Prayer’s performed by a Monotheist, Submitter, or Muslim, are formed of units called (Rak’a – plural is Rak’at).  A prayer starts with the believer standing in front of his lord, and begins by recitation of the opening chapter of the Quran.  ‘Chapter’ is often referred to as ‘Surah’ in Arabic.  This opening Surah is called the (‘Fatiha’) or (‘The Opening’ in English, some have also called it ‘The Key’).  In Gods unchanged word of the Quran, the (‘Fatiha’) is as follows:

1:1 In the name of God, the Almighty, the Merciful.

1:2 Praise to God, Lord of the worlds.

1:3 The Almighty, the Merciful.

1:4 Sovereign of the Day of Judgment.

1:5 You alone we serve, and You alone we seek for help.

1:6 Guide us to the straight path.

1:7 The path of those You have blessed, not of those who have incurred

the wrath, nor the misguided.

These are beautiful and simple words that glorify God Almighty.  Yet a simple question might come to mind, why have certain sects come to add a word called (Ameen) at the end of the last verse?  

Many of these sects even emphasize on reading this word aloud and prolonging its pronunciation while quietly reciting the first original verse (1:1), especially during the sunset (Mahgrib), evening (Isha), and sunrise (Fajr) prayers, how strange?!?  Where did this come from?!?

Well Satan is, and has always been at work, trying to mislead humans from worshipping their Lord since the beginning of creation.  From Quran, Chapter Fifteen “Al-Hijr Valley”:

15:34 He (God) said: “Exit from here, you are cast out.”

15:35 “And a curse shall be upon you until the Day of Judgment.”

15:36 He (Satan) said: “My Lord, respite me until the Day they are resurrected.”

15:37 He (God) said: “You are given respite.”

15:38 “Until the Day of the time appointed.”

15:39 He (Satan) said: “My Lord, for that by which You have caused me to be

misled, I will beautify for them what is on the earth, and I will

mislead them all.”

So how has Satan managed to convince humans of inserting the word (Ameen) in their prayers?  Let us see the linguistic and historical origins of this word.

The word (Ameen) is not Arabic, and is not in the Quran by pronunciation.  It is an ancient Egyptian word that is derived from the famous ancient Egyptian idol god (Amoon).  When ancient Egyptians used to sing this idol god’s name, they used to sing, and pronounce it in a manner where they used to break the pronunciation of the vowels (oo), and pronounce it closer to the vowels (ee), and hence the word (Ameen).  In modern times, you find farmers in Egypt’s rural areas, especially in the area called (Al-Sa’eed), singing song’s of folklore, that have the words (Amoon..Amoon).  These words were originally words of prayers and supplication to the Egyptian idol god (Amoon), in glorification to his name.

This word of supplication gradually found its way into the People of Israel’s religious practices when they were enslaved under Pharaoh’s rule in ancient Egypt.  Through the effect of coercion and survival under their Egyptian polytheist masters, this word gradually became part of the Israelites worship and practices, after whom the Christians came, following in the same footsteps, to the extent that any supplication and prayer made to God Almighty must be confirmed by saying (Ameen) !!!!!

The implicit meaning and not the pronunciation of (Ameen) has been mentioned in the Glorious Quran in the tenth chapter of “Jonah” (Yunus), verses 87, 88, and 89.

10:87 And We inspired to Moses and his brother: “Let your people leave their homes in Egypt, and let these homes be your focal point, and observe Prayer. And give good news to the believers.”

10:88 And Moses said: “Our Lord, you have given Pharaoh and his commanders adornments and wealth in this worldly life so that they will misguide from Your path. Our Lord, wipe out their wealth and bring grief to their hearts; for they will not believe until they see the painful retribution.”

10:89 He (God) said: “The prayer of both has been responded to, so keep straight and do not follow the path of those who do not know.”

Here we notice that God Almighty responds “The prayer of both has been responded to ….” 10:89.   God Almighty is responding to two prayers, Moses and his brother Aaron’s prayers.  That is because Moses initiated the prayer “…….Our Lord, wipe out their wealth and bring grief to their hearts; for they will not believe until they see the painful retribution.” 10:88, while Aaron following his brother said “O’ Lord respond” or in other words, and according to our current times (Ameen).

God Almighty says“I am GOD; there is no other god beside Me. You shall worship Me alone, and observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) to remember Me.” 20:14.

So after learning the historical and polytheistic roots of the word (Ameen), should one mention this word in his or her prayers or supplications to God Almighty, especially when God had ordered that we remember him alone?

I personally do not think so.  It is enough for one to pray and request from God alone, without any additions.  The Almighty hears and sees everything, and there is no need to import impurities into one’s prayers.

How about mentioning the names of Prophets Muhammed and Ibrahim (Abraham), and sending blessings upon them in every prayer meant for God Alone?!?

Those are questions for another article!! 

Sources:

•  The Glorious Quran, Arabic version, and various translations.
• Modifications and additions to Dr. Ahmed S. Mansour’s article in Arabic (The word Ameen).