A lejohet leximi i Qurānit tek varret? Sh. Albānī

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Aishja tregonte: Profeti më tha: Xhibrili, duke m’u drejtuar mua, më tha: “Zoti yt të urdhëron që të shkosh te të varrosurit në Beki dhe të kërkosh falje për ta.” – “Çfarë t’ju them atyre, o i Dërguari i Allahut (nëse shkoj atje)?” — e pyeta. I huaju: Es-selamuala ehlid-dijari minel mu’minine uel muslimine ue jerhamull-llahulmustekdimine min-na uel muste hırine ue in-na insha Allahu bikumlelahikune.”(Paqja e Allahut qoftë mbi banorët e këtij vendi,besimtarë e muslimanë. Allahu i mëshiroftë ata që kanë vdekurpërpara nga ne dhe ata që vdesin më vonë, dhe ne, insha-Allah’,juve do ť’ju bashkëngjitemi)

Leximi i Kuranit te varret, gjatë vizitës së tyre, është diçka që nuk ka burim në Sunet. Madje hadithet që u përmendën më lart,të bëjnë të kuptosh se leximi te varri është i paligjshëm. Sikur të ishte i ligjshëm, atë do ta bënte i Dërguari i Allahut dhe do t’uamësonte shokëve. Aq më tepër, Aishja (Radij Allahu anha), – më e dashura nga njerëzit për Profetin, kur e pyeti Profetin se çfarë thoshte kur të vizitonte varret, ai i mësoi selamin dhe duanë dhe nuk e mësoi që të lexonte Fatihanë a apo diçka tjetër nga Kurani. Sikur leximi i Kuranit të ishte ligjshëm, ai nuk do t’ia fshihte Aishes (Radij Allahu anha).

Si mund të ndodhte kjo, kur dihet që ishte e pamundur që Profeti (sal Allahu alejhi ue sel-lem) të vononte sqarimin e një çështjeje ngamomenti i saj i duhur. Dijetarët e Usulit’ kanë theksuar se është parim themelor që nuk lejohet vonimi i sqarimit të një çështjeje nga koha e nevojshme për këtë. Atëherë, si mund të lejohet fshehja e dijes, në qoftë se leximi i Kuranit do të ishte i ligjshëm? Sikur Profeti (Sel Allahu alejhi ue sel-lem) të kishte mësuar njerëzit të lexonin Kuran te varrezat, kjo gjë do të ishte përcjellë deri te ne. Përderisa asgjë me sened të saktë nuk është transmetuar, kjo tregon që leximi Kuranit në varreza nuk ka ekzistuar fare. Një nga faktet që përforcon paligjshmërinë e leximit të Kuranit te varrezat, është thenia e Profetit (Sal Allahu alejhi ue sel-lem): “Mos i bëni shtëpitë tuaja varreza, sepse shejtani largohet nga shtëpia ku lexohet surja Bekare.”

Në këtë hadith Profeti (Sal Allahu alejhi ue sel-lem) ka treguar që varrezat nuk janë vend për leximin e Kuranit, në bazë të Sheriatit, prandajka nxitur që Kurani të lexohet në shtëpi. Gjithashtu, ai ka treguarse varret nuk janë vend për namaz: “Faluni në shtëpitë tuaja dhemos i ktheni ato në varre.”

Këtë hadith Buhariu e ka futur në një temë të veçantë:  në varreza: Falja e namazit në varrezs është mekruh. Futja në këtë temë tregon se leximi i Kuranit në varreza është mekruh. Kështu, edhe hadithi para tij tregon se leximi i Kuranit në varreza është mekruh, sepse nuk ka asnjë ndryshim. Edhe mendimi i shumicës së dijetarëve të selefëvesi: Ebu Hanifja, Maliku e të tjerë, është që leximi i Kuranit te varret është mekruh. Ky është edhe mendimi i imam Ahmedit. Ebu Daudinë “Çështjet e tij” (fq. 158) shkruan: “E kam dëgjuar Ahmedin që e pyetën për leximin e Kuranit te varret dhe tha: “Jo.” (Xhenazja, ritet dhe bidatet. Nektari 121-123)

Standing foot to foot in prayer – al-Mubārakfūrī, Ibn ‘Uthaymīn

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Imām al-Bukhārī said in his sahīh:

باب إِلْزَاقِ الْمَنْكِبِ بِالْمَنْكِبِ وَالْقَدَمِ بِالْقَدَمِ فِي الصَّفِّ

Chapter: To stand shoulder to shoulder and foot to foot in a row

Al-Nu’mān bin Bashīr said: I saw that a man from us attach his ankle to the ankle of his companion.

