1.2 Al-Fātiḥah — The Nobility and Importance of the Tasmiyah

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

All praise is due to Allah, the Most High and Most Glorious, and endless blessings be upon our Seal of the Prophets, Muḥammad ﷺ. May Allah be pleased with all of his noble Companions.

Today we will share the topic: recognizing the nobility of the Tasmiyah. The Tasmiyah — بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم — is translated as “In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.” Within the Tasmiyah there is much knowledge, and within it are many wisdoms of Allah that we must come to know. Today, we will look only at one aspect: the importance of reciting the Tasmiyah before we speak or act.

The full recitation of the Tasmiyah is بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم, meaning “In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.” Its fundamental form is بسم الله, meaning that we perform our words and actions in the Name of Allah.

Prophetic Narrations: Protection and Blessing

We first learn the honor of the Tasmiyah from the Prophetic narrations.

In al-Sunan al-Kubrá and Musnad Aḥmad, it is recorded that a Companion who once rode on the same mount with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that the Prophet ﷺ slipped, and he exclaimed: “How wicked is the shayṭān!” The Messenger ﷺ replied:

“Do not say, ‘How wicked is the shayṭān,’ for if you say that, he becomes proud and says, ‘I caused him to fall by my strength.’ But when you say, ‘In the Name of Allah,’ he becomes humiliated and shrinks until he is like a small fly.”

In the two well-known collections, the Messenger ﷺ also said:

“When one of you intends to go to his spouse, he should say: ‘In the Name of Allah. O Allah, keep shayṭān away from us, and keep shayṭān away from what You provide for us.’ If a child is then granted to them, the shayṭān will not harm him.”

These two narrations teach us that reciting the Tasmiyah provides protection — it prevents shayṭān from acting arrogantly before us, and it protects both ourselves and our descendants from his harm.

Many narrations mention the honor of reciting the Tasmiyah — such as before sitting, standing, eating, drinking, reciting the Qur’an, bathing, and praying. Any word or action not begun with the Tasmiyah will lack blessing and success, because only actions begun with the Tasmiyah receive our Lord’s approval and the eternal reward of the Hereafter.

The Meaning and Names within the Tasmiyah

The Tasmiyah contains three great Names of Allah: Allah (الله) — the One solely worthy of worship; ar-Raḥmān (الرحمن) — the Universally Merciful; ar-Raḥīm (الرحيم) — the Particularly Merciful.

The Name Allah signifies that He alone is to be worshipped and that no partner can be ascribed to Him — not in His essence, for nothing resembles Him and all creation is only a sign of Him; not in His spirit; not in His mercy over the worlds; not in His command and will; not in His attributes or His virtues; and not in His Names. All of this meaning is included when we say Allah.

Allah is the Lord of universal and particular mercy. His universal mercy reaches all humans and all creation, providing worldly benefit. Whoever does not associate partners with Him and seeks the reward of the Hereafter — seeking to behold Him — whether human, creation, or even jinn — may receive His particular mercy. Thus when the Tasmiyah speaks of these two forms of mercy, it includes His pre-decree of mercy.

In order to receive blessings in both this life and the next, a person must recognize that all he possesses is from the Mercy of the Lord of Mercy, and he must be among those who are grateful. His understanding and his actions will not associate anything with the One True God. He will praise the Sustainer, the Only Creator, and he will seek the perfect reward from the Lord of the Day of Recompense. Therefore, anyone who recites the Tasmiyah must first hold this understanding.

Because when humanity receives benefit from creation, people uncover the mysteries of creation and assign names to created things. After Ādam (peace be upon him) was created, Allah taught him the names of all things, so that he would seek benefit. The created world is a sign of Allah, the One True God. Therefore, humans must use the created things — which have names — to recognize the One who possesses His own Beautiful Names and Attributes, the Creator, the True God.

To understand how we truly recognize the Creator, we must remember that He sent Messengers and Prophets to deliver His guidance. Therefore, when we recite the Tasmiyah, we are at the same time bearing witness that we accept His guidance. In the Qur’an, the Tasmiyah is present. The Companions and the scholars held that the Tasmiyah is a verse of Sūrat al-Fātiḥah. Regardless of that discussion, it is certainly a verse in Sūrat al-Naml, and we recite it before the Qur’an, except before Sūrat al-Tawbah. This indicates that reciting the Tasmiyah is itself an affirmation that we accept the path Allah has set for us. Only by means of this guidance can we look beyond the surface of created forms and recognize the realities contained within them — namely, the recognition of Allah’s Beautiful Names and His many Attributes.

