Ruling on going back to Soorat al-Faatihah and the first few verses of Soorat al-Baqarah after completing the Qur'aan
Question

                Many women gather together everyday with a teacher for tafsir of Qur'aan. When the Qur'aan tafsir is complete they have a congregational dua after each lesson and then an extra congrgational dua at the end of the Qur'aan.
Praise be to Allah.The scholars differed 
    concerning the ruling on what many Qur'aan reciters do when completing the 
    Qur'aan, which is starting a new recitation, by going back to Soorat 
    al-Faatihah and reading it along with the first five verses of Soorat 
    al-Baqarah only. The difference of opinion is reflected in the two following 
    views: 
The first view is: that 
    this is prescribed and is mustahabb. This is the view favoured by the 
    reciters and was stated by some of the scholars. They quoted a number of 
    things as evidence for this view, among which is the following: 
(i)
the hadeeth narrated from 
    ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abbaas, from Ubayy ibn Ka’b, from the Prophet (peace and 
    blessings of Allaah be upon him), which says that when he recited “Qul 
    A’oodhu bi Rabbi l-Naas”, he would start again with al-Faatihah, then he 
    would recite al-Baqarah up to the verse (interpretation of the meaning): 
    “and they are the successful” [al-Baqarah 2:5]. Then he would recite 
    du’aa’ al-khatmah (du’aa’ for completing the Qur’aan), then he would get 
    up. 
This was narrated by 
    al-Daarimi, as attributed to him by al-Suyooti in al-Itqaan (1/295), 
    and he said it was narrated with a hasan isnaad. It was also narrated by 
    al-Haafiz Abu ‘Amr al-Daani and al-Haafiz Abu’l-A’la’ al-Hamadhaani, as 
    narrated from them by Ibn al-Jazari in al-Nashr (688-694), and by 
    al-Hasan ibn ‘Ali al-Jawhari in Fawaa’id Muntaqaah (2/29). They all 
    narrated it via one isnaad:
Al-‘Abbaas ibn Ahmad 
    al-Barti, ‘Abd al-Wahhaab ibn Faleeh al-Makki narrated to us, ‘Abd al-Malik 
    ibn ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Sha’wah narrated to us, from his maternal uncle Wahb ibn 
    Zam’ah ibn Saalih, from Zam’ah ibn Saalih, from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Katheer, 
    from Darbaas the freed slave of Ibn ‘Abbaas, and from Mujaahid, from 
    ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abbaas, from Ubayy ibn Ka’b, from the Prophet (peace and 
    blessings of Allaah be upon him). 
Shaykh al-Albaani (may 
    Allaah have mercy on him) said: 
This is a da’eef (weak) 
    isnaad, for two reasons: 
The first is that it hinges 
    on Zam’ah ibn Saalih. Al-Dhahabi said in al-Kaashif: He was classed 
    as da’eef by Ahmad. Al-Haafiz said in al-Taqreeb: (he is) da’eef and 
    his hadeeth is maqroon according to Muslim.
The other reason is that 
    there is confusion concerning its isnaad for two reasons. The first is this 
    hadeeth quoted above from Darbaas and from Mujaahid, who are mentioned 
    together in the isnaad. 
The second is from Darbaas 
    alone, and Mujaahid is not mentioned with him. Ibn al-Jazari quoted the 
    isnaads like this in al-Nashr (2/420-425). 
According to a version 
    narrated from Wahb ibn Zam’ah ibn Saalih, from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Katheer, from 
    Darbaas, from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abbaas… in a marfoo’ report. No mention is 
    made in this isnaad of Zam’ah. 
He said following that: a 
    ghareeb hadeeth, which we know only through this isnaad. Its isnaad is hasan 
    but al-Haafiz Abu’l-Shaykh al-Asbahaani and Abu Bakr al-Zaynabi narrated it 
    from Wahb from his father Zam’ah,… and this is the correct isnaad. 
I say: This suggestion is 
    correct, because it is what appears in most reports. On that basis there is 
    no way to class its isnaad as hasan, because it hinges on Zam’ah ibn Saalih 
    who is da’eef, as stated above. 
How can it be hasan when it 
    includes Darbaas the freed slave of Ibn ‘Abbaas, who is majhool – as Abu 
    Haatim said and was followed in that by al-Dhahabi and al-‘Asqallaani? Yes, 
    he was mentioned with Mujaahid in some reports, as in the version narrated 
    by al-Jawhari and others, but even if that is correct, the fault in it is 
    still the same, namely Zam’ah. And Allaah knows best. end quote. 
Al-Silsilah al-Da’eefah 
    (no. 6134). 
