Al-hamdu lillahi rabbil 'alamin
Al-hamdu lillahi rabbil 'alamin (Arabic: الحمد لله ربّ العالمين, al-ḥamdu li-llāhi rabbi l-ʿālamīn) is the second verse of the first Surah of the Quran. It is also one of the sentences most commonly repeated by Muslims in their daily lives, in a variety of situations.
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Meaning
The English translation of this verse is "All the praises be to God, the Lord of the 'Alamîn (worlds i.e. mankind, jinns and all that exists)".
Significance
This verse belongs to Surah Al-Fatiha which is an obligatory part of the Muslim prayer (Salaat), and hence, is recited daily. Other than being recited daily during the five prayers, Muslims also strive to recite this expression in every activity of their daily lives. Muslims invoke the praises of God before performing any work; and when they finish, they thank God for his favors by a reciting this verse. They are taught to strive to be grateful to God for his blessings and thus this verse is a statement of thanks, appreciation, and gratitude to God.
A commentator on the Quran from the ninth century, Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, said:
The meaning of al-ḥamdu li-llāhi is: all thanks are due purely to God, alone, not any of the objects that are being worshipped instead of Him, nor any of His creation. These thanks are due to God's innumerable favors and bounties, that only He knows the amount of. God's bounties include creating the tools that help the creation worship Him, the physical bodies with which they are able to implement His commands, the sustenance that He provides them in this life, and the comfortable life He has granted them, without anything or anyone compelling Him to do so. God also warned His creation and alerted them about the means and methods with which they can earn eternal dwelling in the residence of everlasting happiness. All thanks and praise are due to God for these favors from beginning to end.
Further, Ibn Jarir also commented on the verse that it means,
A praise that God praised Himself with, indicating to His servants that they too should praise Him, as if God had said, "Say: All thanks and praise is due to God." The statement also entails praising God by mentioning His most beautiful Names and most honorable Attributes. Thus when one proclaims, "All thanks are due to God," he will be thanking Him for His favors and bounties.
