Understanding Salat — Page 129
Qaumah 129 ِ حَمْدًا كَثِيْرًا طَيِّبًا مُبَارَكًا فِيْه Praise which is plenty, pure, and blessed Three characteristics of praise ( حَمْد ) of Allah are described: its quantity, its quality, and the results it produces. We should analyze our praise of Allah to see if it carries these qualities. The first characteristic is that it is numerous. Kath ī r describes something being of high quantity. When we love someone and find their beauty to be praiseworthy, naturally we will mention them frequently. When someone buys a new car, he can’t stop thinking about it because its beauty is always on his mind. The first and most basic quality of praise that is acceptable to Allah is that it is numerous ( كَثِيْر ). ‘O ye who believe! remember Allah with much remembrance; And glo- rify Him morning and evening. ’ (33:42-43). Also, our praise being numerous ( كَثِيْر ) is the basic sus- tenance for our relationship with our Creator. If we have a friend who we never think about or see, then with each pass- ing day and week, our connection with them weakens and we lose touch. When they’re out of sight then they’re out of mind. It doesn’t matter how much we claim we love them; when we don’t think about them, our connection with them withers away. If the beauties of the world are all that we observe, Allah Almighty will disappear from our sight and mind. If our praise of the beauties of Allah is not numerous Quantity