Surah
Juz
Surah Al-Fatihah was one of the earliest revelations to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It was the first complete surah revealed to him. Before this, only a few miscellaneous verses which form parts of Surah Alaq (96), Qalam (68), Muzzammil (73), Muddaththir (74) were revealed. When the Prophet ﷺ was born almost the whole of Arabia believed in a polytheistic form of religion called Zoroastrianism: An ancient pre-Islamic religion of Iran which contains both monotheistic and dualistic features. The Arabs traced their descent to Abraham. They knew that Abraham was a monotheistic teacher. In spite of this, they entertained polytheistic beliefs and were given to polytheistic practices. Their reason being, in order to reach Him is difficult for ordinary human beings, they often require intervention from others to obtain God's pleasure and help - something that is fundamentally opposed by Islam and made clear from the very first surah.
The Quran is a manual, showing us how to live as Muslims. This first surah (chapter) contains a dua (prayer) that shows us the nature of the relationship Allah wants us to have with Him. The Quran begins with a surah in which we are able to reach him directly. It doesn’t start with a story of something or someone and their relationship with Allah, it is a prayer between the creation and the Creator. This dua is there for anyone who wants to study His Book. It's placed at the beginning to teach an important lesson: If you truly want to benefit from the Quran, you should sincerely pray to the Lord of the Universe. This introduction aims to create a strong desire in your heart to seek guidance from the Lord, who is the only one capable of granting it. In simpler terms, Al-Fātihah indirectly teaches us that the best thing we can do is pray for guidance and to be on the straight path, approach the study of the Quran with the mindset of seeking truth, and recognise that the Lord of the Universe is the source of all knowledge. Therefore, when starting to study the Quran, it's important to begin with a prayer to Him for guidance. Understanding this, we see that the real connection between Al-Fatihah and the Quran is not just an introduction to a book but more like a prayer and its answer. Al-Fatihah is like a prayer from us, the servants, asking God for guidance. In response, the Quran is our Creator's answer to our prayer. When we pray to God for guidance, He responds by presenting the entire Quran to us, as if saying, "This is the guidance you requested from Me."