(Sahīh al-Bukhārī, The Book of Adhān, Chapter 76)

Hadīth 1)

Anas ibn Mālik narrated: The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

أَقِيمُوا صُفُوفَكُمْ فَإِنِّي أَرَاكُمْ مِنْ وَرَاءِ ظَهْرِي ‏.‏ وَكَانَ أَحَدُنَا يُلْزِقُ مَنْكِبَهُ بِمَنْكِبِ صَاحِبِهِ وَقَدَمَهُ بِقَدَمِهِ‏

“Straighten your rows for I see you from behind my back.” Anas added: Everyone of us used to attach his shoulder with the shoulder of his companion and his foot with the foot of his companion. (Sahīh al-Bukhārī 725)

Hadīth 2)

Nu’mān bin Bashīr narrated:

أَقْبَلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَلَى النَّاسِ بِوَجْهِهِ فَقَالَ ‏ أَقِيمُوا صُفُوفَكُمْ ‏ ‏.‏ ثَلاَثًا ‏. وَاللَّهِ لَتُقِيمُنَّ صُفُوفَكُمْ أَوْ لَيُخَالِفَنَّ اللَّهُ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ ‏.‏ قَالَ فَرَأَيْتُ الرَّجُلَ يُلْزِقُ مَنْكِبَهُ بِمَنْكِبِ صَاحِبِهِ وَرُكْبَتَهُ بِرُكْبَةِ صَاحِبِهِ وَكَعْبَهُ بِكَعْبِهِ ‏

the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) paid attention to the people and said three times; straighten your rows (in prayer); “by Allāh, you must straighten your rows, or Allāh will certainly cause differences amongst your hearts.” I then saw that every person stood in prayer attaching his shoulder to that of his companion, and his knee to that of his companion, and his ankle to that of his companion. (Abū Dawūd 662. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī in Al-Silsilah 1/71)

Hadīth 3)

Abdullāh ibn ‘Umar narrated:

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏: أَقِيمُوا الصُّفُوفَ وَحَاذُوا بَيْنَ الْمَنَاكِبِ وَسُدُّوا الْخَلَلَ وَلِينُوا بِأَيْدِي إِخْوَانِكُمْ  ‏.‏ لَمْ يَقُلْ عِيسَى  بِأَيْدِي إِخْوَانِكُمْ ‏ ‏.‏ ‏وَلاَ تَذَرُوا فُرُجَاتٍ لِلشَّيْطَانِ وَمَنْ وَصَلَ صَفًّا وَصَلَهُ اللَّهُ وَمَنْ قَطَعَ صَفًّا قَطَعَهُ اللَّهُ

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Set the rows in order, stand shoulder to shoulder, close the gaps, be pliant in the hands of your brethren, and do not leave openings for the shaytān. If anyone joins up a row, Allāh will join him up, but if anyone breaks a row, Allah will cut him off.” (Abū Dawūd 666. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

Hadīth 4)

Anas ibn Mālik narrated:

رُصُّوا صُفُوفَكُمْ وَقَارِبُوا بَيْنَهَا وَحَاذُوا بِالأَعْنَاقِ فَوَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ إِنِّي لأَرَى الشَّيْطَانَ يَدْخُلُ مِنْ خَلَلِ الصَّفِّ كَأَنَّهَا الْحَذَفُ

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Stand close together in your rows, and line yourselves up tightly, and make your necks straight (in one line), for by Him in Whose hand my soul is, I see the shaytān coming in through openings in the row just like a small black goat.” (Abū Dawūd 667. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

Hadīth 5)

Anas ibn Mālik narrated:

سَوُّوا صُفُوفَكُمْ فَإِنَّ تَسْوِيَةَ الصَّفِّ مِنْ تَمَامِ الصَّلاَةِ

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Straighten your rows for the straightening of the rows is part of perfecting the prayer.” (Abū Dawūd 668. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

In the narration collected by al-Bukhārī #723:

سَوُّوا صُفُوفَكُمْ فَإِنَّ تَسْوِيَةَ الصُّفُوفِ مِنْ إِقَامَةِ الصَّلاَةِ

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Straighten your rows for the straightening of the rows is essential for a perfect and correct prayer.”

