Selections from the Glorious Quran — Study Session 1
Overview
The main topics covered in this session are:
- Introduction to the Selections from the Glorious Quran book series
- Etymology of the word البسملة (al-basmala) — a noun derived from a phrase
- همزة القطع vs همزة الوصل — the two types of Hamza
- قياسي vs سماعي — rule-based vs conventionally fixed usage
- Is al-Basmala part of Sūrat al-Fātiḥah? — scholarly differences
- The name الله — origins and the Al-plus-Ilāh theory
- الرحمن vs الرحيم — patterns of mubālaghah and their distinctions
- The omitted verb in Bismillāh (al-maḥdhūf)
- المصدر الميمي — the Mīmī Maṣdar
1. Introduction to the Book Series
This series works through Selections from the Glorious Quran, a book by Dr. Abdurraḥīm that collects excerpts from multiple sūrahs: Sūrat al-Fātiḥah, Āyat al-Kursī, the story of Tālūt from al-Baqarah, and other passages.
Purpose of this series
The book revisits grammar concepts already studied but applies them to new Quranic text. This cements prior learning, keeps interest high through varied content, and deepens understanding of a wider range of Quran.
2. Al-Basmala — Etymology
البسملة (al-basmala) is the name given to the sentence بِسمِ اللهِ الرَّحمٰنِ الرَّحِيم or to the act of reciting it.
A Noun That Became a Verb
Normally in Arabic, the verb comes first and nouns are derived from it. The basmala is a rare case where the noun came first. The phrase "بِسمِ اللهِ" was shortened to بسمل (a four-letter rubāʿī verb on the pattern of زَلزَلَ), making it one of only seven such verbs carved (naḥata) from their noun/phrase forms.
Other examples of this same pattern:
| Phrase | Shortened Form | Verb |
|---|---|---|
| سُبحانَ الله | سبحلة | سَبحَلَ |
| الحَمدُ لله | حَولة | حَولَ |
| حَيَّ على... | حَيعَلَة | حَيعَلَ |
| بِسمِ الله | بَسمَلة | بَسمَلَ |
A Jāhilī/early Islamic poet (from Quraysh) used this verb:
بَسمَلَت لَيلى يَومَ لَقيتُها "Layla was reciting Bismillāh the day I met her."
Tasmia vs Basmala
Some communities (notably in South Africa) use the term tasmia instead of basmala. Most classical Arabic books use the term al-basmala.
3. Hamzatul Qaṭʿ vs Hamzatul Waṣl
3.1 Alif is Not a Consonant
الألف (alif) is a vowel only — it elongates a short fatḥa into a long ā. It cannot begin a word. Any alif-shaped letter at the start of a word is actually a Hamza.
3.2 Hamzatul Qaṭʿ (همزة القطع)
- Written with the sign ء (or ٔ/ٕ above/below alif)
- Always pronounced regardless of what comes before it
- Can appear at the beginning, middle, or end of a word
- Example: أَكبَر، إِلٰه
3.3 Hamzatul Waṣl (همزة الوصل)
A special "bridge" Hamza that is: - Always at the beginning of a word - Dropped in pronunciation when the preceding word ends in a vowel - Retained in pronunciation when there is nothing before it (i.e., when you start speaking from it)
Bismillah — Hamzatul Waṣl dropped
In بِسمِ اللهِ: the word اِسم (ism) begins with Hamzatul Waṣl. When prefixed with بِـ, the Hamza is dropped and we say بِسمِ not بِإِسمِ.
In most Quranic instances where bismi appears, the Hamza is retained in writing. In Bismillāh specifically, it is omitted in writing too, due to the extremely frequent use of this phrase — a well-known scribal convention preserved in the Uthmānic muṣḥaf.
3.4 The Ten Nouns with Hamzatul Waṣl
Most Hamzatul Waṣl occurrences are in verbs (Form VII, VIII, IX, X always begin with it — a qiyāsī rule). In nouns, there are exactly ten that take it — a samāʿī convention with no underlying rule:
| Noun | Meaning |
|---|---|
| اِسم | name |
| اِبن | son |
| اِسم | name |
| اِثنان | two |
| اِمرَأة | woman |
Key Distinction: Qiyāsī vs Samāʿī
- قياسي (qiyāsī): Follows a rule. Example: all Form VIII verb maṣdars start with Hamzatul Waṣl.
- سماعي (samāʿī): No rule — accepted as-is because that is how Arabs used it. The ten nouns with Hamzatul Waṣl are samāʿī.
Languages are reverse-engineered: the usage came first, then grammarians extracted rules. Some usages resist rulification.
4. Is Al-Basmala Part of Sūrat al-Fātiḥah?
There are differing scholarly positions:
| Position | View |
|---|---|
| Al-Basmala is not part of any sūrah | The words originate from Sūrat al-Naml (Sulaymān's letter) and were used as a separator |
| Al-Basmala is part of every sūrah | Including Sūrat al-Fātiḥah |
| Al-Basmala is part of Sūrat al-Fātiḥah only | Not part of other sūrahs |
Evidence from Hadith Qudsī
A famous hadith qudsī mentions: "I have divided al-Ṣalāh between Myself and My slave, half and half..." — here الصلاة refers to Sūrat al-Fātiḥah (one of its names). The hadith begins with الحمدُ للهِ, not with Bismillāh — which some scholars use as evidence that the Basmala is not part of the Sūrah.
