Step 4 of 13
Reciting al-Fatihah
Standing, the one praying recites al-Fatihah, the Opening chapter of the Qur'an. The Prophet ﷺ said, "There is no prayer for the one who does not recite the Opening of the Book." In the first two rak'ahs it is followed by another passage of the Qur'an.
Al-Fatihah is recited in Arabic, word for word, because its words are the Qur'an itself. Someone who has just accepted Islam and has not yet learned it says what they can of the Qur'an or of the remembrance of Allah, as the Prophet ﷺ taught a man who could not yet memorise any of the Qur'an, and learns al-Fatihah as soon as they are able.
The schools agree that al-Fatihah has a central place in the prayer, and differ over how exactly it is required, as shown below.
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ ﴿١﴾ ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ ﴿٢﴾ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ ﴿٣﴾ مَـٰلِكِ يَوْمِ ٱلدِّينِ ﴿٤﴾ إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ﴿٥﴾ ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٰطَ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ ﴿٦﴾ صِرَٰطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا ٱلضَّآلِّينَ ﴿٧﴾
Bismillahir-rahmanir-rahim. Al-hamdu lillahi rabbil-'alamin. Ar-rahmanir-rahim. Maliki yawmid-din. Iyyaka na'budu wa iyyaka nasta'in. Ihdinas-siratal-mustaqim. Siratal-ladhina an'amta 'alayhim, ghayril-maghdubi 'alayhim wa lad-dallin.
In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Ever Merciful. All praise is for Allah, Lord of all the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Ever Merciful, Master of the Day of Judgement. You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help. Guide us to the straight path: the path of those You have blessed, not of those who have earned anger, nor of those who have gone astray.
The four schools differ on some details. Show them
Each school's ruling, with the schools that share it named together.
Is reciting al-Fatihah a pillar of the prayer?
3 of 4 schools agree. Differing: Hanafi.
Show each school
- Obligatory (wajib), not a pillarHanafi
- Pillar (rukn)Maliki · Shafi'i · Hanbali
- Hanafi
- The pillar is reciting some of the Qur'an, taken from ﴿فَٱقْرَءُوا۟ مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ ٱلْقُرْءَانِ﴾ (“recite what is easy of the Qur'an”) (73:20); al-Fatihah itself is wajib, so forgetting it is made up with the prostration of forgetfulness.
- Maliki
- It is a pillar in every rak'ah for the imam and for one praying alone, in the relied-upon view of the school.
- Shafi'i
- It is a pillar in every rak'ah of every prayer, following "There is no prayer for the one who does not recite the Opening of the Book."
- Hanbali
- It is a pillar in every rak'ah for the imam and for one praying alone.
Must the one praying behind an imam recite al-Fatihah?
2 of 4 schools agree. Differing: Hanafi, Shafi'i.
Show each school
- Not recited; the imam's recitation sufficesHanafi
- Recommended in silent prayersMaliki · Hanbali
- Pillar (rukn)Shafi'i
- Hanafi
- The follower listens and stays silent in every prayer, loud or quiet, because the imam's recitation counts as his.
- Maliki
- Reciting behind the imam is recommended where he recites silently and disliked where he recites aloud.
- Shafi'i
- The follower must recite it in every rak'ah, whether the imam recites aloud or silently.
- Hanbali
- The imam's recitation suffices for the follower; reciting is recommended in silent prayers and in the imam's pauses, and disliked while listening to him recite aloud.
Is the basmalah a required part of al-Fatihah in the prayer?
2 of 4 schools agree. Differing: Maliki, Shafi'i.
Show each school
- SunnahHanafi · Hanbali
- Disliked (makruh)Maliki
- Pillar (rukn)Shafi'i
- Hanafi
- It is not a verse of al-Fatihah; it is sunnah to say it quietly before al-Fatihah in each rak'ah.
- Maliki
- In the relied-upon view it is not part of al-Fatihah and is disliked in an obligatory prayer; some Malikis recommended saying it to step out of the disagreement.
- Shafi'i
- It is the first verse of al-Fatihah, so it must be recited with it, aloud in the prayers where al-Fatihah is recited aloud.
- Hanbali
- In the relied-upon view it is a verse of the Qur'an but not of al-Fatihah, and it is sunnah to say it quietly; another narration from Ahmad counts it as part of al-Fatihah.
- Qur'an 1:1-7
- Sahih al-Bukhari 756 Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih Muslim 394Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sahih Muslim 498Sahih · in the two Sahihs
- Sunan Abi Dawud 832 Graded by Al-Albani: Hasan · Muhammad Muhyi Al-Din Abdul Hamid: Hasan · Zubair Ali Zai: HasanHasan
What the hadith grades mean
- Sahih (authentic): an unbroken chain of trustworthy, precise narrators, free of hidden flaws or contradiction. It is acted upon.
- Hasan (good): like sahih, but a narrator's precision is slightly lighter. It is also accepted and acted upon. "Hasan sahih" means it reaches sahih by its routes.
- Da'if (weak): a break in the chain or a narrator who is not reliable enough. It is not used to establish beliefs or rulings.
- Very weak (munkar, matruk): a seriously flawed chain or a narrator accused of lying. It is not relied on at all.
- Mawdu' (fabricated): falsely attributed to the Prophet ﷺ. It may not be narrated as his words except to warn against it.
- The two Sahihs: every hadith with a full chain in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim is accepted as sahih by the scholars of hadith.
- Historical report: biographies and histories (Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sa'd, al-Tabari) record events with chains that are often incomplete. They are used for the story, not for rulings.
- Hadith scholars grade a narration; the four madhhabs do not. Where a hadith carries a ruling, the page shows which schools act on it.
The positions of the four schools are summarised from their standard references and are pending review by a qualified scholar. Follow the school you were taught, and for your own situation, ask a scholar.
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