The manner of straightening the rows

Al-Mubārakfūrī said: [explaining the narration of Anas collected by al-Bukhārī] (hadīth 1): Anas said: ‘Everyone of us used to…‘ This statement indicates that the aforementioned act occurred during the time of the Prophet (ﷺ). Thus, it is used as evidence to clarify what is meant by establishing and straightening the row…

The meaning of straightening the row is for those who are standing in it to be in a continuous and straight line, and to fill the defect in the row by attachment of shoulder to shoulder and foot to foot.

[he then mentions the narration of Anas again and Nu’mān – hadīth 2 above, and hadīth 3 which mentions closing the gaps and not leaving space for the shaytān] and says: All of this clearly indicates that what is meant by establishing and straightening the row is for those standing to be straight in one line, and to fill the spaces and gaps in the row by attachment of shoulder to shoulder and foot to foot, and that the Companions in his time (ﷺ) were doing this. (Sharh Mishkāt 4/1-5)

“Line yourselves up tightly” Al-Khattābī said: “Its meaning is to bring part of it together with another part, and close in between them. And from it is the compressed building; Allāh said: “…as if they were a solid structure…” [As- Saff 61:4]. And it is further explained by the second half; that is, if they are not together, Shaytān will come between them, and this gap through which he enters, destroys the ranks, like a gap between mortars of a structure, which erode it, bringing about its downfall. (Sunan Abū Dawūd 1/400, Darussalam, English print)

Al-Mubārakfūrī said: “Stand close together“, that is, stick together until your shoulders and feet are connected in line, and there will be no flaw or gaps between you. (Sharh Mishkāt 4/4)

Ibn ‘Uthaymīn said: [the rows are straightened] with closeness such that no one moves ahead of others. Hence, each of the companions would stick his ankle to his companion’s ankle and his shoulder to his shoulder (Sharh Riyād al-Sālihīn 5/134)

The ruling on straightening the rows

Al-Mubārakfūrī said: The doctrine of Al-Bukhārī is that (straightening the row) is obligatory, as he included in his Sahīh saying: ‘Chapter on the sin of one who does not complete the rows‘ (Chapter 75 in the book of adhān). 

The truth in my opinion is that establishing the row, correcting it, and straightening it are among the obligations of the congregational prayer, such that if one leaves it out, ones (reward) will be reduced, and the one who leaves this out is sinful because the command to straighten (the rows) has been given (by the Prophet (ﷺ)), and the basic principle is that a command is obligation. (Abridged, Sharh Mishkāt 4/1-2, #1090)

[Hadīth 5]… Makes it clear that the prayer of those who do not make the rows straight and do not fill the gaps remains incomplete and imperfect. (Sunan Abū Dawūd 1/400, Darussalam, English print)

A summary of the manner in straightening the rows

Shaykh Ibn al-‘Uthaymīn said: We are commanded to straighten the rows in the following ways:

Firstly, straighten the row with closeness such that no one moves ahead of others. Hence, each of the companions would stick his ankle to his companion’s ankle and his shoulder to his shoulder. This description is evidence against the defective understanding of those who separate between their legs when they stand in rows such that (only) their feet align with the feet of those by their sides with their shoulders far apart – this is an innovation (bid’ah). The Sunnah is that we should be close to our companion, aligning our ankles with his ankle and his shoulder with his shoulder without unnecessary separation of legs. Rather we leave it straightened in a normal way.

Secondly, straightening the row is by completing it in succession. Hence, no one should start the second row before the completion of the first row, or the third before the completion of the second row.

Thirdly, when men and women are together, it is preferable for women to be far from men. Indeed, the best rows for the women are the last rows and the worst for them are the first rows.

Fourthly, closing up gaps. We should not leave gaps for the shaytān to enter into because they overpower the son of Adam as a trial from Allāh, The Glorified and the Most High. So if they find a gap in the row, they will distract the worshippers until they confuse them in their Prayer.