Why Sūrat al-Tawbah has no Basmala
The Saḥābah were uncertain whether Sūrat al-Anfāl and Sūrat al-Tawbah were one sūrah or two, since the Prophet ﷺ would often recite them together without pause. In the absence of certainty, no Basmala was written at the start of al-Tawbah.
However, if one begins recitation from al-Tawbah (not continuing from al-Anfāl), one says Bismillāh.
5. The Name الله — Origins
Dr. Abdurraḥīm states that the أل at the start of الله is not the definite article — it is part of the name itself, with an original Hamzatul Waṣl that is dropped in pronunciation (except after يَا, where we say يا اللهُ, not يَلله).
Alternative Theory: Al + Ilāh
Many scholars hold that اللهُ = الـ + إِلٰه. The Arabs believed in one supreme God (Allāh) and lesser deities beneath Him (the idols). إِلٰه = deity; الإِلٰه = the God → through frequent use, the Hamza dropped and it became الله.
This would also explain اللّات as a feminine form of الله (since Arab idolaters believed angels were the daughters of Allāh), and similarly مَنَاة as a feminine form of another name.
6. Al-Raḥmān and Al-Raḥīm — Patterns of Mubālaghah
Both names derive from the root ر-ح-م (raḥima — to show mercy).
6.1 The Fāʿil Pattern and Time-Independent Qualities
Some verbs express qualities that are not time-bound — either you have them or you don't (you cannot switch them on and off). Examples: karuma (to be noble), mariḍa (to be ill). For such qualities, the active participle فاعِل (fāʿil) is rarely used. Instead, the pattern فَعِيل (faʿīl) is preferred because it conveys a permanent state.
| Pattern | Example | Implication |
|---|---|---|
| فاعِل | راحِم | Occasionally merciful |
| فَعِيل | رَحِيم | Permanently/inherently merciful |
| فَعلان | غَضبان | Momentarily in that state (anger comes and goes) |
6.2 Mubālaghah Patterns
صِيغَة المُبالَغَة intensifies the quality — not just having a trait but having it in excess:
| Pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| فَعُول | شَكُور | Extremely grateful |
| فَعَّال | عَلَّام | Extremely knowledgeable |
| فَعِيل | رَحِيم | Always / intensely merciful |
| فَعلان | — | Momentary excess (different nuance) |
الرَّحمٰن (al-Raḥmān) — on the pattern فَعلان: describes mercy that is vast and overflowing at this moment, encompassing all creation right now.
الرَّحِيم (al-Raḥīm) — on the pattern فَعِيل: mercy that is permanent, intrinsic, and beyond measure — Allāh's mercy has no bounds and knows no interruption.
Why Allāh is Rahīm, not Rāḥim
رَاحِم (fāʿil) would imply occasional mercy. Since Allāh's mercy is constant and unconditional — even in sending down punishment (which is itself a manifestation of His mercy toward humanity) — the permanent pattern رَحِيم is used.
7. The Omitted Verb in Bismillāh
بِسمِ اللهِ is a jār + majrūr (prepositional phrase). Grammatically, a preposition phrase must attach to either a verb or a noun (its mutaʿalliq).
The Maḥdhūf (Omitted Element)
The verb "I begin/I start" is omitted (maḥdhūf). The full implied meaning is:
أَبدَأُ بِسمِ اللهِ — I begin with the name of Allāh
The omission is deliberate and rhetorical: by not specifying the action, the Bismillāh becomes all-encompassing — covering every act one performs, not just the single stated one.
8. Al-Maṣdar al-Mīmī — The Mīmī Maṣdar
The المصدر الميمي is a maṣdar formed by prefixing a مـ to the root.
| Regular Maṣdar | Mīmī Maṣdar | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| رَحمة (mercy) | مَرحَمة | Broader sense — includes acts done out of mercy (e.g., disciplining a child lovingly) |
| نَوم (sleeping) | مَنَام | Broader — includes all sleep-related experience (dreams, night activity) |
| سُجُود (prostration) | — | Regular maṣdar: the action itself |
Maṣdar al-Marra
A separate type: مصدر المرة counts one instance of an action. Example: سَجدة = one prostration (vs سُجُود = the act of prostrating in general).
9. Key Lessons from This Session
Summary of Lessons
- البسملة is etymologically unique — a noun that spawned a verb, not the other way around.
- Alif is never a consonant; what looks like alif at the start of a word is always Hamza (either Qaṭʿ or Waṣl).
- Hamzatul Waṣl is dropped in pronunciation (and in the specific case of Bismillāh, also in writing) when preceded by another word.
- The ten nouns with Hamzatul Waṣl are samāʿī — memorise them; no rule covers them.
- Whether the Basmala is part of Sūrat al-Fātiḥah is a matter of scholarly difference; either way, we recite it.
- الرحمن and الرحيم are both mubālaghah patterns emphasising the vastness and permanence of Allāh's mercy.
- The omitted verb in Bismillāh is intentional — its absence broadens the scope to every act.
- Qiyāsī means rule-governed; samāʿī means convention-only — language was reverse-engineered from usage.
Next session will continue with Sūrat al-Fātiḥah. The teacher announced a two-week break; classes resume on 4th March.