Recited “لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي…” instead of “أُولَئِكَ هُمْ خَيْرُ الْبَرِيَّةِ”

Question

The following needs clarification. A certain person is leading the prayer; in the first rak‘a he correctly recites the first part of Surah al-Bayyina up to “أُولَئِكَ هُمْ شَرُّ الْبَرِيَّةِ” (98:6), and in the second rak‘a, thinking that he is reciting the remaining part of that sura, he recites thus: [ar]إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ ذَلِكَ لِمَنْ خَشِيَ رَبَّهُ[/ar] (“Indeed,…

Answer

Reciting in this way did not distort the meaning, so the prayer is not spoiled; rather, it is valid. It is better (afdal) to recite a separate sura in each rak‘a.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.