Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: We estimated the standing (qiyam) of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the Zuhr and Asr prayers, so we estimated that in the Zuhr prayer, his standing was as long as it would take to recite thirty verses, that is, as long as Surah As-Sajdah. This estimation was for the first two rak'ahs, while in the last two rak'ahs it was half of that. Similarly, we estimated the standing of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the first two rak'ahs of Asr, so it was as long as the last two rak'ahs of Zuhr, and we estimated his standing in the last two rak'ahs of Asr, so it was half of that. This narration is established and authentic.

Qais bin Abu Hazim (may Allah have mercy on him) narrates: I performed prayer in Basra behind Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both). In the first rak‘ah, he recited Surah al-Fatihah and the first verse of Surah al-Baqarah. Then when he stood for the second rak‘ah, he recited Surah al-Fatihah and the second verse of Surah al-Baqarah. Then he went into ruku‘. When he finished the prayer, he turned towards us and said: Allah Almighty has said: "Recite, then, of the Qur’an as much as may be easy for you." The chain of this narration is Hasan. In this, there is evidence for those who hold the view that by Allah’s statement: "Recite, then, of the Qur’an as much as may be easy for you," is meant the recitation that is done after Surah al-Fatihah; and Allah knows best.

Sayyiduna Abu Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates: A man stood up and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Is recitation to be done in every rak‘ah?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Yes." One of those present said, "It has become obligatory." (The narrator) Sayyiduna Abu Darda said (to his student), "O Kathir!" (Kathir says: I was present beside him at that time) "I think that when the imam leads the people in prayer, his recitation is sufficient for those people." The same narration is transmitted with some other chains, however, in them are these words: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "I think that the imam’s recitation is sufficient for those people." The narrator made a mistake in this narration; the correct version is: these words are from Sayyiduna Abu Darda, as narrated by the narrator named Ibn Wahb. And Allah knows best.