Cursing of Non-Muslims in Daily Prayers

A Religion of Mercy—or Hatred?

When Supplication Becomes Sanctified Hostility

Summary Claim:
Islam is often described as a religion of peace and mercy, but its primary ritual—daily prayer—includes invocations against Jews, Christians, and disbelievers. Is this divine justice against unbelief—or a theological license for hatred?

1. The Fātiḥah: The Qur’anic Foundation of the Prayer

The Fātiḥah is recited in every rak‘ah (unit) of Muslim prayer—meaning at least 17 times daily by practicing Muslims.

"Guide us to the straight path,
The path of those whom You have favored,
Not of those who have earned [Your] anger or gone astray."
— Qur’an 1:6–7

Classical Tafsir Identification:

  • "Those who earned God's wrath" = Jews

  • "Those who went astray" = Christians

This interpretation appears in:

  • Tafsir Ibn Kathir

  • Tafsir al-Tabari

  • Tafsir al-Qurtubi

  • Confirmed in Sahih hadith (e.g., Tirmidhi 2954, graded hasan sahih)

This means that millions of Muslims daily invoke divine favor for themselves while implicitly condemning Jews and Christians—with God’s anger and misguidance.

2. Explicit Supplication Against Non-Muslims in Muhammad’s Prayers

a. Cursing Specific Tribes

"The Prophet invoked Allah’s curse on Ri‘l, Dhakwān, and ‘Usayyah for killing his emissaries."
— Sahih al-Bukhari 4090

He prayed for a full month cursing these tribes during qunūt (supplication in prayer).

b. Generalized Curse on Polytheists

"O Allah, curse the disbelievers who denied Your prophets, killed Your messengers..."
— Reported in multiple hadith collections
This includes polytheists, but also often extends to Jews and Christians as categories of rejected groups.

3. The Qunūt Prayers: Formalized Cursing in Ritual Context

In Witr prayer and other special prayers (especially during crises), Muslims invoke qunūt, and in many traditions this includes du‘ā al-qunūt al-nāzilah—asking Allah to destroy, curse, or humiliate enemies of Islam.

Common phrases:

  • "O Allah, destroy the disbelievers and polytheists…"

  • "Curse the oppressors among the People of the Book…"

Some modern mosques avoid these phrases due to interfaith optics—but they are found in traditional manuals and historic practice.

4. Qur’anic Foundations for Cursing Disbelievers

The Qur’an itself includes repeated curses (la‘nah) of specific groups:

  • "Indeed, those who disbelieve... upon them is the curse of Allah, the angels, and mankind altogether." — Qur’an 3:87

  • "Cursed were those who disbelieved from among the Children of Israel..." — Qur’an 5:78

  • "Indeed, Allah has cursed the disbelievers and prepared for them a blazing fire." — Qur’an 33:64

These verses set a theological precedent: disbelief isn’t just error—it is moral perversion worthy of eternal cursing.

5. Contradictions with “Mercy to the Worlds”?

The Qur’an calls Muhammad:

“a mercy to the worlds.” — Qur’an 21:107

Yet:

  • He prayed for the death of enemies.

  • Ordered assassinations of critics (e.g., Ka‘b ibn al-Ashraf).

  • Supplicated for curses on entire groups.

Is this "mercy"? Or is it conditional mercy—only extended to those who submit to Islam?

6. Real-World Impact: The Theology of Supplication as a Weapon

The ritual cursing of non-Muslims has fueled:

  • Social alienation in multi-religious societies

  • Justification of hatred toward Jews and Christians as a religious duty

  • Resistance to interfaith engagement as “befriending the enemies of Allah”

Young minds are formed daily by prayers that:

  • Praise believers

  • Curse others

  • Associate “truth” with Muslim identity and “falsehood” with everyone else

Even without violence, this fosters a tribal worldview rooted in religious supremacism.

7. Reformist Responses: Softening or Subverting the Texts?

Some modern Muslim thinkers attempt to:

  • Reinterpret "those who earned wrath" more broadly

  • Deny that qunūt cursing is obligatory

  • Emphasize compassion and tolerance

But:

  • The interpretations of Jews = “those with wrath” and Christians = “those astray” are dominant in classical tafsir

  • Reformist readings are often dismissed as apologetics

  • Literalist schools (Salafi, Deobandi) still promote textual loyalty

8. Conclusion: Sacred Hate or Spiritual Discipline?

Islamic daily prayer—the core ritual of the faith—is not just about communion with God. It includes:

  • Cursing rivals of the faith

  • Condemning other religions

  • Entrenching theological supremacism

This raises stark questions:

  • Can genuine mercy include ritual curses?

  • Is this divine reverence or a sanctified form of sectarian hate?

  • Should modern Muslims be expected to uphold these invocations in the name of tradition?

When hatred becomes holy, is it still holy?

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