And there is broad latitude in this matter.

“And renewing the intention, then he sits in the iftirāsh posture, …”

His statement, “and renewing the intention,” means that he does not form a new intention, unlike the first rak'ah, by which one enters the prayer with a new intention. If he were to intend anew to enter the prayer in the second rak'ah, the first would become invalid, because renewing the intention in the second rak'ah necessarily entails discontinuing the intention in the first; and the second rak'ah would not be validly commenced, due to the absence of the opening takbir.

The apparent meaning of the author’s words—may Allah have mercy on him—is that the second rak'ah is like the first with respect to the length of recitation, since he excluded only these four matters: the opening takbir, the opening supplication, seeking refuge, and renewing the intention.

Thus, his apparent meaning is that the recitation in the second rak'ah is like that in the first. However, the correct view is otherwise: the recitation in the second rak'ah is shorter than the recitation in the first, as is explicitly stated in the hadith of Abu Qatadah (1). Yet the hadith of Abu Sa'id (2) indicates that the second rak'ah is like the first. However, Abu Sa'id’s hadith shows that recitation is prescribed in all four rak'ahs. The hadith of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri indicates that the Messenger ﷺ would recite, along with al-Fatihah, in every rak'ah; in the first two rak'ahs, his recitation would be of equal length, and likewise in the final two, though they would be half the length of the first two.

His statement, “then he sits in the iftirāsh posture,” means: after he has performed the second rak'ah with its bowing, prostration, standing, and sitting. “He sits”—and this sitting