Surah Fatiha: Istiadah & Basmala - verse 1

Allah has revealed the Quran so that we can benefit from it. In order for us to benefit from it, not only should we recite it continuously, but we should also try to understand the meaning of the verses. InshaAllah, in the next few sessions, we will go over the meaning of Surath Al Fatiha. In today’s khutba we will discuss the meaning of the word Fatiha, the Istiadah and the basmalah which is the first verse of Surat Al Fatiha بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ. 

This surah is called Al Fatiha. What does Al Fatiha mean? Al Fatiha means the opening. The deeper meaning is that Surah Al Fatiha opens the doors to many things, especially when you are stuck. When you are in a difficult situation then Al Fatiha is the way out of that challenging place. Now, Surah Fatiha can only be a way out from difficulty if we know its deeper meaning and put it into practice in our daily lives. During this khutba we will be looking at the first two verses of Surah Fatiha. 

We start our recitation by saying the Istiadah which is أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ. It’s translation is ‘I seek refuge in Allah from the cursed Shaytan’.

Now, what is the deeper meaning of the Istiadah? When you say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ, ‘I am seeking protection and help of Allah from Shaytan’. We are asking Allah to help us spiritually and physically from the evil plots of the devils. Why are we asking Allah? Because Allah is the All-Powerful, All-Strong and The Mighty-One. Allah has the power to do anything and everything. He can protect us from the whispers and plots of the devils. 
What does Shaytan mean and why are we asking protection from the Shaytan? Shaytan is a generic term that is applied to humans and jinn that are removed from the path of Allah. Iblis, the one who was thrown out of paradise, is the head Shaytan. So we seek refuge and safety from all the evil men, women and jinn and their evil plots, as they all fall under the word Shaytan. So next time an evil thought crosses our mind, say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ, and replace it with a good thought. Next time someone tries to convince you to do something haram and wrong, say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ and walk away. When it is Fajr time and Shaytan tells you to snooze your alarm, at that very moment say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ and get out of the bed and do the Fajr prayer. Next time a jealous thought or an evil intention comes by, say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ and actively do things that will help you overcome it. If you have been playing games for some time and you realise prayer time is going, say أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ and pause the game, pray and then you can come back if you want. Shaytan entices us to do bad things and so we should continuously seek protection from Shaytan. 
May Allah protect us from the Shaytan amongst the mankind and Jinn and give us the ability to overcome the whispers of Shaytan. 

After saying the Istiadha, أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ, say the Basmalah which is بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ. The Basmala can be translated as ‘with the name of Allah, the one who has rahma (mercy), the one who shows rahma (mercy)’. So the first part, بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ, means with the Name of Allah. Now you might ask why we need to mention the name of Allah before doing anything. Today we will mention just three reasons, but you should do further research and find out more.

The first reason why we say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ before doing any action is to remind ourselves that we are doing it sincerely for Allah. So we say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ before reciting a surah because we need to remind ourselves that we are reading the Quran sincerely for Allah. We say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ before we start a test paper, or before we play football or read books because even these things we do sincerely for Allah.

Another reason why we start anything and everything with the name of Allah is because we want Allah to put barakah in it and to bless it. So we say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ when we eat because we want Allah to put barakah in our food so then it gives us the energy to carry on with our daily lives. We say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ when put our clothes on; we say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ when we enter or exit a house so then Allah puts barakah in our homes and when starting a journey. We should say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ before we play football or before we start a test, as we would want Allah to put barakah in them. When you are stuck say بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ and Allah will put barakah in it inshaAllah. 

The third reason for saying بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ is because our beloved Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) would himself start any deed with it. By imitating the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ we are showing our love for him. Moreover, by following the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ we are getting a lot of reward from Allah. So just by saying بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ before entering or exiting your house, or before eating, and before other actions, you get a lot of reward. So the three reasons for saying بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ is for sincerity, barakah and to imitate the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. 

In conclusion, we should regularly engage with both the Istiadah and Basmala, as they work together. At first you ask to get rid of the bad by saying أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ which means, ‘I seek refuge in Allah from the cursed Shaytan’, and then you ask Allah for the good by saying بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ which means, with the name of Allah, the one who has Rahma (mercy), the one who shows Rahma (mercy).
May Allah give us the ability to understand the meaning of the Istiadah and the Basmala and put it into our daily practice. Ameen.