Fifthly, if there are three persons, one of them should move forward as Imam and the rest should be behind him regardless of whether the other two are adults, children or an adult and a child. They must all stand behind him. This is established from the Prophet (ﷺ) in a supererogatory prayer. However, the obligatory Prayer is comparable to the supererogatory Prayer except there is an evidence to the contrary. (Sharh Riyād al-Sālihīn 5/134,Darussalam print. 5/114-155 Arabic Madār al-Watan print)

Evidence of placing the hands on the chest in prayer

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Hadīth 1)

وَعَنْ وَائِلِ بْنِ حُجْرٍ ‏- رضى الله عنه ‏- قَالَ : صَلَّيْتُ مَعَ اَلنَّبِيِّ ‏- صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏-فَوَضَعَ يَدَهُ اَلْيُمْنَى عَلَى يَدِهِ اَلْيُسْرَى عَلَى صَدْرِهِ

Wā’il ibn Hujr narrated:

“I prayed with the Prophet and he placed his right hand upon his left on his chest.”

(Sahīh ibn Khuzaymah, 1/272, #479, authenticated Ibn Khuzaymah. Authenticated by Ibn Hajr in al-Fath 2/224 and Bulugh al-Marām #217. Declared Sahīh by Al-Mubārakfūrī in Tuhfah 1/540. Al-Albānī also declared it Sahīh in the checking of Sahīh Ibn Khuzaymah and Sifat al-Salāh pg. 88)

Hadīth 2)

رَأَيتُ النَّبيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّمَ يَنصرِفُ عن يَمينِه وعن يَسارِه، ورَأَيتُه -قال:- يَضَعُ هذه على صَدرِه، وَصَفَ يَحيى: اليُمنى على اليُسرى فوقَ المَفصِلِ

Qabīsah ibn Hulb the Tābi’ī narrates from his father Hulb:

“I saw the Prophet and he was turning to his right and left in the prayer and I saw that, in the prayer, he would place his right hand upon his left on his chest. Yahyā al-Yamanī depicted this by placing the right hand upon the left (on the chest) above the level of the elbows.”

(Musnad Imām Ahmad #21864 – checking by Ahmad Shākir who declared the isnād as Sahīh. Authenticated by al’Adhīm al-Abādī in ‘Awn al-Ma’būd 2/203 who said: ‘the narrators of this hadīth are all trustworthy’. Al-Mubārakfūrī also authenticated it in Al-Tuhfah 3/400 and Al-Albānī in Sifat al-Salāh pg. 88)

[T.N: ‘Adhīm al-Ābādī says in summary (after saying all the men of the isnād are reliable – 2/203-205):

1. Yahyā ibn Sa’īd al-Qattān:

A hāfidh, hujjah (authority), and imam of jarh wa-l-ta’dīl
Highly praised by Ahmad (“my eyes have not seen his like”) and Ibn Ma’īn (“more reliable than Ibn Mahdī”)

2. Sufyān al-Thawrī:
Trustworthy, hāfidh, jurist, authority. Though he sometimes practiced tadlīs (concealment), noting here that he explicitly stated transmission here, eliminating any tadlīs concerns.

3. Simāk ibn Harb:
Sadūq (i.e. truthful – Hasan in hadīth) [see Taqrīb #2901].

[Abū Hātim said about him: “Truthful, Thiqah”. Al-Nasā’ī said: “There is nothing wrong with him”. Ibn Hibbān mentioned him in al-Thiqāt. Al-Thawrī said: “No hadīth of Simāk fell (to level of weakness/not suitable for consideration).” Yahyā ibn Ma’īn said: “Thiqah.” al-‘Ijlī said: “Acceptable in hadīth”. Ya’qūb said: “And his narration from ‘Ikrimah specifically (is) mudtaribah (inconsistent), and he (is) Sālih (acceptable) in other than ‘Ikrimah…”. Al-Bazzār said in his “Musnad”: He was a well-known man, I do not know anyone (who) abandoned him, and he had changed before his death.”. Ibn ‘Adī said: And Simāk has much hadīth (that is) straight (mustaqīm), if Allāh wills, and he is from the senior tābi’īn (successors) of the people of Kūfah, and his ahādīth (are) good (hisān), and he (is) sadūq (truthful), no harm (ba’s) in him – see Tahdhīb of Ibn Hajr]

Criticised for: Inconsistent narration from ‘Ikrimah specifically, changed/weakened at the end of his life.

