الحميد
(الحمد) في اللغة هو الثناء، والفرقُ بينه وبين (الشكر): أن (الحمد)...
Abu Qatādah al-Ansāri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to recite Sūrat al-Fātihah in the first two Rak‘ahs of the Zhuhr prayer along with two other Sūrahs. He would prolong the recitation in the first Rak‘ah and make the second one shorter. He would sometimes recite some verse audibly. In the ‘Asr prayer, he would recite Sūrat al-Fātihah along with two other Sūrahs, he would prolong the recitation in the first Rak‘ah and make the second one shorter. He would recite Sūrat al-Fātihah alone in the last two Rak‘ahs. He would also prolong the first Rak‘ah of the Fajr prayer and make the second one shorter.
شرح الحديث :
It was the habit of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to recite other Sūrahs of the Qur'an after reciting Sūrat al-Fātihah in the first two Rak‘ahs of the Zhuhr and ‘Asr prayers. He would make the recitation in first Rak‘ah longer than the second one and would sometimes let his companions hear what he was reciting. He would recite Sūrat al-Fātihah alone in the third and fourth Rak‘ahs. He would also prolong the first Rak‘ah of the Fajr prayer and shorten the second one. If a Sūrah is recited after Al-Fātihah in the third or fourth Rak‘ah, this is permissible based on the evidences that have been reported to that effect.