Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya Part IV — Page 251
FOOTNOTE NUMBER ELEVEN 251 seeking rewards and security from chastisement is most appropriately stated under it. The fourth beauty is that Sürah al-Fatihah succinctly encapsulates all of the objectives of the Holy Quran as though this sūrah is a beau- tiful summary of all Quranic objectives. Alluding to this, Allah the Almighty states: وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَكَ سَبْعًا مِنَ الْمَثَانِي وَالْقُرْآنَ الْعَظِيمَ . Meaning that, O Messenger! We have bestowed upon you the seven verses of Sūrah al-Fatihah which succinctly comprehend all Quranic objectives, and, along with it, the Great Quran has also been bestowed, which sets out religious purposes in detail. For this reason, this sūrah is known as Ummul-Kitāb [Mother of the Book] and Süratul-Jāmi [the Comprehensive Sürah]. It is Ummul-Kitāb because all objectives of the Holy Quran can be derived from it, and it is Sūratul-Jāmi because it comprehends all types of Quranic teachings in a succinct manner. It is for this very reason that the Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be on him, said that whosoever recites Sūrah al-Fatihah, it is as if he has recited the whole Quran. In short, it is proven from the Holy Quran and the ahadith of the Holy Prophetsaw that the blessed Sürah al-Fatihah is a mirror that reflects the Quran. The explanation of this is that one of the objectives of the Holy Quran is to explain all of the perfect praises of the Exalted Maker and to clearly state the complete perfection that His Being possesses. This objective is succinctly expressed in الحمد لله alhamdulillah-all praise belongs to Allah] because it means that all types of perfect praise are established for Allah, who is comprehensive of all excellences and is worthy of every type of worship. The second objective of the Holy Quran is that it manifests God 1. Sūrah al-Hijr, 15:88 [Publisher]