Hamd (praise of God and thanks)

الحمد

Hamd is lexically the opposite of blame and means thanks, contentment and full praise in speech for a voluntary excellence; it is narrower than praise and wider than thanks. 1 2 The fullest form is 'praise belongs to God, Lord of the worlds', which opens the Quran; the expression 'praise that matches His bounties and multiplies them' is also cited. 3 4 Praise is due to God alone, a person may not praise himself, and praising another for what he does not have is forbidden. 2 5 Opening important affairs with praise of God is recommended, in speeches, writings and openings of prayer. 5 6 7 Praise during bowing, prostrating and rising from bowing is disputed among the schools; the follower says 'our Lord, to You be praise', while the lone prayer joins the two in the Shafii view. 7 8 9 10 Praise after prayer is recommended; in the Friday, festival, rain-prayer and eclipse sermons the schools differ on whether it is required. 11 12 13 Praise is recommended at a sudden blessing or the removal of a harm, quietly before one afflicted, after sneezing, at morning and evening, at the loss of a child, at seeing what one loves or dislikes, on entering the market, before the mirror and on mounting a beast. 14 15 16 17 The entry closes at the next headword, hamdala, which is a cross-reference to hamd, and then ḥaml (حمل). 4

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Region
Global / Diaspora
Review
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Worship and the pillars

Summary

Hamd is lexically the opposite of blame and means thanks, contentment and full praise in speech for a voluntary excellence; it is narrower than praise and wider than thanks. 1 2 The fullest form is 'praise belongs to God, Lord of the worlds', which opens the Quran; the expression 'praise that matches His bounties and multiplies them' is also cited. 3 4 Praise is due to God alone, a person may not praise himself, and praising another for what he does not have is forbidden. 2 5 Opening important affairs with praise of God is recommended, in speeches, writings and openings of prayer. 5 6 7 Praise during bowing, prostrating and rising from bowing is disputed among the schools; the follower says 'our Lord, to You be praise', while the lone prayer joins the two in the Shafii view. 7 8 9 10 Praise after prayer is recommended; in the Friday, festival, rain-prayer and eclipse sermons the schools differ on whether it is required. 11 12 13 Praise is recommended at a sudden blessing or the removal of a harm, quietly before one afflicted, after sneezing, at morning and evening, at the loss of a child, at seeing what one loves or dislikes, on entering the market, before the mirror and on mounting a beast. 14 15 16 17 The entry closes at the next headword, hamdala, which is a cross-reference to hamd, and then ḥaml (حمل). 4

People and things also explored

The ruling on one who abandons prayer· Ada' (performance of an obligation within its time)· Adhan (the call to prayer: its ruling, wording, conditions, recommended features and the muezzin)· Bone (adhm): purity, use and retaliation· The adornment of desires and the goods of this world· The people of the bench (ahl al-suffa)· The earth made a place of prayer and purity· Spending in the way of God (infaq)

Sources

  1. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7292
  2. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7294
  3. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7308
  4. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7309
  5. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7295
  6. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7296
  7. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7297
  8. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7298
  9. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7299
  10. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7300
  11. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7301
  12. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7302
  13. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7303
  14. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7304
  15. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7305
  16. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7306
  17. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.7307
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Hamd (praise of God and thanks)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/hamd-praise/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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Related

The ruling on one who abandons prayer

Al-Sallabi quotes Ali: whoever does not pray is an unbeliever. He then reports from al-Nawawi the dispute over one who neglects prayer while believing it obligatory: the majority (Malik, al-Shafi'i) hold him a sinner to be asked to repent, others hold him an unbeliever, a view ascribed to Ali; Abu Hanifa and the Kufans hold him not an unbeliever but to be disciplined.