Is it obligatory for the imam to recite a surah from the middle of the long surahs after al-Fatihah in every prayer, or is it better to recite the short surahs from their beginning?
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The questioner : Is it obligatory for the imam to recite a surah from the middle of the long surahs after al-Fatihah in every prayer, or is it better to recite the short surahs from their beginning?
The Shaykh : It is better to recite the short surahs, and let his recitation be from the Muqqat, from Surat Qaf to the last surah, Surat al-Nas. His recitation in Fajr should be from the long surahs of the Muqqat, in Maghrib from the short surahs of the Muqqat, and in the rest from the medium surahs of the Muqqat.
The scholars said: The long surahs of the Muqqat are from Qaf to 'Amma, the short surahs are from Surat al-Duha to the end of the Qur'an, and the medium surahs are what lies between them.
It is called the Muqqat because of the shortness of its surahs and the abundance of its endings.
Among the wisdom in continuing to recite the Muqqat is that the ma'mum, as the surahs are repeated to them, memorize them and it becomes easy for them to recite them, unlike if he were to recite two or three verses from each surah, in which case it is unlikely that the common people would memorize them.
Then Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said in Zad al-Ma'ad: "It is not the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) — meaning in the obligatory prayer — that he recites from the middles of the surahs, and I think he said: or their ends", so it is not permissible to deviate from what the scholars mentioned and for which they provided evidence from the Prophetic reports.
As for the fact that some people always recite only from the middles of the surahs, they should review themselves and review what the scholars said in this chapter. Also, a person's recitation from the middles of the surahs, especially if the surah is long, causes confusion for the praying people who memorize the Qur'an, because if he recites from the middle of a long surah, this will remain confusing: will he read to the end of the surah? Will he read two or three verses?
Then there will be a kind of disturbance in his mind, whereas if he recites from the short surahs, the beginning and the end are known, so he is at peace.
The questioner : Regarding the verse, O Shaykh:[Al-Muzzammil 73:20] Does this apply to the middles of the surahs?
The Shaykh : Yes, it applies, and we do not say that this is forbidden, but it is better.
The Shaykh : It is better to recite the short surahs, and let his recitation be from the Muqqat, from Surat Qaf to the last surah, Surat al-Nas. His recitation in Fajr should be from the long surahs of the Muqqat, in Maghrib from the short surahs of the Muqqat, and in the rest from the medium surahs of the Muqqat.
The scholars said: The long surahs of the Muqqat are from Qaf to 'Amma, the short surahs are from Surat al-Duha to the end of the Qur'an, and the medium surahs are what lies between them.
It is called the Muqqat because of the shortness of its surahs and the abundance of its endings.
Among the wisdom in continuing to recite the Muqqat is that the ma'mum, as the surahs are repeated to them, memorize them and it becomes easy for them to recite them, unlike if he were to recite two or three verses from each surah, in which case it is unlikely that the common people would memorize them.
Then Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said in Zad al-Ma'ad: "It is not the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) — meaning in the obligatory prayer — that he recites from the middles of the surahs, and I think he said: or their ends", so it is not permissible to deviate from what the scholars mentioned and for which they provided evidence from the Prophetic reports.
As for the fact that some people always recite only from the middles of the surahs, they should review themselves and review what the scholars said in this chapter. Also, a person's recitation from the middles of the surahs, especially if the surah is long, causes confusion for the praying people who memorize the Qur'an, because if he recites from the middle of a long surah, this will remain confusing: will he read to the end of the surah? Will he read two or three verses?
Then there will be a kind of disturbance in his mind, whereas if he recites from the short surahs, the beginning and the end are known, so he is at peace.
The questioner : Regarding the verse, O Shaykh:
so recite what is easy [for you] of the Qur'an
فاقرءوا ما تيسر من القرآنThe Shaykh : Yes, it applies, and we do not say that this is forbidden, but it is better.