with him—that he said: The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said, “The Mother of the Quran is the seven oft-repeated verses and the Magnificent Quran.”1

Among the virtues of this surah is that there is no prayer for one who does not recite it, and every prayer in which the Opening of the Book is not recited is deficient and incomplete. Muslim recorded in his Sahīh, on the authority of Abū Hurayra—may Allah be pleased with him—that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said, “Whoever performs a prayer without reciting the Mother of the Quran in it, it is deficient”—three times—“incomplete.” Abū Hurayra was asked, “But we pray behind the imam.” He replied, “Recite it to yourself, for I heard the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—say, ‘Allah Most High said: I have divided the prayer between Myself and My servant into two halves, and My servant shall have whatever he asks for. When the servant says, “All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all worlds,” Allah Most High says, “My servant has praised Me.” When he says, “The Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful,” Allah Most High says, “My servant has extolled Me.” When he says, “Master of the Day of Judgment,” He says, “My servant has glorified Me,” and on one occasion He said, “My servant has entrusted his affairs to Me.” When he says, “You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help,” He says, “This is between Myself and My servant, and My servant shall have whatever he asks for.” When he says, “Guide us to the straight path—the path of those You have blessed, not those who incur wrath, nor those who have gone astray,” He says, “This is for My servant, and My servant shall have whatever he asks for.”’”2

These hadiths and others like them demonstrate the tremendous merit of this noble surah: it is the greatest surah of the Quran. Indeed, nothing like it was revealed in the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms, or the Quran. It is the Mother of the Quran, for the entire Quran is an explanation of it and an exposition of what it presents in summary. This is because it encompasses the meanings contained in the Quran, such as praise