of the Message of all the Prophets
It Contains a Refutation of the Mushrikeen and all the Deviated Groups
Al-Mahabbah (Love) is of Four Types
It Contains Hope (ar-Rajaa')
It Contains Fear (al-Khawf)
"You Alone do We Worship and Your Aid We Seek"
"Guide Us to the Straight Path." The Two Types of Hidaayah (Guidance)
The Last Two Verses - Mankind are of Three Categories: Favoured, Resented or Astray
It Exemplifies the Power, Strength, Guidance and Mercy of Allaah
It Contains the Knowledge of One's Lord and One's Self
Summary
Appendix I: Related Questions and Answers
Appendix II: Imaam as-Sa'dee's Tafseer of Sooratul-Faatihah
Glossary of Important Arabic Words and Phrases
In the Name of Allaah, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy. All the praise is for Allaah, Lord of all that exists. May prayer and peace be upon the Messenger Muhammad, and upon his family, Companions and all those who follow them in goodness, until the Day of Recompense. As to what follows:
The Qur'aan is the Speech of Allaah which He revealed to His Prophet, Muhammad bin 'Abdillaah (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam), as a source of guidance for mankind, and as a cure for that which ails the body and the heart. It is the miracle which He gave to our beloved Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) because of which, he (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam), hoped that his followers would be more than those of any other Prophet on the Day of Resurrection. It is a book full of wisdom, explaining clearly to mankind that which will lead to their salvation. It is a source of mercy for mankind. It is a revelation so weighty that if it were revealed upon a mountain it would be seen humbling itself and breaking into pieces out of fear of Allaah (khashyatullaah).
The greatest portion of that which has been revealed in the Qur'aan is Sooratul-Faatihah. Imaam al-Bukhaaree (rahimahullaah) records in his Saheeh, on the authority of Abu Sa'eed bin al-Mu'alla (radiyallaahu 'anhu), who said: "While I was praying in the mosque, Allaah's Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) called me, but I did not respond to him. Later I said, 'O Messenger of Allaah, I was praying.' He said, 'Did Allaah not say, 'Answer Allaah (by obeying Him) and His Messenger when he (sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) calls you?'
O you who believe! Answer Allaah (by obeying Him) and His
Messenger…
[Sooratul-Anfal, 8:24]
He then said to me, 'I will teach you a soorah which is the greatest soorah in the Qur'aan, before you leave the mosque.' Then he got hold of my hand, and when he intended to leave (the mosque), I said to him, 'Did you not say to me, I will teach you a soorah which is the greatest soorah in the Qur'aan?' He said, 'Al-hamdu lillaahi Rabbil-'Aalameen, it is Sooratul-Faatihah, which is the seven oft-repeated verses (as-sab'al-mathaanee) and the Grand Qur'aan which has been given to me.'1
Sooratul-Faatihah is the greatest soorah of the Qur'aan and it is the Mother of the Qur'aan because of what it contains of the mention of Allaah's beautiful Names and lofty Attributes; the Praise of Him, the Exalted; the mentioning of the Hereafter; the categories of tawheed; the mention of worship and the superior supplication. Due to all of these things, its recitation has been made obligatory in every rak'ah of every prayer and the correctness of the prayer or lack thereof is dependent upon it. For this reason, I chose to translate The Explanation of Some of the Benefits of Sooratul-Faatihah.
This soorah is a vital part of the lives of every Muslim; thus, none of us should be ignorant of its meanings and the benefits that it contains. So, it is hoped that Allaah will make it a source of good for all who read this small treatise, and that it will be profitable to us both in this life as well as in the next.
Chapter headings and a few footnotes have been added to increase readability.
Special thanks are due to 'Umar Abu Zakee and Ahmad Abu Sakeenah of TROID in Toronto, Canada for their assistance towards publishing this book, to Nahim Abu Bilaal and Umm Zakee for their additional proofreading and editing, and finally to Hisham Assing for his contribution to the biography of Shaykhul-Islaam.
May Allaah bless this effort and reward the author abundantly. May He raise the rank of our Prophet Muhammad, and bestow blessing upon his family and Companions, Ameen.
Naasirud-Deen bin William Ferron
Translator
1 Saheehul-Bukhaaree, #614474
He is the Imaam, Muhammad bin 'Abdul-Wahhaab bin Sulayman bin 'Alee. His kunyaa is Abu al-Hasan. He was born in the year 1115H in the city of 'Uyaanah in the land of Najd (Central Saudi Arabia). He grew up in a knowledgeable religious family. His father, 'Abdul-Wahhaab, was the judge and muftee (cleric) of 'Uyaanah; in fact he was the muftee for the whole of Najd. His uncle Ibraaheem bin Sulaymaan was a faqhee (jurist). His cousin 'Abdur-Rahman bin Ibraaheem was a well-known scholar. His brother Sulaymaan was also well-known for his knowledge. This is the environment in which the Shaykh was raised, which clearly had a profound effect on his works and his da'wah (call).
His Seeking Knowledge, Travels and His Teachers
The Shaykh – may Allaah have mercy on him – began seeking knowledge at a very early age whereby he memorized the Qur'aan from his father before he reached the age of ten. He then began to study the fundamentals of Hanbalee Fiqh (jurisprudence) from his father. After that, he moved on to memorizing various small texts (mutoon) of the various branches of Islamic studies. Then he began to seek knowledge in the various districts of Najd. His father gave him permission to perform hajj; therefore, he spent a substantial amount of time in Makkah whereby he studied various books with the scholars of the Masjid al-Haraam. Then he moved to al-Madeenah where he also sat with the scholars there.
From among the most prominent of them were Shaykh 'Abdullaah bin Ibraaheem bin Sayf, and his son who was an expert in the laws of inheritance, and Shaykh Muhammad Hayaat as-Sindee. He then returned to 'Uyaanah to visit his family, after which he went back to al-Madeenah to continue his studies with the scholars of that city.
Thereafter, he travelled to Iraq wherein he visited the cities of az-Zubayr and Basrah, spending most of his time in gatherings with the scholars of these two cities, the most prominent of them being Shaykh Muhammad al-Majmu'ee. When he was no longer able to afford to live therein, he deiced to return to 'Uyaanah, and on his way back home he met Shaykh 'Abdullaah al-Ahsaa'ee at al-Ahsaa. He was hosted by him for some time whereby he was able to benefit from him. Finally, he returned to his birthplace. Some writers claimed that the Shaykh travelled to Baghdad, Damascus, Jerusalem, India, Kurdistan, and Iran, however, this statement has no basis of truth.
His Students
Indeed a number of gifted students studied with the Shaykh thereafter becoming noble scholars themselves. They carried on the legacy of da'wah after the death of the Shaykh. They were appointed to judicial and religious authoritative positions whereby Allaah made them of tremendous benefit to the people, completing what the Shaykh had begun. From among them his son 'Abdullaah, Husayn, 'Alee, his grandson Shaykh 'Abdur-Rahman bin Hasan, Shaykh Hamad bin Naasir bin Mu'amar, Shaykh Husayn bin Mu'amar, Shaykh 'Abdul-'Azeez al-Husayn, Shaykh 'Abdul-'Azeez bin Suwaylim, and other than them.
2 Taken from Dhawaabit Takfeer al-Mu'ayin 
Maktabah ar-Rushd