Muslim (2) recorded from Abu Hurayrah, who said: "When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) rose from the second rak'ah, he would begin the recitation with 'Al-hamdu lillahi Rabbi al-'alamin' (Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds) and would not remain silent." This indicates that he did not recite the opening supplication (istiftah) nor did he seek refuge with Allah (isti'adhah). We know of no disagreement regarding the omission of these three matters, other than in the first rak'ah (3).

As for the isti'adhah, there is a difference of opinion in the narrations from Ahmad regarding it in every rak'ah. One narration states that it is specific to the first rak'ah (4). This is the view of 'Ata', al-Hasan, al-Nakha'i, and al-Thawri, based on this hadith of Abu Hurayrah and because the prayer is a single whole; thus, the recitation in all of it is like a single recitation. This is why we consider the order of recitation across the two rak'ahs, making it resemble the case if he were to perform a prostration of recitation (sajdat al-tilawah) during his recitation. If he performs the isti'adhah at its beginning, that is sufficient, just like the opening supplication. According to this narration, if he omits the isti'adhah in the first [rak'ah] due to forgetfulness or otherwise, he performs it in the second. The opening supplication is the opposite of this, as established by him (5), because the opening supplication is for commencing the prayer, so if it is missed at its beginning, its proper place is lost. The isti'adhah is for the recitation, and he begins it in the second; if he starts the recitation before the isti'adhah, he does not perform it in that rak'ah because it is a Sunnah whose proper place has been missed. The second narration states that he seeks refuge with Allah in every rak'ah. This is the view of Ibn Sirin and al-Shafi'i, based on the saying of Him, glory be to Him and Exalted: "So when you recite the Qur'an, seek refuge with Allah from Satan, the accursed" (6). This necessitates repeating the isti'adhah upon repeating the recitation, and because it is prescribed for the recitation, it is repeated with its repetition, just as if it were in two different prayers.

Section: A latecomer (masbuq) who catches the Imam after the first rak'ah does not recite the opening supplication. As for...