Introduction of prayer:
In this verse Allah Kareem advices man to be dutiful, kind and obedient to his parents. His mother bore and delivered him with hardship. His gestation and weaning is thirty months. And when man reaches his forty, the age of complete understanding, intellect and maturity, he calls upon Allah that he may be grateful to Allah for favours bestowed upon him and his parents. Man also supplicates Allah for his off spring to be righteous and good.
Explanation & virtues of prayer:
1- وَأَصْلِحْ لِى فِى ذُرِّيَّتِىٓ ۖ(And instil righteousness in my offspring):
أَصْلِحْ Means to make righteous, pious and good. And Saleh is a such righteous person who is obedient to his Lord, adheres to the teachings of his religion, is keen to please Allah, hastens on the basis of faith to do all good deeds, turns away out of fear of Allah from all evil deeds, loves the Sunnah and those who follow it.
Allah Kareem mentions the virtues of righteousness and its rewards in Surah An-Nahl, verse: 97;
مَنْ عَمِلَ صَـٰلِحًۭا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَىٰ وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌۭ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُۥ حَيَوٰةًۭ طَيِّبَةًۭ ۖ وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُم بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has Faith, verily, to him will We give a new Life, a life that is good and pure and We will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions.
This is a promise from Allah to those Children of Adam, male or female, who do righteous deeds – deeds in accordance with the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet , with a heart that believes in Allah and His Messenger , while believing that these deeds are commanded and enjoined by Allah. Allah promises that He will give them a good life in this world and that He will reward them according to the best of their deeds in the Hereafter.
Regarding the virtues and rewards of righteousness, man calla upon Allah Kareem to make his children good and righteous. The people who are in problem of disobedience from their children they may recite this prayer regularly.
2- إِنِّى تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَإِنِّى مِنَ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ ١٥ ( I truly repent to You, and I truly submit ˹to Your Will):
In the second part of the prayer man supplicates Allah Kareem for repentance and declares his submission and faith in Him. Repentance is a great virtue of a Muslim. Allah Kareem pleases with a man who turns to him in repentance. Allah loves those who make a mistake then turn to Him;
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلتَّوَّٰبِينَ وَيُحِبُّ ٱلْمُتَطَهِّرِينَ
Surely Allah loves those who always turn to Him in repentance and those who purify themselves. (Al-Baqarah: 222)
Allah Kareem describes His attribute of forgiving His servants many times in Qur’an. Allah Kareem says in Surah An-Nisa, verse: 16;
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ تَوَّابًۭا رَّحِيمًا
Surely Allah is ever Accepting of Repentance, Most Merciful.
The Prophet (pbuh) states about repentance by saying;
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَنَّهُ قَالَ “ قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَنَا عِنْدَ ظَنِّ عَبْدِي بِي وَأَنَا مَعَهُ حَيْثُ يَذْكُرُنِي وَاللَّهِ لَلَّهُ أَفْرَحُ بِتَوْبَةِ عَبْدِهِ مِنْ أَحَدِكُمْ يَجِدُ ضَالَّتَهُ بِالْفَلاَةِ وَمَنْ تَقَرَّبَ إِلَىَّ شِبْرًا تَقَرَّبْتُ إِلَيْهِ ذِرَاعًا وَمَنْ تَقَرَّبَ إِلَىَّ ذِرَاعًا تَقَرَّبْتُ إِلَيْهِ بَاعًا وَإِذَا أَقْبَلَ إِلَىَّ يَمْشِي أَقْبَلْتُ إِلَيْهِ أُهَرْوِلُ ” .
