Qiraat in Salaah

Skipping a surah in salaah

Q:

1. Can we skip surahs in between in salah? If not, for which salah (fardh or sunnat) can we skip surahs. Example, can I read Surah “Al-Kafirun” then skip Surah “An-Nasr” then recite Surah “Al-Masad” in first and second rakat.

2. How many surah's can we skip in between in Salah?

How much longer should the first rakaat of salaah be?

Q: I know that one should read longer Qiraat in the first rakat than the second rakat and that one should not skip an in-between Surah between rakats unless the rakat one skips is long. This applies to Fard salaah. My questions are:

1. What is meant by "long" Qiraat? Is this the number of lines or the number of ayaat?

2. Does the Qiraat have to get progressively shorter for the nafl and Sunnah rakats of Sunnat-e-Muakkadah and Sunnat-e-Ghair-Muakkadah as well?

3. Can you skip an in-between Surah in the Nafl and Sunnah salaah?

Reciting from different surahs in salaah

Q: In one musjid, the Imam Saheb read in the first rakaat of Fajr Salaah from the middle of Surah Tahreem,

يا أيها الذين آمنوا قوا أنفسكم و اهليكم

till the end of the Surah. Then in the second rakaat he read a different surah. Is there any reason for doing so? Would it not be better to start at the beginning of the Surah, read 2 pages, then in the second rakaat finish off the Surah?