What is Hamd?
Bismillah.
As Muslims, the phrase “alhamdulillah” الحمد لله (all praise and thanks is for Allah) is an integral part of our deen; we are taught to say it from both the Qur’an and Sunnah. Linguistically, Hamd is from ha-meem-daal ( حمد or ح م د) and it is to mention the good attribute of a person, such an attribute that is the at the level of perfection. Hamd is based on mahabbah (love) and ta’dheem (greatness). Hamd is not a fake praise, meaning it is not done to please the person or with no significance, Hamd is always true. Hamd implies admiration, love and magnifying the praise of mahmood (one who is praised). Hamd is a sincere and true praise, that the mahmood (one who is praised) deserves. The one doing hamd is doing submission to the one being praise–out of humility. Hamd also includes sincere gratitude and mentioning the kamaal (best) traits of someone.When we say alhamdulillah, it implies exclusivity and entirety, meaning that praise is entirely and only for Allah. The ‘al’ (ال) before ‘hamd’ is called “istighraaq” in Arabic, and when “al” comes before this phrase its means that entire praise, all kinds of praise and all the time, hamd is due to Allah. The “li” (in lillah, meaning for Allah) implies limitation which is known as “ikhtisaas” in Arabic and it means that Allah is the only One who deserves the hamd.