تَكْبِيرَةُ الْإِحْرَامِ وَالْفَاتِحَةُ

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Pray as you have seen me pray." (Bukhari 631) So let us learn his movements, one by one. A prayer is made of rak'as ("units"): in this lesson, the beginning of the first rak'a.

1. The takbir to begin Standing, facing the qibla, I raise my hands to the height of my shoulders or ears, and I say: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ allaahu akbar "Allah is greater." From this moment, I am in prayer: I no longer talk, play or look around. My eyes look at the place where I will put my forehead.

2. The hands I place my right hand on my left hand, on my chest or a little lower (Bukhari 740). [À VÉRIFIER : les écoles diffèrent, l'imam tranche]

3. The Fatiha I recite Surah Al-Fatiha, which you learned in "My first surahs". Without it, the prayer is not complete: "There is no prayer for someone who does not recite the Fatiha." (Bukhari 756, Muslim 394) بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ ۝ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ۝ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ ۝ مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ ۝ إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ۝ اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ ۝ صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ bismi llaahi r-raḥmaani r-raḥiim. al-ḥamdu lillaahi rabbi l-'aalamiin. ar-raḥmaani r-raḥiim. maaliki yawmi d-diin. iyyaaka na'budu wa iyyaaka nasta'iin. ihdina ṣ-ṣiraaṭa l-mustaqiim. ṣiraaṭa lladhiina an'amta 'alayhim, ghayri l-maghḍuubi 'alayhim wa la ḍ-ḍaalliin. The meaning: "In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Very Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Very Merciful, Master of the Day of Judgement. You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help. Guide us on the straight path, the path of those You have blessed, not of those who earned Your anger, nor of those who went astray." For the "Bismillaah" at the start of the Fatiha: [À VÉRIFIER : les écoles diffèrent, l'imam tranche] At the end, we say: آمِين aamiin, "O Allah, answer!"

4. A short surah In the first two rak'as, after the Fatiha, I recite another surah: Al-Ikhlaaṣ, Al-Kawthar, Al-'Aṣr, Al-Falaq or An-Naas, the ones you already know!

Listen to the Fatiha in this lesson's recitation block, and recite it with the reciter.

Little activity: standing on your mat, make the takbir, place your hands, and recite the Fatiha and Al-Ikhlaaṣ in front of your parent, gently and without rushing.

Understanding the lesson

Explanation The first "Allaahu akbar" is called the opening takbir (takbiirat al-iḥraam): it is like a door. When I go through it, I leave the world behind me and I am before Allah. The prayer begins with the takbir and ends with the salaam (Abu Dawud 61, Tirmidhi 3 [À VÉRIFIER : numéros]). The Fatiha is the most important surah: we recite it in every rak'a of every prayer. When I say "You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help", I am really talking to Allah, and Allah answers me (Muslim 395). We recite calmly, without rushing: prayer is not a race.

Lessons to draw from it • At the takbir, I leave my games and worries behind me. • I recite the Fatiha thinking about its meaning. • I stay calm, with my eyes on the place of my prostration.

Key points to remember • "Pray as you have seen me pray" (Bukhari 631). • We begin with "Allaahu akbar", raising the hands. • The Fatiha in every rak'a (Bukhari 756, Muslim 394), then "aamiin". • In the first two rak'as: another surah after the Fatiha.

The main message With "Allaahu akbar", I enter my prayer: I stand before Allah and talk to Him with the words of the Fatiha.