What is the etiquette of recitation in Salah in terms of reciting a larger surah in the second rak’a? What is the ruling on skipping one surah?

As salaamu ’alaykum,

1)    What is the ruling about reciting small surah in the first rak’a and larger in the second rak’a? For example if Surah Al-Quraish is recited in the first rak’a and Surah Al-Ma’oon in the second?  Or if Surah Al-Nasr is recited in the first and Surah Lahab in the second?

2)    What is the ruling on skipping one surah in the middle? For example if one recites Surah Al-Lail in the first rak’a and Surah al-Insharah in the second?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الجواب حامدا ومصليا ومسلما

The answers to your questions may be found below:

1)  Lengthening the second rak’ah more than the first rak’ah is makruh tanzihi (disliked). However, it should be noted that this is only in the case that one lengthens the second rak’ah to such an extent that it is clearly longer than the first. However, if the second rak’ah is only slightly longer in a way that it is not noticeable, this would not be makruh. Thus, in both aforementioned scenarios, it would not be makruh to recite such surahs since the difference between them is minute.

2)    Skipping a small surah between two rak’ahs intentionally is makruh tanzihi, although one would be permitted to skip a surah in the middle if reciting the consequent surah would make the second rak’ah longer than the first. However, it should be noted that some ‘ulama have restricted this ruling to skipping a surah from the small surahs (from surah Bayyinah until surah naas). Thus, in the aforementioned scenario it would be better to avoid reciting Surah al-Layl in the first rak’ah and Surah al-Inshirah in the second since doing so would be makruh according to some ‘ulama.

والله اعلم

And Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala knows best.

Yousuf Ahmed

Approved by Mufti Husain Ahmad Madani