Sulaiman b. Yasar quoted Abu Huraira as saying, “I never prayed behind anyone whose prayer more closely resembled that of God’s Messenger than so and so’s.” Sulaiman said that he prayed behind him, and he was prolonging the first two rak'as of the noon prayer, shortening the last two, shortening the afternoon prayer, reciting short suras from al-Mufassal* at the sunset prayer, medium suras from al-Mufassal at the evening prayer, and long ones from al-Mufassal at the morning prayer.
* A name applied to the latter part of the Qur’an because there are many divisions, but opinions differ about where it begins. Lane mentions the different views in his Lexicon, pp 2407 f., saying the most correct opinion is that it begins with sura 49.
Nasa’i transmitted it, and Ibn Majah transmitted up to “shortening the afternoon prayer.”
I cannot count how often I heard God’s Messenger reciting in the two rak'as after the sunset prayer and in the two rak'as before the dawn prayer, “Say, O unbelievers,” and “Say, He is God, one God.”
Tirmidhi transmitted it, and Ibn Majah transmitted it on Abu Huraira’s authority, but he did not mention “after the sunset prayer.”
We were behind the Prophet at the dawn prayer, and he recited a passage, but the recitation became difficult for him. Then when he finished he said, “Perhaps you recite behind your imam?” We replied, “Yes, Messenger of God.” He said, “Do it only when it is Fatihat al-Kitab, for he who does not include it in his recitation is not credited with having prayed.”
Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi transmitted it, and Nasa’i has something to the same effect. In a version by Abu Dawud he said, “I am wondering what is the matter with me that the Qur’an should be at variance with me. So do not recite any of the Qur’an when I recite aloud, except Umm al-Qur'an."
