Fortress of the Muslim
Fortress of the Muslim
حصن المسلم
Praise belongs to Allah, who fed me this and provided it for me without any might or power of my own.
Praise be to Allah, abundant, good, blessed praise, not insufficient, not relinquished, and not dispensable, our Lord.
Translation notes
الْحَمْـدُ للهِ حَمْـداً كَثـيراً طَيِّـباً مُبـارَكاً فيه، غَيْرَ مَكْفِيٍّ وَلا مُوَدَّعٍ وَلا مُسْتَغْـنىً عَنْـهُ رَبَّـنا
The three closing descriptions are idiomatic and their precise English force is not fully transparent; the witness paraphrases the first two rather than resolving them.
Can a qualified Arabic reviewer confirm a natural rendering that preserves all three descriptions?
O Allah, bless them in what You have provided for them, forgive them, and have mercy on them.
O Allah, feed the one who fed me, and give drink to the one who gave me drink.
May those who are fasting break their fast with you, may the righteous eat your food, and may the angels pray for you.
(When one of you is invited, let him respond. If he is fasting, let him pray; if he is not fasting, let him eat.) The meaning of “let him pray” is “let him supplicate.”
Translation notes
فَلْيُصَلِّ أَيْ فَلْيَدْعُ
The English witness specifies a prayer for blessings on the host, while this Arabic text explains the verb simply as supplication.
Should an edition-specific note identify the host as the object of the supplication?
O Allah, bless our fruits, bless our city, and bless our measures, our ṣāʿ and our mudd.
Translation notes
صاعِنـا
The source names a traditional measure without defining its size.
Should an edition-specific glossary explain the measure?
When one of you sneezes, let him say, “Praise be to Allah.” Then let his brother or companion say to him, “May Allah have mercy on you.” When he says to him, “May Allah have mercy on you,” let him reply, “May Allah guide you and set your affairs right.”
May Allah bless you, shower blessings upon you, and unite you both in goodness.
When one of you marries a woman or buys a servant, let him say: “O Allah, I ask You for her good and the good nature You have given her, and I seek refuge in You from her evil and the evil nature You have given her.” If he buys a camel, let him take hold of the top of its hump and say the same.
Translation notes
وَشَرِّ مَا جَبَلْتَهَا عَلَيْهِ
The Arabic literally refers to the disposition on which she was formed; “nature” is a concise rendering, while the English witness says “created her.”
Would a reviewer prefer “disposition” or another term for jabaltaha?
In the name of Allah. O Allah, keep Satan away from us, and keep Satan away from what You provide for us.
Praise be to Allah, who has granted me well-being from that with which He has afflicted you, and favored me greatly over many of those He created.
Ibn ʿUmar said: In a single sitting, before the Messenger of Allah stood up, he would say one hundred times: “My Lord, forgive me and accept my repentance. You are the Ever-Relenting, the All-Forgiving.”
Translation notes
كان يعد لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في المجلس الواحد مائة مرة من قبل أن يقوم
The English witness omits the count of one hundred and the timing before he stood up, both stated in this Arabic text.
Should the count and timing be highlighted in an editorial comparison?
Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. I bear witness that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and turn to You in repentance.
Translation notes
أَشْهَـدُ أَنْ لا إِلهَ إِلاّ أَنْتَ
The witness adds “worthy of worship,” an interpretive expansion absent from this Arabic wording.
Should the witness expansion be addressed in an editorial note?
“Whoever memorizes ten verses from the beginning of Surah al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjal.” One should also seek refuge in Allah from his trial after the final tashahhud of every prayer.
Translation notes
.(مَنْ حَفِظَ عَشْرَ آيَاتٍ مِنْ أَوَّلِ سُورَةِ الْكَهْفِ عُصِمَ مِنَ الدَّجَّالِ) ، وَالْاسْتِعَاذَةُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ فِتْنَتِهِ عَقِبَ التَّشَهُّدِ الْأَخِيرِ مِنْ كُلِّ صَلاَةٍ.
The Arabic gives the second clause as a nominal phrase; the witness recasts it as an instruction to recite in every prayer and adds “before ending the prayer.”
Should an editor supply an imperative subject for the second clause, or preserve the source fragment as translated?