:salam2:
The particualr letter Alif, Lam, Meem are found prefixed to Surah Al Baqarah, and Surah Al-Imran, Ankabut, Ar-rum, Luqman and As Sajda.
In Surat Baqara and Surat Al Imran, the argument is about the rise and fall of nations, their past, and their future in history, with ordinances for the new universal People of Islam. In Surat Ankabut, a similar argument about nations leads off to the mystery of Life and Death, Failure and Triumph, Past and Future things, in the history of individual souls. The burden of Surat Ar-rum is that God is the source of all things and all things return to Him. In Surat Luqman and As Sajda, the same lesson is enforced: God is the Creator and He will be the Judge on the Last Day. There is therefore a common thread, the mystery of Life and Death, Beginning and End.
Much has been written about the meaning of these letters, but most of it is pure conjecture. Some commentators are content to recognise them as some mystic, symbols, of which it is unprofitable to discuss the meaning by mere verbal logic. In mysticism we accept symbols as such for the time being; their esoteric meaning comes from the inner light when we are ready for it.
Among the conjectures there are two plausible theories. One is that each intial represents an attribute of God. Among the attributes it is not difficult to select three which will fit in with these letter. Another theory, favoured by Baidhawi is that these letters are the initial, the final and the middle (or again the initial) letter of three names: Allah, Jibril and Muhammad, - the source of revelation, the heavenly messenger who brought it and the human Messenger through whom it was promulgated in Human speech. This might be appropriate to the first Sura (which Baqara really is if we treat Fairth as preface); but if it was prefixed to others, why to these six?
If we look to the nature of the sounds which the letter represent. A is a breathing and come from the throat, L is alingual-palatal-dental sound from the middle of the mouth and M is a liable or lip-sound. Can we not take them as symbolical of the Beginning, Middle and End? If so, are they not appropriate to the Suras which treat specifically of Life, Growth, and Death - the Beginning and the End? In the New Testament Greek scripture, the first and the last letters of the Greek alphabet, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. The symbolism of the three things is better with three letters.