Sayyiduna Jabir bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to lead prayers like your prayers, but he would lead a brief and light prayer. He (peace be upon him) used to recite «‏‏‏‏سورة الواقعة» ‏‏‏‏ and similar surahs in the Fajr prayer. Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says that a person unfamiliar with the science of hadith narrated this hadith, and he made a great mistake; he narrated this report with the chain of Sulaiman Taimi from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) as marfu‘ (attributed to the Prophet), whereas this narration is reported from Sayyiduna Abu Barzah and Sayyiduna Jabir bin Samurah (may Allah be pleased with them both).

Sulaiman Taimi narrates the aforementioned narration of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him). And this is a very gross mistake because this narration is narrated by Sulaiman Taimi from Abu Minhal Sayyar bin Salamah, and he narrates from Sayyiduna Abu Barzah (may Allah be pleased with him). The expert scholars and reliable narrators of the science of hadith have narrated this narration in this manner.

Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to recite «‏‏‏‏الم،‏ تَنزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة السجدة ] and «‏‏‏‏هَلْ أَتَىٰ عَلَى الْإِنسَانِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الانسان ] in the Fajr prayer on the day of Jumu'ah. "The Imam relates from his two teachers, Bandaar and Saghani, with their chain from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to recite «‏‏‏‏الم،‏ تَنزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة السجدة ] and «‏‏‏‏هَلْ أَتَىٰ عَلَى الْإِنسَانِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الانسان ] in the morning prayer on the day of Jumu'ah, and in the Jumu'ah prayer he would recite [ سورۃ الجمعه ] and [ سورة المنافقون ] . The Imam relates from his teacher, Al-Fadl bin Ya'qub, with his chain from Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to recite «‏‏‏‏الم،‏ تَنزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة السجدة ] and «‏‏‏‏هَلْ أَتَىٰ عَلَى الْإِنسَانِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الانسان ] in the morning prayer on the day of Jumu'ah.

Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that I was leading the mount of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) by holding its rein in one of those mountain passes, when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "O beloved Uqbah, will you not ride?" So I considered it a great disrespect to ride on the mount of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) again said: "Beloved Uqbah, will you not ride?" So I became afraid that I might disobey the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) dismounted, and I rode on it for a short while. Then I dismounted, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) mounted again. (After a while) the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Beloved Uqbah, shall I not teach you two of the best surahs that people have recited?" I said: O Messenger of Allah, please do teach me. So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) recited to me (these two surahs) «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الفلق ] and «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الناس ] . Then the prayer was established, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) led the prayer, and recited these two surahs. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) passed by me and said: "Beloved Uqbah, how did you find (the status and rank of) these two surahs? Recite these two surahs when you go to sleep and when you wake up." Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says that the words of the hadith mean: whenever you are about to sleep or wake up. This is of the same kind as I have explained, that the Arabs use the word "na'im" for one who lies down, and also for one whose mind has been overtaken by sleep. The saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), "Recite these two surahs when you sleep," means when you lie down to sleep, because if "na'im" is taken to mean a person whose mind has been overtaken (by sleep), then addressing such a person is impossible and inconceivable, that it be said to him: when you sleep, and your mind is overtaken, then recite the Mu'awwidhatayn. Similarly, the meaning of the hadith of Sayyiduna Buraidah (may Allah be pleased with him), narrated from Imran bin Husayn, is (in which it is mentioned) that the reward of the prayer of the one who sleeps is half the reward of the one who prays sitting; in this hadith too, by "the one who sleeps" you mean the one who lies down. It does not mean the "na'im" whose mind has been overtaken by sleep, because such a "na'im" (sleeper) whose mind has been overtaken is not addressed for prayer, and due to the loss of mind, it is not possible for him to pray.

Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that I was holding the reins of the riding animal of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) during a journey, leading it, when he said: "O Uqbah, shall I not teach you the two best surahs that have been recited?" I said, "Yes, do teach me." He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: " «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الفلق ] and «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الناس ] ." Then when he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) dismounted and camped, he recited these two surahs in the morning prayer. (Then he, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,) said: "O Uqbah, what do you think (about the greatness of these surahs)?" These are the words of the hadith of Abdur Rahman. And the narrator Abda did not narrate the words "during a journey." And he said that you saw that I did not like these two surahs much (their virtue and greatness did not settle in my heart), so the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) led the people in the morning prayer and recited these two surahs. Then he said to me: "O Uqbah, what do you think? (How is their virtue?)"

