The Straight Path: How Surah Al-Fatiha Addresses Modern Ideologies

Nazir Khan
Hardback, 228 pages
9781835920213

What is the meaning of Surah al-Fatihah? Muslims recite this opening chapter of the Qur'an at least 17 times daily in their prayers. It's a prayer for guidance and a source of healing. But are we letting it shape the way we see our world?

The Straight Path offers a bold perspective, showing how Surah al-Fatiha directly challenges the dominant ideologies of our time, ideologies that underpin the confusion, injustice, and even atrocities we see today. Nowhere is this failure more evident than in the genocide in Gaza, a grim example of the ethical collapse of secular modernity.

Examine ten major ideologies-atheism, materialism, deism, secularism, polytheism, naturalism, relativism, progressivism, liberalism, and postmodernism-and discover how Surah al-Fatihah dismantles each one, offering clarity where they sow confusion. Through the process of knowledge decolonisation, we are invited to free our minds of oppressive systems of thought and return to the ethical worldview of Islam.

This book is a direct and urgent call to reawaken humanity to the message of truth and justice emphasised in Islam's teachings. It challenges readers to rethink the values of modernity and explore how Islamic principles offer a way out of the confusion, injustice, and misguidance of our time.

Contents
al-Istiadhah - Foreword by Imam Tom Facchine
al-Basmalah - Foreword by Shaykh Yousef Wahb
Overview: Sürah al-Fatihah and modern ideologies
Alhamdulillah - Atheism dismantled
Rabb al-Alamin - Materialism dismantled
al-Rahman al-Rahim - Deism dismantled
Maliki Yawm al-Din - Secularism dismantled
Iyyaka na'budu - Polytheism dismantled
Wa iyyaka nastain - Naturalism dismantled
Ihdina al-sirat al-mustaqim - Relativism dismantled
Sirat alladhina an'amta 'alayhim - Progressivism dismantled
Ghayri al-maghdubi alayhim - Liberalism dismantled
Wa-lā al-dallin - Postmodernism dismantled