Hamd

Hamd (Arabic: حمد, romanized: ḥamd, lit. 'praise') is a word that exclusively praises God - whether written or spoken. ^[1] Thus, The word "Hamd" is always followed by the name of God (Allah) - a phrase known as the Tahmid - "al-ḥamdu li-llāh" (Arabic: الحَمْد لله) (English: "praise be to God"). The word "Hamd" comes from the Qur'an, and الحَمْد لله is the epithet or locution which, after the Bismillah, establishes the first verse of the first chapter of the Qur'an - al Fatiha Mubarak (the opening).^[2][3]

A Hamd is usually written in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Bengali, Punjabi, or Urdu and recited all over the Muslim world, from Indonesia to Morocco. A Qawwali performance usually includes at least one Hamd, which is traditionally at the beginning of the performance.