Meaning of Iyyaaka na’budu
Iyyaaka na’budu translates to “you we worship”. It is because the word worship describes an action that happens at fixed hours. But there is actually more going on here. We are actually willingly enslaving ourselves to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). So, this verse actually means “it is only to you that we willingly give ourselves in slavery and worship”. This also corresponds with Rabb.
Language insight:
In the Arabic language, the verb and the pronoun are usually linked together and in a way that the pronoun like “ka” usually appears after the verb. So, the most common way to say this would have been na’buduka. But by saying Iyyaka na’budu the emphasis is more on the pronoun than the verb. In other words, the emphasis is more on Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) than on our worship.
Also, when the pronoun occurs before the verb, it establishes exclusivity i.e. you “alone” do we worship. If the verse would have translated to we worship you then it doesn’t say if we are worshipping someone else later.
Therefore iyyaaka na’budu is incredible from a language perspective.
Shahadah in every Fatihah recitation
When a human being gives a serious thought about the first 3 verses and tries to process it intellectually, his emotions get rattled and he couldn’t help but come to the conclusion that he is going to give himself to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) in slavery and worship. In other words, it is both heart and mind coming together in submission to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). This is actually almost like someone converting to Islam. Fatihah, is literally like a conversion everytime.
We have been slaves our whole life but everytime we recite Fatihah we restart i.e. we revisit why we believe in Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala), why we are a slave of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala), why we are Muslims. Fatihah itself is screaming that we go back to basics and refresh our commitment to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). The commitment to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is that we will not cross the line. It is a huge commitment, so every few hours we need to remind ourselves of that, and Fatihah helps us achieve it.
Meaning of lyyaaka nasta’een
“lyyaaka nasta’een” means “we seek your help and only your help”. We made a commitment to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala), who is the most powerful, and our commitment of giving ourselves as slaves was also a huge commitment for us to be able to honor. We need some help to be able to do that, so we seek Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) for his help.
Observation:
It is beautiful that Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) mentioned “slavery” first, “help” second. We make the commitment first, fulfill our purpose and then get the help or benefits from Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). Another way to look at it is, what we want to do for Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) should come first, and what we want for ourselves should come second.