Nature of Hamd

When an individual reflects on his existence in the universe, he discovers signs of God in creation, and his heart and mind are flooded with a tidal wave of feelings. At that moment, he praises God at a conscious level in the highest acknowledgment of the divine being.

Hamd means high praise, and all praise is due only to God. No one other than God deserves to be praised. When a being is praised, equivalent feelings are produced within the person who does the praising. When one discovers God in all His glory and says: alhamdulillah, this is not just an expression of praise but incorporates all high and noble feelings such as gratitude, acknowledgment, emotional attachment, etc. Hamd means praise, but as to its usage, it has a large number of meanings. Although hamd means to praise, it expresses effulgent acclamation when applied to the Lord of the worlds.

When an individual reflects on his existence in the universe, he discovers signs of God in creation, and his heart and mind are flooded with a tidal wave of feelings. At that moment, he spontaneously calls out: “All praise is due to God.” This praise is given at a conscious level in the highest acknowledgment of the divine being. There is no degree of acknowledgment more elevated than this.

Man has the consciousness inherent in him from birth that he should discover a Perfect Being and offer Him his highest and best feelings of acknowledgment. Therefore, when a man finds God in response to this urge of his own nature, this is in consonance with what is called Tawhid (the oneness of God). But the Quran says: “There are some who set up equals with God and adore them with the adoration due to God” (2:165). And so, when man attributes feelings of adoration to anything or anyone other than God and has an attachment for that thing or person, such as is meant for God alone, this is described as shirk. Therefore, a religion based on monotheism is God’s desired religion, whereas the Almighty abhors any religion based on shirk.