If dividing the Quran into portions by counting letters is only approximate rather than exact, then it is comparable to dividing it by surahs, which is also approximate: some sevenths may contain more letters than others. Dividing it by surahs, however, offers great benefits absent from division by letter count: reciting connected passages together, beginning where Allah began each surah, ending where He ended it, and conveying each surah’s intended meaning in full. It also avoids the drawbacks of division by letter count, some of which have already been noted. In these respects, it is therefore preferable.

It is well known that the duration of worship varies according to the benefits involved. Thus, in both obligatory and voluntary prayers, it is sometimes recommended to prolong the standing and at other times to shorten it, according to considerations recognized by Islamic law. It is not prescribed that its duration should be equal every day. This shows that outward equality in the amounts of bodily worship is of no consequence when a recognized benefit is involved. Nor does equality in amount necessarily entail equality in merit.

Indeed, it is established through several reports in the authentic hadith collections that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said that “Say, ‘He is Allah, One’” is equivalent to one-third of the Quran. It is also established in an authentic report that nothing like the Opening of the Book has been revealed in the Torah, the Gospel, or the Quran. Another authentic report establishes that the Verse of the Throne is the greatest verse in the Quran. There are other examples of this kind.

Thus, if on the first day the reciter reads al-Baqarah, Āl ‘Imrān, and al-Nisā’