بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

The Basmala (Arabic: بسملة‎ basmala), also known by its opening utteranceBismillah (Arabic: بسم الله‎, “In the name of God”)^[1] is the collective noun for the Islamic phrase “b-ismi-llāhi r-raḥmāni r-raḥīmi“. This is the phrase recited before each sura (chapter) of the Qur’an – except for the ninth^{[Notes 1][2]} – and is often translated as “In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful“.^{[citation needed]}