Night Prayer

Witr series part 1: Raising the hands in Qunūt

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Those who held that it is recommended to raise the hands in Qunūt: “This is the position in the Shāfi’ī madhab and the saying of Ahmad which is the established position in his madhab, and some Hanafīs also held this view. This is (also) the saying of Ibn Mas’ūd, Abū Hurayrah,Continue reading “Witr series part 1: Raising the hands in Qunūt”

Is dividing the Night prayer into “Tarāwīh” and “Tahajjud” in Ramadān permissible?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Imrān bin Hudayr narrated: I sent (a question) to Al-Hasan (al-Basrī), and asked him about the ‘Ishā prayer in Ramadān; Should we pray, then we return to our homes, and sleep, and then we return (to the mosque) after that? He rejected that, and said: “No, the ‘Ishā prayer and thenContinue reading “Is dividing the Night prayer into “Tarāwīh” and “Tahajjud” in Ramadān permissible?”

The Night Prayer: Part 3 – Praying Two Rak’ah after Witr

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Hadīth 1. كنَّا مع رسولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّمَ في سَفَرٍ، فقالَ: إنَّ هذا السَّفَرَ جَهْدٌ وثِقَلٌ؛ فإذا أَوتَرَ أحَدُكم، فليَركَعْ رَكعتَينِ، فإنِ استَيقَظَ، وإلَّا كانتَا له Thawbān narrated: We were with the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) on a journey, and he said: This journey is a struggle and aContinue reading “The Night Prayer: Part 3 – Praying Two Rak’ah after Witr”

The Night Prayer – Part 2: The Virtues of the Night Prayer

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم The virtues of the night prayer 1) The prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: أَفْضَلُ الصَّلَاةِ بَعْدَ الصَّلَاةِ المَكْتُوبَةِ الصَّلَاةُ في جَوْفِ اللَّيْلِ The best of prayers after those prescribed are those prayed in the depth of the night. (Sahīh Muslim 1163) 2) The prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: نِعْمَContinue reading “The Night Prayer – Part 2: The Virtues of the Night Prayer”

The Night Prayer – Part 1: The difference between tarawīh, tahajjud, qiyām al-layl

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم The night prayer or salāt al-layl refers to the voluntary night prayer whose time extends from after ‘ishā prayer until fajr (dawn). Other names of the night prayer include: (Lisān al-‘Arab, taken from Qiyām and Tarawīh of Al-Albānī, prepared by Muhammad Jibaly, pg. 7) Shaykh Ibn Bāz (may Allāh have mercyContinue reading “The Night Prayer – Part 1: The difference between tarawīh, tahajjud, qiyām al-layl”

‘Umar commands the people to pray 11 rak’ah for tarawīh

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم The prophet (ﷺ) said: “Verily he among you who lives long after me will see great discord, so you must hold to my Sunnah and to the Sunnah of the Khulafā ar-Rāshidīn (the rightly guided caliphs) after me (i.e. Abu Bakr, Umar, ‘Uthmān, ‘Alī). Cling to it firmly [literally: with yourContinue reading “‘Umar commands the people to pray 11 rak’ah for tarawīh”