Salah or prayer are actions and words that start with takbiratul ihram (i.e. Allahuakbar) and end with greetings (i.e. assalamualaikum warahmarullah) with the conditions and pillars that have been set. That is the meaning of prayer according to the science of fiqh. So, prayer is a good and praiseworthy deed.
Often we hear from some people when starting their salah or prayers say Ta’awwuz, namely A’uzubillahiminasy-syaithaanirrajim or reciting basmallah, namely Bismillahirrahmaanirrahiim. Well, the question is, is bismillah circumcised when going to prayer or not?
Also read: How to Pray Janazah: Du’a, Intention etc
Bismillah before Prayer
In fact, prayer is indeed a good and praiseworthy act and is even obligatory. However, talking about bismillah, we are not encouraged to read it when we want to pray or when going to recite takbiratul ihram.
The reason is that the act of praying has its own beginning. Shara ‘has determined that prayer begins with takbiratul ihram, not with bismillah. So when we want to take takbiratul ihram or want to pray we are no longer encouraged to read bismillah.
In the book of Fatawa Isma’il Zain it is stated that:
فإن الشارع جعل لها مبدأ وهو تكبيرة الإحرام فلا تسن البسملة قبلها
Meaning: “In fact, shari ‘(Allah) makes prayer the beginning, the beginning is takbiratul ihram, so basmallah is not used before prayer.”
There is a hadith which states that every good deed is sunnat starting with Bismillah because if it does not start with bismillah then the act is less blessed. The hadith reads as follows:
كل أمر ذي بال لايبدأ فيه بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم فهو أبتر
Meaning: “Any matter that has an interest in religion that does not begin with bimillahirrahmanirrahaim, then the action or affair is profitable or less blessed.”
Also see: Awrat Opens in Prayer, because the Wind Blows
So, what about the hadith above?
This hadith shows that something that is circumcised beginning with bismillah are actions that are not initiated by shari ‘with certain things such as takbiratul ihram for prayer. However, if the act already has provisions in syara ‘to start with certain things then it is no longer considered to be bismillah when starting it.
An example is prayer, syara ‘has made a provision that prayer begins with tabiratul ihram, so it is no longer advisable to read bismillah at first.
However, this does not mean that it is a prohibition to read bismillah. If someone reads bismillah when they want to pray, it doesn’t automatically become haram because there is no prohibition for that. However, we need to understand that we are not encouraged to read bismillah at the beginning of prayer because it is determined to start with takbiratul ihram.
Read: Best Dua after Salah