Response to potential criticisms here: His inconsistency was only with ‘Ikrimah, not with Qabīsah (who he narrates from here). His late-life deterioration doesn’t affect this hadīth because Sufyān heard from him early in his life. Early transmissions from Simāk (like those of Shu’bah and Sufyān) are “straight/correct (mustaqīm)”

4. Qabīsah ibn Hulb:
Ibn Hajr said in al-Taqrīb: “maqbūl (acceptable)” – #6197.

[Ibn al-Madīnī and al-Nasā’ī called him majhūl (unknown)]

[al-‘Ijlī said: “(He was) thiqah – a Tābi’ī (successor).” Ibn Hibbān included him in al-Thiqāt.]

When Simāk was alone in narrating from Qabīsah, Qabīsah became majhūl al-‘ayn (unknown in person). And the hadīth of one who is majhūl al-‘ayn (is) acceptable if someone other than the one alone (in narrating) from him declares him trustworthy. Ibn Hajr said in “Sharh al-Nukhbah”: If the narrator is named and only one narrator is alone in narrating from him, then he is majhūl al-‘ayn like the unidentified (mubham), except if someone other than the one alone (in narrating) from him declares him trustworthy, according to the most correct (view).“

And you have known that Ahmad al-‘Ijlī and Ibn Hibbān, from the imams of al-jarh wa-l-ta’dīl, declared him trustworthy, so how can he be majhūl (unknown)?]

Hadīth 3)

عَنْ طَاوُسٍ، قَالَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَضَعُ يَدَهُ الْيُمْنَى عَلَى يَدِهِ الْيُسْرَى ثُمَّ يَشُدُّ بَيْنَهُمَا عَلَى صَدْرِهِ وَهُوَ فِي الصَّلاَةِ ‏

Tawūs narrated:

“The Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) used to place his right hand on his left hand, then he folded them firmly on his chest in prayer.”

(Abū Dawūd 759. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī, who said even though this narration is mursal, it is used as evidence according to all the scholars – see Irwā 2/71. Mubārakfūrī declared it Hasan in Al-Tuhfah 401.

Shu’ayb al-Arnāūt declared it Hasan in his checking 2/71 – saying its men (narrators) (are) trustworthy (thiqāt) except Sulaymān ibn Mūsā – and he is al-Dimashqī – for (he is) sadūq (truthful) hasan al-hadīth (good in hadīth).

Al-Mubārakfūrī graded the isnād as Hasan and then followed it up by saying, the mursal narration is proof according to Imām Ahmad, Imām Mālik, Abū Hanifah unrestricted, and with Imām Shāfiʿī it’s proof when supported via another chain, whether musnad or mursal – Summarised from Tuhfah 3/401)

[T.N: on Sulaymān ibn Mūsā:

Yahyā ibn Ma’īn said to Yahyā ibn Aktham: Sulaymān ibn Mūsā (is) thiqah (trustworthy and reliable) and his hadīth (is) Sahīh (authentic) in our view.

Al-Zuhrī said: Sulaymān ibn Mūsā (is) more retentive (in memory) than Makhūl.

‘Uthmān al-Dārimī said, from Duhaym: Thiqah (trustworthy). And from Ibn Ma’īn: Thiqah in (narrations from) al-Zuhrī.

Ibn Sa’d said: He was thiqah (trustworthy), Ibn Jurayj praised him.

Ibn Hibbān said in al-Thiqāt (The Trustworthy): He died in the year 115H from a drink (that was) given to him, and he was a jurist (faqīh) (and) pious (wari’).

And al-Dāraqutnī said in al-‘Ilal: (He is) From the trustworthy (narrators), ‘Atā’ and al-Zuhrī praised him.

Abū Hātim said: His status (is) truthfulness (sidq), and in his hadīth (there is) some idtirāb (inconsistency), and I do not know anyone from the companions of Makhūl more versed in fiqh than him nor more reliable than him.

Ibn ‘Adī said: And Sulaymān ibn Mūsā (is) a jurist (faqīh) (and) narrator (rāwī). The trustworthy (narrators) narrated from him, and he is one of the scholars of the people of al-Shām, and he narrated ahādīth which he is alone in narrating, no one else narrates them, and he is in my view thabt (reliable/precise) sadūq (truthful) (See al-Tahdhīb of Ibn Hajr)

‘Adhīm al-Ābādī said: “And the statement of al-Nasā’ī (regarding Sulaymān): “(He is) not strong” (is) an unexplained criticism (jarh) and it does not impugn one whose uprightness (‘adālah) has been established, as has been established in its place.

