بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Bismi Allāh al-Raḥmān al-Raḥīm
Topic
“In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful”: said at the start of any activity.
What it means
This phrase is called the basmala. It means “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.” Faruqi says it is said at the beginning of any activity. A Muslim starts a task, a meal, a journey or a piece of writing with it, so that the action begins under God’s name and with a reminder of His mercy. It is among the most frequently spoken phrases in Muslim life.
It opens every chapter of the Quran except the ninth, and it also appears within chapter 27, in the letter of Solomon to the queen of Sheba (27:30). The two names it ends with, al-Raḥmān and al-Raḥīm, both come from the root of mercy. The phrase therefore opens each undertaking by recalling God’s mercy, which is the first quality named in the Quran.
Often misunderstood as
That it is a ritual formula without meaning, when it places an act under God’s name and mercy.
What the sources say
Its exact status as a verse of each chapter was discussed by scholars, and the schools differ on whether it is recited aloud in the prayer.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 56, listed as BISMI ALLAH AL RAḤMĀN AL RAḤĪM.. The definition is restated here.