(1) That is, al-Fatiha (the Opening chapter); here the word “prayer” is used for the whole while what is intended is only this part, out of veneration. In Sharh Muslim he writes: “The scholars said: What is meant by ‘the prayer’ in this report is al-Fatiha, so named because the ritual prayer is not valid without it—just as the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: ‘The hajj is Arafah.’ This shows that al-Fatiha itself is obligatory in the prayer. They added that its division should be understood in terms of meaning: the first half is praise, glorification and exaltation of Allah, coupled with entrusting matters to Him; the second half is request, supplication and neediness. Those who hold that the basmala is not part of al-Fatiha cite this hadith as one of their clearest proofs. They argue that, by unanimous agreement, the surah consists of seven verses: three at the beginning are praise—the first of them al-hamdu lillah (all praise belongs to Allah); three are supplication—the first of them ihdina s-sirata l-mustaqim (guide us to the straight path); and the seventh stands in the middle: iyyaka na‘budu wa iyyaka nasta‘in (You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help). They also point out that the Prophet said: ‘I have divided the prayer between Myself and My servant in two halves: when the servant says al-hamdu lillahi rabb al-alamin…,’ yet he did not mention the basmala. Had it been part of the surah, he would have mentioned it.” Al-Nawawi next related the Shafi‘i response to this hadith, but it is not convincing. Al-Shawkani reproduces it (2/174) and comments: “It is plain that some of these answers are of no benefit, and others are weak.”