A reflection on Surah Al-Fatihah 1:7 - asking to walk the path of those Allah (SWT) has favoured, and to be spared the paths of rejection and heedlessness.
Surah Al-Fatihah closes by giving its request a landmark. It is not enough to ask for a straight path in the abstract; the surah specifies whose footsteps are worth following.
Naming the Path
Allah (SWT) teaches us to say:
صِرَٰطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا ٱلضَّآلِّينَ
"The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have earned [Your] anger or of those who are astray." (Surah Al-Fatihah 1:7)
The Qur'an elsewhere names who these blessed ones are: "whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger... the prophets, the steadfast affirmers of truth, the martyrs, and the righteous" (Surah An-Nisa 4:69). We ask, in effect, that our beliefs, character, and choices come to resemble theirs, while asking protection from two opposite dangers: rejecting truth after knowing it, and following desire or guesswork without knowledge.
Choosing Whose Footsteps to Follow
The Prophet (SAW) compared guidance to abundant rain falling on different kinds of land - some soil absorbs it and brings forth vegetation, some holds it for others to drink from, and some remains barren, neither absorbing nor benefiting anyone. (Sahih al-Bukhari 79) The difference is not the rain; it is what the heart does with it.
We ask our students to notice, honestly, whose example they are actually following most closely day to day - a habit, a friend, a trend - and whether it draws them nearer to those Allah (SWT) has favoured, or further from them.
May Allah (SWT) place us among those He has favoured, and keep us far from misguidance in every form. Ameen.