As for the statement of Abū Hātim: “His status (is) truthfulness, in his hadīth (there is) some inconsistency,” it does not indicate except that he (is) light in preservation/precision (dabt), so the utmost extent and end of the matter is that his hadīth would be hasan (good) in itself, and it shares with the Sahīh (authentic) in (being used as) proof, so there is no defect in it…” (Awn al-Ma’būd 2/203)]

Points of benefit from the scholars:

  • Al-San’ānī commenting on the hadīth of Wā’il in Bulūgh al-Marām said: The hadīth is evidence of the legitimacy of the aforementioned placement (of the hands) in prayer, and its position is on the chest, as stated in this hadīth. (Sharh Bulūgh al-Marām 1/284)
  • Al-‘Adhīm al-Abādī said: The mursal narration of Tawūs, and the ahadīth of Halb and Wā’il bin Hujr are evidence of the desirability of placing the hands on the chest, and this is the truth. As for placing the hands below the navel or above the navel then there is no hadīth that has been proven from the Prophet (ﷺ).(‘Awn al-Ma’būd 2/205)
  • Al-Albānī said: To place them on the chest is what is proven in the Sunnah, and all that is contrary to that is either weak or totally baseless. (Sifat al-Salāh pg. 88)
  • Al-Marwazī said in al-Masā’il pg. 222: Ishāq (ibn Rahawayh) used to pray witr with us… he would raise his hands in qunūt, and make qunūt before rukū’ and he would place his hands on his breast or just under his breast. (Al-Irwā of Al-Albānī 2/71)
  • Muhammad al-Bazmūl said: The location of the hands is on the chest, above the breasts. This is what is Sahīh from the narrations of the Prophet (ﷺ). (Sharh Sifat al-Salāh pg. 162)
  • Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr said: Shāfi’ī said: (place them) at the chest. And it was narrated from ‘Alī that he would place them on the chest. [He then mentioned the narration of Tawūs]. (The placing of the hands below the navel) was narrated from Alī, Abū Hurayrah and al-Nakhāī – (however) this was not (authentically) proven from them. (Al-Tamhīd 12/420)
  • Ibn Hajr said: Ibn Khuzaymah narrated from the hadīth that he (ﷺ) “placed them on his chest”, and Al -Bazzārs (wording) – “near his chest”, and Ahmad reports a similar hadīth.  And in Zawāid al-Musnad is the hadīth of ‘Alī that he placed them below the navel and its chain of transmission is weak. (Al-Fath 2/224)
  • Al-Mubārakfūrī said: Section 2: In mentioning what is adhered to by those who believe in placing the hands above the navel: I have not come across a hadīth which is marfū [elevated to the Prophet (ﷺ)] that supports this position. Yes, there is the narration of ʿAlī which indicates this, as reported by Abū Dāwūd in his ‘Sunan’ from Jarīr ad-Dabbi who said, ‘I saw ʿAlī grasping his left wrist with his right hand above the navel.’

    I say: this isnād is sahīh or hasan, but this is the action of ʿAlī and is not marfu’ [i.e. attributed to the Prophet (ﷺ)]. Also the clear meaning of his saying, ‘above the navel’ is a place raised from the navel, meaning, upon the chest or near the chest, as occurs in the hadīth of Wā’il ibn Hujr and the hadīth of Halb al-Tāi’ī and the mursal narration of Tawūs, and this three ahadīth will follow [these are hadīth 1,2,3 mentioned above]. And this interpretation is supported by his (i.e. ‘Alīs) tafsīr of His saying, “wanhar” (Sūrah al-Kawthar:2) by placing the hands upon the chest in the prayer as has preceded [This narration of’ Alī can be found in the tafsīr of Ibn Jarīr al-Tabarī 18/632, sunān al-Kubrā of al-Bayhaqī #2332, al-Awsat of Ibn al-Mundhir 3/238]. (Al-Tuhfah 3/398)
  • Al-Mubārakfūrī said: ‘Section 3: In mentioning what is adhered to by those who believe in placing the hands on the chest: These people used ahadīth as evidence… ‘

    Including: The narration of Wā’il… is Sahīh as authenticated by Ibn Khuzaymah, as was made clear by ibn Sayyīd al-Nās in Sharh al-Tirmidhī…. Al-Shawkānī (also) said in Al-Nayl (al-Awtār) “Ibn Khuzaymah reported it and authenticated it”.

