Likewise, in the two Sahīhs, Abū Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:
“When one of you leads people in prayer, let him keep it brief, for among them are the weak, the elderly, and those with pressing needs. When he prays alone, let him prolong it as much as he wishes.”
Another version reads: “For among them are the sick, the very elderly, and those with pressing needs.”
For this reason, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would sometimes make the prayer shorter than he usually did. Muslim reported in his Sahīh that ‘Amr ibn Hurayth, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
“It is as though I can hear the voice of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, reciting in the dawn prayer: ‘So I swear by the retreating stars, those that run their courses and disappear.’”
It is also reported that he “recited Surah al-Zalzalah in the Fajr prayer during one of his journeys.”
At other times, he would prolong the prayer. Indeed, it is established in the Sahīh, on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbās, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, that Umm al-Fadl bint al-Hārith heard him reciting “By those sent forth in succession,” and said:
“My son, your recitation of this surah has brought back a memory: it was the last surah I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, recite in the Maghrib prayer.”
In the two Sahīhs, Muhammad ibn Jubayr ibn Mut‘im reported from his father that he said:
“I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, reciting Surah al-Tūr in the Maghrib prayer.”
Al-Bukhārī and the Sunan collections also report that Marwān ibn al-Hakam said:
“Zayd ibn Thābit said to me, ‘Why do you recite the short surahs of the Mufassal in the Maghrib prayer, when I saw the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, recite the longer of the two long surahs in Maghrib?’
“I asked, ‘Which is the longer of the two long surahs?’
“He replied, ‘Al-A‘rāf.’”