Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Just a quick question about fixing the reading of another surah after the Fatiha. Is it a waajib to do so in the 3rd and 4th rak’ahs of the sunnah mu’akkadah & the ghayr mu’akkadah? I recall Shaykh Ya’qoubi saying, while going through this line of the Mukhtasar al-Quduri (“The Obligations (Wajib) of Salah: 2. Adding a surah (or three verses) in the first two rak`ahs of fard, and in every rak`ah of witr and nafl”), saying that “nafl” here included the sunnah. Did I hear correctly?
Walaikum assalam,
Yes, you heard Sayyidna Shaykh Ya`qoubi correctly. It is necessary (wajib) to recite both the fatiha and a sura in all rak`as of a non-obligatory prayer.
[Answered by Shaykh Abu Usamah: Yes. Nafl includes Sunnah in that line of Mukhtasar al-Quduri].
Wassalam,
Faraz