What does the Basmala mean, and why does it appear at the start of most surahs?

The Basmala, "Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim," means "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful." It invokes two of Allah's names built on the same root as mercy (rahmah) — ar-Rahman, often understood as the all-encompassing mercy shown to every creature, and ar-Rahim, a more specific, ongoing mercy shown especially to believers. Muslims are encouraged to begin virtually any significant undertaking — eating, traveling, writing, speaking — with this phrase, seeking Allah's blessing and acknowledging that all actions are done in His name and for His sake. Within the Quran, the Basmala opens 113 of the 114 surahs; it also appears explicitly within the body of the text itself, as the opening line of Prophet Sulaiman's letter to the Queen of Sheba (27:30). Scholars differ on its precise status: the Hanafi, Maliki, and Hanbali schools generally do not count it as a numbered verse of each surah, while the Shafi'i school counts it as the first ayah of every surah it precedes (as with al-Fatihah, 1:1), which is why verse numbering can occasionally differ slightly between mushaf editions from different traditions.

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