صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ ﴿7﴾

﴾7﴿ Siraatal-lazeena an'amta 'alaihim ghayril-maghdoobi 'alaihim wa lad-daaalleen

﴾7﴿ The path of those whom You have blessed, not of those who have incurred [Your] wrath, nor of those who have gone astray

[7] "(The path of those whom You have blessed)" – Since many people claim to be on the straight path, a clear sign is given here: to follow the way of those who have been granted blessings. This serves as the criterion for the true path. The specific blessings mentioned in the Qur’an that were granted to a chosen group (the mun‘am ‘alayhim) include:
1. Love and affection within the family,
2. Receiving the Book of Allah and wisdom,
3. Obedience to Allah and His Messenger,
4. Divine help (unseen support),
5. Salvation from worldly punishments,
6. Entry into Paradise.
From various verses in the Qur’an, it becomes clear that the special recipients of these blessings are the Prophets (peace be upon them) and the noble Companions (Sahabah). This is detailed in Tafsir Ahsan al-Kalam.
The main point is: the straight path is the way of the Prophets (peace be upon them) and their Companions. Therefore, anyone who is not following the path of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) and his Companions, or has no proof based on the Sunnah and their way, is making a false claim to being on the straight path.
"(Not of those who have incurred [Your] wrath, nor of those who have gone astray)" – This is a clarifying description distinguishing those who are blessed from those who are condemned. That is, the blessed ones are completely different from those under wrath and those who are astray.
"Al-Maghdūb ‘alayhim" (those who have incurred wrath) refers to the Jews, as stated in hadith, and also applies to anyone who possesses the causes of divine anger. The Qur’an mentions eleven such causes. Linguistically, the term implies anger from all sides—from Allah, the angels, the believers, and on the Day of Judgment from those who followed them.
"Ad-Dāllīn" (those who have gone astray) refers to the Christians, as mentioned in hadith, and also includes anyone with the causes of misguidance—also mentioned eleven times in the Qur’an.
Thus, these two terms include all people of falsehood who oppose the truth, whether due to ignorance, opposition, or stubbornness.
This also proves that the Prophets are infallible with respect to the causes of divine anger and misguidance, and that the Companions are protected from such causes.
"Āmīn" – Saying this at the end of the surah, whether in or outside prayer, is Sunnah. In loud (jahri) prayers, saying "Āmīn" aloud by both the imam and the followers is also Sunnah. This is affirmed by Imam al-Bukhari, who established a chapter on it and cited authentic hadiths. Likewise, the hadith of Wā’il ibn Ḥujr, reported by Imam al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Mājah, clearly supports this practice.
Further details are provided in Tafsir Ahsan al-Kalam, and the discussion of reciting behind the imam is elaborated on in the interpretation of Surah al-A‘rāf.