If a person recognizes the created world and takes benefit from it, yet fails to recognize that these created things are signs (āyāt), then whose signs are they? They are the signs of our Lord. The most basic realization is to know that He possesses Names that cannot be paired or associated with any partner, and that He is the Lord of universal mercy (ar-Raḥmān) and the Lord of particular mercy (ar-Raḥīm). This is the foundational understanding contained within these three great Names.

Shayṭān’s Deception and How Forgetfulness Harms Us

Humanity has a clear enemy — shayṭān — whose effort is to make the human being forget the importance of the Tasmiyah. Consider the example of Ādam (peace be upon him). Allah taught him the names of all things so that his wife and their descendants could benefit from His universal and particular mercy. However, shayṭān tempted him to approach the tree and eat from it, causing him to break the command. In that moment, Ādam remembered the names of created things, but he forgot the remembrance of his Lord. Had he remembered that the One who is worshipped cannot be associated with any partner, and that His command is never to be disobeyed, and that Allah had bestowed His mercy upon him, he would not have approached the tree nor eaten from it.

When Ādam and his wife approached the tree and ate, they became among those who were ungrateful for the blessing given to them. Yet they still possessed the blessing that Allah had granted them — namely, that He is al-Tawwāb, the One who accepts repentance. Thus, they repented sincerely and were forgiven. This alone is enough to show the severity of shayṭān’s deception and to warn us.

Even when a person knows the importance of the Tasmiyah, shayṭān continues to seek avenues of harm. If one forgets to say the Tasmiyah before eating, shayṭān eats along with him. If one forgets to say it when entering the house, shayṭān enters with him. When one speaks, shayṭān may whisper upon his tongue, causing him to say what is wrong, or to speak in a confused or ineffective manner — even if he does not intend falsehood.

All of this can be understood from the Prophetic narrations. For example, when someone falls and does not say the Tasmiyah, shayṭān mocks him and feels triumphant — for he sees the human being while the human does not see him. This is a real reality. Those who disbelieve and those who practice sorcery know it, let alone the Prophets and Messengers, who perceived these beings. So we must affirm that shayṭān is real and his harm is real.

Anyone referred to as shayṭān is from the jinn whose nature is pure evil, with no goodness. They intend harm to a person’s words, actions, and reasoning. If shayṭān gains a share in a person’s behavior or thoughts, he prevents the person from perceiving the deeper meanings behind the signs of creation. Every created thing is a sign pointing to Allah — and only by recognizing Allah correctly can worship be perfected, and only through worship can deeper recognition of Him be attained.

The word shayṭān comes from the Arabic root shaṭana, meaning “to be distant” — meaning he is distant from truth and from goodness. If one aligns with him by neglecting the remembrance of Allah, one also becomes distant from truth and goodness. Scholars even explain that the nature of shayṭān is inherently opposite to the nature of the human being — for shayṭān is cut off from all beauty and virtue. This arrogance began with Iblīs when he refused to prostrate to Ādam — even though it was a command from Allah, not a request from Ādam. When Allah declared he would be expelled, Iblīs replied:

{قَالَ أَرَأَيْتَكَ هَـذَا الَّذِي كَرَّمْتَ عَلَيَّ لَئِنْ أَخَّرْتَنِ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ لأَحْتَنِكَنَّ ذُرِّيَّتَهُ إَلاَّ قَلِيلا}[الإسراء:62]

(Sūrat al-Isrā’, 17:62) He said: “Do You see this one whom You have honored above me? If You delay my punishment until the Day of Resurrection, I will surely mislead his descendants — except for a few.”

Meaning: he seeks to drag humanity down to the lowest state — the state of ingratitude and disgrace.

Iblīs has always been arrogant before mankind. He refuses to submit and insists on dragging the human being down to a degraded state so that he may feel satisfied — but this satisfaction is only temporary in this worldly life. Therefore, when we perform words or actions without remembering our Lord — whether it is because we are occupied with worldly matters, or because shayṭān causes us to forget these three great Most High Names, or because we have not yet recognized that our Lord possesses these magnificent Names — shayṭān will take advantage of this. During the time in this world when Allah has granted him temporary allowance, he will display himself as superior and as if he has truly overcome the human being.

Shayṭān not only harms a person's life in this world — he also seeks to drag a person into the Fire, to accompany him in being cast out, becoming among the inhabitants of Hell. When we recite the Tasmiyah, we know that it consists of nineteen Arabic letters. Those who know Arabic are aware that in Sūrat al-Muddaththir, verses 30 and 31, it is mentioned that the people of the Fire — including the jinn — are guarded over by nineteen angels:

{عَلَيْهَا تِسْعَةَ عَشَر}[المدثر:30]

[al-Muddaththir: 30] 30. Over it are nineteen (guardians).

