This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Muhammad Farooq's book Issues of the Two Eids.
Which Surahs are Sunnah to recite in the Eid prayers:
In the Eid prayers, after reciting Surah Al-Fatiha, it is recommended to recite Surah Al-A'la in the first rak'ah and Surah Al-Ghashiyah in the second rak'ah.
Evidence:
It is narrated from Nu'man bin Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقرأ فى العيدين وفي الجمعة سبح اسم ربك الأعلى و هل أتك حديث الغاشية و إذا اجتمع العيد والجمعة فى يوم واحد يقرأ بهما أيضا فى الصلاتين
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to recite سبح اسم ربك الاعلي and هل اتاك حديث الغاشيه in the Eid and Friday prayers, and whenever Eid and Friday coincided on the same day, he would recite these same Surahs in both prayers."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of Friday Prayer, Chapter on What is Recited in the Friday Prayer: 878. Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of Prayer, Chapter on What is Recited in Friday Prayer: 1122. Jami' at-Tirmidhi, Book of Friday Prayer, Chapter on What was Reported Regarding Recitation in the Two Eids: 533. Sunan an-Nasa'i, Book of Eid Prayers, Chapter on Recitation in the Eid Prayers: 1569. Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayers, Chapter on What was Reported Regarding Recitation in the Eid Prayers: 1681.
Fiqh of Hadith:
Most hadiths indicate that in the Eid prayers, the recitation of سبح اسم رب الاعلي and هل اتاك حديث الغاشيه is recommended, and this is also the view of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him.
Reference: Nail al-Awtar: 314/3
Similarly, in the Eid prayers, after Surah Al-Fatiha, it is also recommended to recite Surah ق و القرآن المجيد in the first rak'ah and Surah اقتربت الساعة in the second rak'ah.
Evidence:
Umar ibn Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, asked Abu Waqqad Laythi, may Allah be pleased with him: Which Surahs did the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, recite in Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Fitr? He replied:
كان يقرأ فيهما ب : ق وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ وَ اقْتَرَبَتِ السَّاعَةُ وَانشَقَّ الْقَمَرُ
"You, peace be upon him, used to recite ق وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ and اقْتَرَبَتِ السَّاعَةُ وَانشَقَّ الْقَمَرُ in the two Eids."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Salat al-Eidain, Chapter on what is recited in the Eid prayers: 891; Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of Prayer, Chapter on what is recited in Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Fitr: 1154; Jami` at-Tirmidhi, Book of Prayer, Chapter on what has been reported about recitation in the two Eids: 5340; Sunan an-Nasa'i, Book of Eid Prayers, Chapter on recitation in the two Eids: 1568; Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayers, Chapter on what has been reported about recitation in Eid prayers: 1282
Fiqh of Hadith:
"This hadith is evidence that reciting Surah Qaf and Surah Al-Qamar on the two Eids is also Sunnah and recommended. Also, the Shafi'i school of thought, may Allah have mercy on him, holds that reciting these two Surahs on the two Eids is a recommended act."
Reference: Nail al-Awtar: 314/3
The Position of Abu Hanifa, may Allah have mercy on him:
Abu Hanifa, may Allah have mercy on him, says: The recitation of any specific Surah on the two Eids is not established.
Reference: Nail al-Awtar: 314/3 - Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah, may Allah have mercy on him, with Al-Sharh Al-Kabir: 230/2
However, the above hadiths contradict his position, as the recitation of specific Surahs on the two Eids is established from the Prophet, peace be upon him.
Is it sufficient to recite only Surah Al-Fatiha on the two Eids?
It is not sufficient to recite only Surah Al-Fatiha in the Eid prayers; rather, it is recommended to recite any Surah from those confirmed from the Prophet ﷺ along with Surah Al-Fatiha. Also, the narration that permits reciting only Surah Al-Fatiha is weak.
Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهما states:
صلى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم العيد ركعتين لا يقرأ فيهما إلا بأم الكتاب لم يزاد عليها شيئا
"The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prayed the Eid prayer of two rak'ahs, and in these two rak'ahs he only recited Surah Al-Fatiha and did not add anything else."
Reference: Musnad Ahmad: 243/1 - Musnad Abu Ya'la: 2561 - Its chain is weak; Shahr bin Hawshab is a weak narrator.
Is it permissible to recite Surah Al-Baqarah in the Eid prayers?
Recitation of Surah Al-Baqarah in the Eid prayers is not Sunnah, and there is a weak narration attributed to Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) regarding this matter.
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas (may Allah be pleased with him):
أن أبا بكر قرأ فى يوم عيد بالبقرة حتى رأيت الشيخ يميل من طول القيام
"Indeed, Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) recited Surah Al-Baqarah on the day of Eid until I saw an elderly person who was leaning to one side due to the length of the standing."
Reference: Musannif Ibn Abi Shaybah 2729 - Its chain is weak, there is tadlis by Humaid Taweel.
Loud recitation is prescribed in the two Eids:
The narrations regarding the permissibility of loud recitation in the Eid prayers are weak.
Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) narrates:
كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يجهر بالقراءة فى العيدين، وفي الاستسقاء
"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to recite aloud in the Eid prayers and the prayer for rain (Istisqa)."
Reference: Dar Qutni: 67/2, 1779, its chain is very weak
In the chain of this hadith, Muhammad bin Umar bin Waqid al-Waqidi is abandoned, and Abdullah bin Nafi', the freed slave of Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), is weak.
It is narrated from Harith A'war (may Allah have mercy on him) that Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
الجهر فى صلاة العيدين من السنة
"Loud recitation in the Eid prayers is Sunnah."
Reference: Bayhaqi 295/3, Al-Tabarani Awsat: 4189, its chains are weak due to Abu Ishaq Subai'i's concealment and Harith bin Abdullah A'war is a weak narrator.
Despite these hadiths being weak and not authoritative, loud recitation in the Eid prayers is permissible. The evidence is clear from previous narrations that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to recite Surah Al-A'la, Surah Al-Ghashiyah, Surah Qaf, and Surah Al-Qamar in the Eid prayers.
These hadiths indicate that the Prophet (peace be upon him) specifically recited aloud in the Eid prayers, as the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) narrated specific surahs from him:
Ibn Qudamah Al-Hanbali (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
In every rak'ah of the Eid prayer, recitation of Surah Al-Fatiha and another surah is permissible, and loud recitation in it is Sunnah. We scholars know of no disagreement on this matter. Ibn Mundhir (may Allah have mercy on him) says: Most scholars are in favor of loud recitation in the Eid prayer, and the narrations describing the Prophet's (peace be upon him) recitation in the Eid prayers are evidence that he recited aloud. Also, loud recitation in the Eid prayers is permissible because it resembles the Friday prayer.
Reference: Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah (may Allah have mercy on him) with Al-Sharh Al-Kabir: 234/2