(ii)
A marfoo’ hadeeth in which 
    it says: 
A man said: O Messenger of 
    Allaah, which deed is most beloved to Allaah? He said: The one who reaches 
    (the end) then keeps going. He said: Who is the one who reaches (the end) 
    then keep going? He said: The one who reads the Qur’aan from the beginning 
    to the end, then when he reaches the end he starts again from the beginning. 
     
This hadeeth was narrated 
    via two isnaads: 
The first is muttasil: via 
    Saalih al-Murri, from Qataadah, from Zaraarah ibn Awfa, from Ibn ‘Abbaas. It 
    was narrated with this isnaad from Saalih al-Murri by al-Haytham ibn 
    al-Rabee’ – as quoted by al-Tirmidhi (no. 2948) – and by ‘Amr ibn ‘Aasim – 
    as quoted by al-Bazzaar (2/213) – and by ‘Aasim al-Kilaabi, ‘Amr ibn Marzooq 
    and Zayd ibn al-Habbaab in al-Mustadrak (1/757), and by Ibraaheem ibn 
    Abi Suwayd al-Dhaari’ – as quoted in Mu’jam al-Tabaraani (12/168). 
The second is mursal, via 
    Saalih al-Murri, from Qataadah, from Zaraarah ibn Awfa, from the Prophet 
    (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), without any mention of Ibn 
    ‘Abbaas. It was narrated from Saalih al-Murri with this isnaad by Muslim ibn 
    Ibraaheem, as quoted by al-Tirmidhi (no. 2948); Ishaaq ibn ‘Eesa, as quoted 
    by al-Daarimi (2/560); ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mu’aawiyah al-Jumahi – as quoted in
    al-Nashr by Ibn al-Jazari (p. 699). Al-Tirmidhi regarded as more 
    correct the report of the one who narrated it as mursal, and said: This is a 
    ghareeb hadeeth; we do not know of it from the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas except 
    through this isnaad, and it is not qawiy (strong). This – meaning the mursal 
    report – in my view is more saheeh than the hadeeth of Nasr ibn ‘Ali from 
    al-Haytham ibn al-Rabee’. End quote. 
There is a corroborating, 
    marfoo’ report in the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah which was narrated by 
    al-Haakim in al-Mustadrak (1/758), in the isnaad of which there is 
    Miqdaam ibn Dawood who is da’eef al-hadeeth. See: Lisaan al-Mizaan 
    (6/84). There is another corroborating report from Zayd ibn Aslam from the 
    Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), which is mursal. Abu 
    ‘Amr al-Daani gives its isnaad in al-Nashr (p. 700). 
This hadeeth was classed as 
    da’eef by a number of scholars, including its narrator Imam al-Tirmidhi, 
    al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar, as it says in al-Futoohaat al-Rabaaniyyah 
    (3/248) and Shaykh al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Da’eefah (no. 1834). 
(iii)
The action of the righteous 
    salaf; this Sunnah was part of their traditions. 
Ibn al-Jazari (may Allaah 
    have mercy on him) said: 
Al-Haafiz Abu ‘Amr also 
    narrated with a saheeh isnaad from al-A’mash, from Ibraaheem who said: When 
    they completed the Qur’aan, they regarded it as mustahabb to read a few 
    verses from the beginning. This is a clear statement of the validity of the 
    view favoured by the reciters and held by the salaf. End quote. 
Al-Nashr 
    (2/449, p. 703). 
Al-Haafiz Abu ‘Amr al-Daani 
    said: 
The fact that Ibn Katheer – 
    meaning the famous reciter – did that is indicated in the narrated texts and 
    the reports are mawqoof and do not go back to the Messenger of Allaah (peace 
    and blessings of Allaah be upon him). There are many other reports narrated 
    from the Sahaabah, Taabi’een and those who come after them. End quote from
    al-Nashr fi’l-Qiraa’at al-‘Ashar by Ibn al-Jazari (p. 688). 
(iv)
The fact that the Muslims 
    followed this Sunnah in all regions. 
Ibn al-Jazari (may Allaah 
    have mercy on him) said: 
This action was done in all 
    Muslim regions according to the recitation of Ibn Katheer and others, to 
    such an extent that there was hardly anyone who completed a reading of the 
    Qur’aan but he would immediately start another, whether he completed what he 
    started or not, and whether he intended to complete it or not. That became 
    part of the Sunnah of completing a reading of the Qur’aan among them, and 
    they describe the one who did that as “the one who reaches (the end) then 
    keeps going”, i.e., the one who reaches the end of the Qur’aan and then 
    starts again from the beginning. End quote. 