{وَمَا جَعَلْنَا أَصْحَابَ النَّارِ إِلاَّ مَلاَئِكَةً وَمَا جَعَلْنَا عِدَّتَهُمْ إِلاَّ فِتْنَةً لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لِيَسْتَيْقِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ وَيَزْدَادَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِيمَانًا وَلاَ يَرْتَابَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَلِيَقُولَ الَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ وَالْكَافِرُونَ مَاذَا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ بِهَذَا مَثَلاً كَذَلِكَ يُضِلُّ اللَّهُ مَن يَشَاء وَيَهْدِي مَن يَشَاء وَمَا يَعْلَمُ جُنُودَ رَبِّكَ إِلاَّ هُوَ وَمَا هِيَ إِلاَّ ذِكْرَى لِلْبَشَر}[المدثر:31]

[al-Muddaththir: 31] 31. I have appointed none but angels as keepers of the Fire, and I have made their number only a trial for those who disbelieve—to bring certainty to the People of the Scripture, and to increase the faith of those who believe, and so that the people of the Scripture and the believers may not doubt; and so that those in whose hearts is disease and the disbelievers may say: “What does Allah mean by this example?” Thus Allah leads astray whom He wills and guides whom He wills. None knows the forces of your Lord except Him. And this is only a reminder for mankind.

So when we understand the importance of reciting the Tasmiyah, this point must be recognized as well.

Qur’anic Examples: Nūḥ and Sulaymān

Now we study how the Tasmiyah is mentioned regarding Nūḥ (peace be upon him) and Sulaymān (peace be upon him). When Nūḥ boarded the Ark, he instructed those who followed him, and even the animals with mates, to board while reciting the Tasmiyah. Because those among mankind who were arrogant and refused to follow Nūḥ — shayṭān was with them in their arrogance. But those who entered the Ark did so while remembering Allah, and so Allah commanded Nūḥ to say: “In the Name of Allah” as they boarded and sailed — and he also declared that his Lord is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

From the story of Nūḥ we learn that Allah punished the arrogant evildoers upon the earth — and indeed, the arrogant are always those who side with shayṭān. If we are of those who regularly praise our Lord, who remember His Name, or at the very least recite the Tasmiyah before our words and actions — perhaps we too may be protected from such calamities. Why? Because through remembrance, Allah protects us from harm and disaster, making us among the grateful — not among the arrogant wrongdoing people. In Sūrat al-Isrā’, verse 3, it is said about Nūḥ and those who were with him:

{ذُرِّيَّةَ مَنْ حَمَلْنَا مَعَ نُوحٍ إِنَّهُ كَانَ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا}[الإسراء:3]

[al-Isrā’: 3] 3. (You are) the descendants of those We carried with Nūḥ. Indeed, he was a grateful servant.

The verse states he was among the grateful — so if we are among those who frequently remember and praise our Lord, when calamities occur and Allah brings punishment or trials upon certain people, we will be protected from harm.

In Sūrat an-Naml, when Sulaymān (peace be upon him) sent a message to Queen Bilqīs, inviting her to submit, he began the letter with the complete Tasmiyah. We know that Allah granted Sulaymān a mighty kingdom, enabling him to subdue the jinn: the evil among them were either imprisoned or made to serve him—constructing great structures, fountains, and retrieving pearls from the sea. None of the evil jinn could harm him; rather, they served him. And when Sulaymān sent the message, he began it with the perfect Tasmiyah, showing that his speech and actions were always in remembrance of Allah — for even a single moment of forgetting would make him unable to subdue shayṭān.

In Sūrat Ṣād, we learn that Sulaymān was ready to sacrifice his horses so that he would not become distracted from remembering Allah. Therefore, to avoid the harm and influence of shayṭān, and to avoid arrogance appearing before people, one must remember Allah — and the simplest remembrance is the Tasmiyah.

Living with the Tasmiyah

The Tasmiyah contains three of the Lord’s greatest Names, and reciting it before our actions is itself remembrance. From morning until night, how many times does a person recite the Tasmiyah! Allah tells us that if we remember Him, He remembers us. The Tasmiyah is remembrance through His Names. So throughout our lives, we recite countless Tasmiyah. If we uphold it consistently, we will become people who remember Allah — protected from calamities, guarded from the harm of shayṭān, and in the Hereafter we will be among those whom Allah remembers. Such people are the grateful — and all grateful people are given Paradise.

That concludes today’s discussion. If there have been slips of the tongue or unclear explanations, we ask Allah, the Exalted and Most Great, for forgiveness. May our companions pardon any shortcomings. Thank you all for sharing.

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

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