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الفلق ] and «‏‏‏‏قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الناس ] in the morning prayer. These are the words of the hadith of Yazid bin Abi Zurqa. In the narration of Abu Usamah, these words are mentioned: He says that I asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about the Mu'awwidhatayn, whether they are from the Noble Qur'an? So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) led us in the Fajr prayer with these two surahs. Imam Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) says that our companions (the hadith scholars) say that Imam Sufyan Thawri (may Allah have mercy on him) made a mistake in narrating this hadith, whereas I say that it is not blameworthy for Imam Sufyan Thawri to narrate this hadith from Muawiyah and other narrators.

Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that an Ansari companion used to lead them in prayer at the mosque of Quba. Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) says that whenever he recited a surah in prayer, he would begin the recitation with «‏‏‏‏قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ» ‏‏‏‏ [ سورة الإخلاص ] , and when he finished it, he would then recite another surah along with it. He would do this in every rak'ah. Then, when the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) came to them, they informed him of this matter. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked him: "O so-and-so, what has prompted you to recite this surah in every rak'ah?" He replied that he loved it very much. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Your love for this surah will admit you to Paradise."

Hazrat Shaqiq narrates that Naheek bin Sinan came to the service of Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) and asked,“How do you recite this letter (Qira’at)? «‏‏‏‏ماء غير اٰسن» ‏‏‏‏ or «‏‏‏‏ياسن» ‏‏‏‏?”He replied,“Have you memorized (committed to memory) the entire Qur’an besides this?”He said,“Indeed, I recite all the Mufassal surahs in a single rak’ah.”So Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said,“Then you must be reciting very quickly, just as poetry is recited quickly. Surely, some people recite the Qur’an with their tongues, but it does not go below their throats. But when the Qur’an enters the heart and becomes firmly established in it, then it benefits. And indeed, the best prayer is to perform more bowing and prostration. And indeed, I know those similar surahs which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite two by two in one rak’ah.”Then he took the hand of Alqamah and went inside, then came out and counted those surahs for us. Hazrat A’mash says that according to the compilation of Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), they are twenty surahs. The first of them is Surah «‏‏‏‏الرحمٰن» ‏‏‏‏ and the last is Surah «‏‏‏‏الدخان» ‏‏‏‏. Surah «‏‏‏‏الرحمٰن» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏النجم» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏الذاريات» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏الطور» ‏‏‏‏ are similar surahs. (Other similar surahs are) Surah «‏‏‏‏القمر» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏الحاقة» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏الواقعة» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏القلم» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏النازعات» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏المعارج» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏المدثر» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏المزمل» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏للمطففين» ‏‏‏‏ and Surah «‏‏‏‏عبس» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏القيامه» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏الدهر» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏المرسلات» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏النبإ» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏الشمس» ‏‏‏‏, Surah «‏‏‏‏الدخان» ‏‏‏‏. The Imam narrates from his teachers, Hazrat Abu Musa, Yusuf bin Musa, and Salm bin Junadah, with the chain from A’mash. All the teachers have narrated the complete hadith up to these words. Then when Alqamah went inside and asked Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), then came out to us, he said,“(Those similar surahs) according to the compilation of Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), are twenty surahs from the beginning of the Mufassal surahs.”He did not narrate more than this.

It is narrated from Hazrat Abdullah bin Shaqiq Al-Uqaili (may Allah have mercy on him), he says: I asked Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), did the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) recite several surahs together in one rak'ah? She replied: (Yes, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite the Mufassal surahs (together). This is the narration of Waki’. In the narration of Janab Duraqi, these words are present: I (Abdullah bin Shaqiq Al-Uqaili) said that I asked Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), did the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) use to perform the Duha prayer? She replied: (Yes) when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would return from a journey (he would perform it). I asked: Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recite surahs together? She replied: (Yes) the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite the Mufassal surahs (together). I asked: Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) use to pray while sitting? She replied: (Yes) when people made the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) old and weak (then the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, used to pray while sitting).

Hazrat Jisrah bint Dajajah narrates that I heard Hazrat Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) say: The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) kept reciting a single blessed verse repeatedly throughout the night in prayer until morning came. That blessed verse is: (If You punish them, they are Your servants; and if You forgive them, surely You alone are the Mighty, the Wise. (Al-Ma'idah: 118))“(O Allah!) If You punish them, they are Your servants, and if You forgive them, surely You alone are the Mighty, the Wise.”