Quran In Depth: Surah The Opening

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Surah Al-Fatihah, or The Opening in English, is the first surah of the Quran. It is also the surah that is always used during prayers. It is usually the first surah people will read and memorise. For Muslims, surah al-Fatihah is very important. The importance can be explained by a hadith.

Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet salla Allahu alaihi wa-sallam said: “Whoever offers a prayer in which he does not recite Umm al-Kitab (i.e., Al-Fatihah), it is defective” – he said so three times". [Narrated by Muslim]

Surah al-Fatihah is a prayer that should be offered when you want to benefit from reading the Quran and practising your religion. It is a prayer for guidance and the Quran is your answer to this prayer.
This surah has a couple of different names, the one I am using is the one most used. Other names include Umm-al-Kitab (Mother of the Book), Al-Hamd (praise), As-Salah (prayer) and Ash-Shifa' (the cure).

(1) In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
(2) All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the 'Alamin;
(3) Most Gracious, Most Merciful;
(4) Master of the Day of Judgment.
(5) You (Alone) we worship, and you (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything).
(6) Show us the straight way,
(7) The Way of those on whom You have bestowed Your Grace , not (the way) of those who earned Your Anger (such as the Jews), nor of those who went astray (such as the Christians).

You should start everything in the name of Allah (swt) consciously and sincerely for several reasons. Firstly, so you can keep away from evil. Secondly so you will have the right mindset and guidance in the right direction. Lastly so you can receive the blessing and help from Allah (swt).

When you start your prayer you should start with praise for Allah (swt), because all the good in the world is given by Him and you should not forget about that. 

For further information about this particular surah, you can watch this video where the surah is explained by Mufti Musa Menk.

Next time, I will translate surah al-Fatihah word by word for further insight of the importance of the surah and it's meaning. 

I hope I have explained it well enough, and if I didn't please feel free to leave questions in the comments or email me when you want more information.

May peace, mercy and blessings from Allah be upon you