Al-Nashr 
    (p. 694). 
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have 
    mercy on him) said: 
It is mustahabb when 
    finishing a complete reading, to start another one immediately after 
    completing it. This was regarded as mustahabb by the earlier and later 
    generations, and they quoted as evidence for it the hadeeth of Anas (may 
    Allaah be pleased with him). End quote. 
Al-Tibyaan fi Adaab 
    Hamalat al-Qur’aan (p. 110). 
Al-Suyooti (may Allaah have 
    mercy on him) said: 
It is Sunnah when 
    comp’leuting a reading of the Qur'aan to start another immediately after 
    completing it, because of the hadeeth of al-Tirmidhi and others... End 
    quote.  
Al-Itqaan (1/295). See 
    also: Sunan al-Qurra’ wa Manaahij al-Mujawwideen (p. 227). 
The second view is that it 
    is not allowed and is not mustahabb. This was stated by Imam Ahmad (may 
    Allaah have mercy on him). 
The basis for this opinion 
    is that this action was not narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace 
    of Allaah be upon him). He would review the Qur'aan with Jibril once every 
    year, and he reviewed it with him twice in the year in which he died, and no 
    one has transmitted anything to us about this practice which is followed 
    today. 
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allaah 
    have mercy on him) said: 
Abu Taalib said: I asked 
    Ahmad when he recited “Qul a’oodhu bi Rabbi l-naas”, whether he recited 
    anything of al-Baqarah? He said no, and he did not regard it is mustahabb to 
    follow his completion of the Qur'aan with the recitation of anything. 
    Perhaps he had no verification of any saheeh report to indicate that. End 
    quote. 
Al-Mughni 
    (1/838). 
It says in al-Furoo’ 
    (1/554): 
He should not read 
    al-Faatihah and the first five verses of al-Baqarah. al-Aamidi said: meaning 
    before the supplication. And it was said that it is mustahabb. End quote. 
Ibn Muflih said in 
    al-Adaab al-Shar’iyyah (2/319): 
If one finishes reciting 
    Soorat al-Naas, he should not add al-Faatihah and five verses of al-Baqarah. 
    He said in the commentary: Perhaps he did not have any proven saheeh report. 
    And it was said: it is permissible after the du’aa’, or it is mustahabb. 
Al-Qaadi said, after 
    mentioning the meaning of this report from the hadeeth of Anas which was 
    narrated by Ibn Abi Dawood – meaning the hadeeth which mentions “The one who 
    reaches (the end) then keeps going” –: The apparent meaning of this is that 
    this is mustahabb. The answer is that what is meant is to encourage repeated 
    reading of the entire Qur’aan, time after time. There is nothing in this to 
    indicate that the du’aa’ should not come immediately after completing the 
    Qur’aan. End quote. 
Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (may 
    Allaah have mercy on him) said: 
Some of them understood 
    from this that every time one finishes reading the entire Qur’aan, he should 
    read the Opening of the Book (al-Faatihah) and three verses of Soorat 
    al-Baqarah, because he has reached the end then kept going by starting again 
    from the beginning. 
None of the Sahaabah did 
    this, nor did the Taabi’een, and none of the imams regarded it as 
    mustahabb. 
The hadeeth “The one who 
    reaches (the end) then keeps going” may mean either of two things. One is 
    that every time he reaches the end of a soorah or juz’, he keeps going and 
    moves on to the next; the second is that every time he completes the Qur’aan 
    he starts it again from the beginning. End quote. 
I’laam al-Muwaqqi’een 
    (4/306). 
The second view is more 
    likely, based on the evidence, in sha Allaah, because there is no proven 
    evidence that such a thing is mustahabb, rather the apparent meaning of the 
    Sunnah indicates the opposite, as explained above. This view is favoured in 
    the answer to question no. 12032. 
But we should note that 
    this issue, even though we have pointed out what we believe is more correct, 
    is a matter of ijtihaad, and it is not a definitive matter. If someone has 
    sound evidence that the salaf used to do that, or he believes that the 
    hadeeth narrated concerning it is saheeh, then he is not innovating or going 
    astray, rather he should not be denounced. 
Similarly, those who follow 
    the view that we regard as more correct should not be denounced. Rather Imam 
    al-Jazari (may Allaah have mercy on him), who is one of those who say that 
    this is prescribed, says: 
Whatever the case, we do 
    not say that this is binding upon every reader, rather we say what our imam 
    Faaris ibn Ahmad and others said: Whoever does that has done well, and 
    whoever does not do it, there is no blame on him. End quote. 
Al-Nashr 
    (p. 704). 
And Allaah knows best.