Al-Fātiḥah, line by line

• al-ḥamdroot ح م د

  الْحَمْدُ

  all praise, and the thanks inside it

• rabbroot ر ب ب

  رَبِّ

  Master who owns, feeds and raises what He owns

• al-ʿālamīnroot ع ل م

  الْعَالَمِينَ

  all the worlds, every kind of created thing

• mālikroot م ل ك

  مَالِكِ

  Owner, the One in charge

• ad-dīnroot د ي ن

  الدِّينِ

  the reckoning, the settling of accounts

• naʿbuduroot ع ب د

  نَعْبُدُ

  we worship, we serve as a slave serves

• nastaʿīnroot ع و ن

  نَسْتَعِينُ

  we ask for help

• ihdināroot ه د ي

  اهْدِنَا

  guide us, show us and keep us on the way

• aṣ-ṣirāṭ

  الصِّرَاطَ

  the wide, straight road

• al-mustaqīmroot ق و م

  الْمُسْتَقِيمَ

  straight, with no bend in it

• Ar-Raḥmān
• Ar-Raḥīm
• Ar-Rabb
• Al-Mālik

'There is no prayer for the one who does not recite the Opening of the Book.' It is required in every unit of prayer.

Where the schools differ: The schools differ over the person praying behind an imam who is reciting aloud: the Shāfiʿīs hold that he still recites it himself, the Ḥanafīs hold that he listens and the imam's recitation counts for him, and the Mālikīs and Ḥanbalīs distinguish between the quiet and loud prayers. All agree it is recited when praying alone.

al-Bukhārī 756; Muslim 394 (ṣaḥīḥ)