Al-ʿAbdari reports that ʿAtaʾ and Sufyan al-Thawri considered it obligatory, and he relates two different opinions from Dawud. The majority, however, deem it merely recommended, adducing the hadith of the man who prayed badly. Allah knows best. The remainder of the discussion will appear under “The second rakʿah.” (1) This wording is transmitted from Abu Saʿid al-Khudri, Jubayr b. Mutʿim, ʿAbd Allah b. Masʿud, ʿUmar b. al-Khattab, and Abu Umamah; see Irwaʾ al-Ghalil, no. 342. 1. The hadith of Abu Saʿid is related by Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Darimi, al-Darqutni, al-Tahawi, al-Bayhaqi, and Ahmad in the form: “When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ rose for the night prayer he would pronounce the takbir, then say: ‘Subhanaka Allahumma…’; later in the report he would say: ‘Allahu akbar kabiran’—three times—‘I seek refuge in Allah, the All-Hearing….’” This narration has already been cited under the fifth type of the opening supplication; its chain is hasan, as shown there—consult it. Some transmitters place the word nafthihi before nafkhihi; this is found in the versions of al-Darimi, al-Darqutni, and al-Bayhaqi. Supporting the order preserved by the majority is the next report: 2. The hadith of Jubayr b. Mutʿim, who said: “I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and when he entered the prayer he said: ‘Allahu akbar kabiran, Allahu akbar kabiran; al-hamdu lillahi kathiran, al-hamdu lillahi kathiran; subhana Allahi bukratan wa asilan’—three times— ‘I seek refuge in You from the accursed shaytan: from his hamz, his nafkh, and his nafth.’”