Abu Huraira reported Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:
Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, said: I live in the thought of My servant and I am with him as he remembers Me. (The Holy Prophet) further said: By Allah, Allah is more pleased wth the repentance of His servant than what one of you would do on finding the lost camel in the waterless desert. When he draws near Me by the span of his hand. I draw near him by the length of a cubit and when he draws near Me by the length of a cubit. I draw near him by the length of a fathom and when he draws near Me walking I draw close to him hurriedly. (Sahih Muslim: 2675h)
It is narrated from the Prophet (pbuh);
عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ “ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَبْسُطُ يَدَهُ بِاللَّيْلِ لِيَتُوبَ مُسِيءُ النَّهَارِ وَيَبْسُطُ يَدَهُ بِالنَّهَارِ لِيَتُوبَ مُسِيءُ اللَّيْلِ حَتَّى تَطْلُعَ الشَّمْسُ مِنْ مَغْرِبِهَا ” .
Abu Musa reported Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) as saying that Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, Stretches out His Hand during the night so that the people may repent for the fault committed from dawn till dusk and He stretches out His Hand during the day so that the people may repent for the fault committed from dusk to dawn. (He would accept repentance) before the sun rises in the west (before the Day of Resurrection). (Sahih Muslim: 2759a,b)
3-وَإِنِّى مِنَ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ ١٥ ( and truly do I bow (to You) in Islam):
According to the Qur’an, a Muslim is one who has absolutely surrendered to Allah and his commands and believes in pure Tawhid (the oneness of God) that isn’t tainted with any Shirk and this is why the Almighty has introduced Prophet Abraham as a true Muslim in the Qur’an. Allah (SWT) states in the Qur’an that the religion of all Prophets was Islam and called them Muslims. in any situation no religion is accepted by Allah other than Islam. Allah Kareem declares in Surah Ali ‘Imran, verse: 85;
وَمَن يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ ٱلْإِسْلَـٰمِ دِينًۭا فَلَن يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ مِنَ ٱلْخَـٰسِرِينَ
Whoever seeks a way other than Islam, it will never be accepted from them, and in the Hereafter they will be among the losers.
Allah Kareem mentions Sayyidna Ibrahim (as) as the role model for all Muslims;
إِذْ قَالَ لَهُۥ رَبُّهُۥٓ أَسْلِمْ ۖ قَالَ أَسْلَمْتُ لِرَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
When his Lord ordered him, “Submit ˹to My Will˺,” he responded, “I submit to the Lord of all worlds.”(2: 131)
۞ رَبِّ قَدْ ءَاتَيْتَنِى مِنَ ٱلْمُلْكِ وَعَلَّمْتَنِى مِن تَأْوِيلِ ٱلْأَحَادِيثِ ۚ فَاطِرَ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ أَنتَ وَلِىِّۦ فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا وَٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ ۖ تَوَفَّنِى مُسْلِمًۭا وَأَلْحِقْنِى بِٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ ١٠١
“My Lord! You have surely granted me authority and taught me the interpretation of dreams. ˹O˺ Originator of the heavens and the earth! You are my Guardian in this world and the Hereafter. Allow me to die as one who submits and join me with the righteous.”(Surah Yousuf: 101)
Allah Commanded His prophet Muhammad (pbuh) to convey the news of being guided to Allah’s straight path. He was also ordered to inform the idolators who worship other than Allah and sacrifice to something other than Him, that he opposes them in all this, for his prayer is for Allah, and his rituals are in His Name alone, without partners;
قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِى وَنُسُكِى وَمَحْيَاىَ وَمَمَاتِى لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ ١٦٢ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُۥ ۖ وَبِذَٰلِكَ أُمِرْتُ وَأَنَا۠ أَوَّلُ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ ١٦٣
Say, “Surely my prayer, my sacrifice, my life, and my death are all for Allah—Lord of all worlds.He has no partner. So I am commanded, and so I am the first to submit.”(Surah Al-An’am: 162, 163)
In Tafsir Ad-Durr Al-Manthur, under the commentary on this verse, it has been reported that the well-known Sahabi, Sayyidna Abu Musa Al-Ash` ari ؓ used to say: “I honestly wish that every Muslim would keep reciting this verse time and again, almost making it the constant formula of his or her life.”(M’arif ul Qur’an)
