Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that I prayed with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), and I did not hear any of them reciting «‏‏‏‏بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ» ‏‏‏‏. Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says: I have mentioned the chains of narration and their wordings of this hadith in Kitab al-Salat, Kitab al-Kabir, and Ma‘ani al-Qur’an, and I have dictated proofs equal to two parts regarding the issue that «‏‏‏‏بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ» ‏‏‏‏ is a surah of the Book of Allah at the beginning of the surahs of the Noble Qur’an.