QA-ID-0084
QUESTION
What is the ruling on reciting the basmalah before a surah after the fatiha is recited?
If it is permissible to recite it before the surah begins, does this also apply if someone finishes a surah and then starts another surah right after in the same rakat.
For example: Fatiha, basmalah, surah, basmalah, surah, ruku.
ANSWER
﷽
To recite basmalah (bismillāh) before reciting a sūrah in salāh is permissible and preferred. There is no difference among the Ḥanafī Imāms regarding its permissibility. They all agree that it is preferred and acceptable and that it is not disliked at all. The only difference is regarding its status as sunnah or mustahabb (preferred). The soundest position is that to recite basmalah before a sūrah is not classified as sunnah, but preferred due to the difference of opinion that basmalah is a verse of every Qur’ānic chapter (see Radd al-Muhtār 1/490; Hāshiyah al-Tahtāwī ʿalā al-Durr al-Mukhtār; al-Bahr al-Rā’iq; al-Fatāwā al-Ridawiyyah 6/162).
In a fard salāh, it is better to recite just one sūrah after fātihah in a single rakʿah. If, however, a person recites two sūrahs in a single rakʿah of a fard salāh, it is not disliked as long as he recites the sūrah that is immediately after it. If he skips a sūrah in between, then it is lightly disliked (tanzīhī) (see al-Fatāwā al-Ridawiyyah 6/267).
With regards to reciting basmalah between two sūrahs in a single rakʿah, it is also permissible and preferred.
والله تعالى أعلم
And Allāh Knows Best
Muhammad Kalim Misbahi
