What was the length of time in which the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) used to complete the recitation of the Holy Quran, so that the questioner may adhere to it, and is it from the Sunnah to begin reciting the entire Quran on Friday and complete it on Thursday if the duration is one week?

There is no explicit and authentic elevated proof for the Hizb (division) of the Qur’an. The closest narration in this regard is the Hadith of Aws ibn Hudhayfah, may Allah be pleased with him, where he mentioned that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was delayed one night and said: "Indeed, my Hizb of the Qur’an came to me, and I disliked leaving until I completed it." So Aws asked the companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him: How do you divide the Qur’an into Hizbs? They said: three, and five, and seven, and nine, and eleven, and thirteen, and the Hizb of Al-Mufassal.

Some scholars have weakened this Hadith while others have strengthened it. It has been narrated from the Companions that they used to complete the Qur’an in seven days, meaning every seven days, following the example of the Prophet’s Hadith to Abdullah ibn Amr: "Recite the Qur’an in seven [days], and do not exceed that."

As for starting the Khatm (completion) on Friday and finishing on Thursday, we know no basis for that in the Sunnah. Likewise, it is not permissible to delay the recitation of Al-Mu’awwidhat (Surahs Al-Falaq and An-Nas) at the completion to coincide with Friday; rather, the completion should be made whenever one reaches Al-Mu’awwidhat.