    And from the ahādīth that these scholars depend upon is the hadīth of Halb… [hadīth 2]… And the narrators of this hadīth are all trustworthy, and the isnād is linked…

    And the narration of Tawūs is considered mursal as Tawūs was a Tābi’ī, and its isnād is hasan. A mursal narration is considered proof with Abū Hanīfah, Mālik and Ahmad absolutely. And according to Shāfi’ī, it is a proof when supported by something that occurs via another route that builds upon the first route be it musnad or mursal. And this mursal narration is supported by the aforementioned hadīth of Wā’il and Halb. So deriving evidence from this to place the hands upon the chest in prayer is correct. (Al-Tuhfah 3/397-401, abridged and summarised).
  • Al-Mubārakfūrī said (in refuting those who reject these narrations due to slight differences in the wordings):

    And as for the wording of ibn Khuzaymah, ‘upon the chest’, and the wording of al-Bazzār, ‘near the chest’, then the first (narration) is stronger and takes precedence over the second for the reason that the first has support with the hadīth of Halb and the mursal narration of Tawūs, contrary to the second for it has no witnesses.

    Reconciling these narrations is also possible; scholars have reconciled them by stating that these narrations were reported regarding two different prayers, similar to the difference of the wording of the ahadīth that mention regarding the raising of the hands to the level of the shoulders or to the level of the ears [meaning that doing either one is permitted as the narrations were reported regarding different prayers].

    So the claim of some of the hanafīs that the narration of Wā’il is mudtarib (confused) is not to be paid any attention. (Slightly abridged, and paraphrased Al-Tuhfah 3/401-402)

When is an action or statement of a companion considered evidence? Sh. Al-Albānī and Sh. ‘Uthaymīn

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

The question:

What do you say about the companion’s statement: Is it evidence or not?  Or is there a specific detail?

The answer:

It is necessary to detail: If a companion said a statement in the presence of some companions and no one disagreed with him, then we can rest assured of this and use it as evidence.

But if there is no such evidence, and then there is nothing in the text of the Qur’ān or Sunnah that contradicts the statement, then we are also assured of it;  But we cannot give him the status of the Qur’ān and Sunnah, unless there are other people with him (in agreement). (Kitāb Durūs of Al-Albānī 15/18)

The question:

Is the action of the Companion considered a Sunnah from the sunnah of the Rightly Guided Caliphs or not?

The answer:

The saying of a companion is evidence if he is one of the people of knowledge and jurisprudence.  Because, as you know, if a Bedouin comes to the Prophet (ﷺ) and embraces Islām, then returns to his camel, then he is a companion, but he may be ignorant in many matters of knowledge.

However, if the companion is one of the jurists known for jurisprudence, then his statement is evidence under two conditions:

The first condition: It does not contradict the words of Allāh and His Messenger;  If it contradicts the words of Allāh and His Messenger, it’s obligatory to leave it and take what Allāh and His Messenger said.

Ibn Abbās said: Stones are about to rain down on you from the sky (as a punishment). I say: The Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) said, and you say: Abū Bakr and ‘Umar said! (Zād al-Ma’ād of Ibn al-Qayyim 2/182)

And Allāh said:

{فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ}

{Let those who oppose his command beware.} [Al-Nūr: 63] That is, regarding the command of the Messenger (ﷺ): {Lest a trial (fitnah) befall them or a painful punishment be inflicted on them} [Al-Nūr: 63]. Imām Ahmad said: Do you know what is meant by fitnah? It is Shirk (polytheism);  Perhaps if he rejects some of the Messenger’s (ﷺ) words, some deviation will fall into his heart and he will perish. We ask Allāh for well-being. (Ibn Battah Sunan al-Kubrā 1/260)

The second condition: That it does not contradict the statement of another companion.  If it contradicts the statement of another companion, the more correct opinion must be considered (i.e. investigated).  Because it is not the (sole) statement of one of them that is more worthy of acceptance than the other, but we have to look into what is more correct.

If one of those who differ is lesser than the other in matters of jurisprudence in Allāh’s religion, the more knowledgeable of them is given precedence, and this is what the Messenger (ﷺ) said: (You must adhere to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the Rightly Guided Caliphs), so he first gives priority to his Sunnah;  Because his Sunnah takes precedence over everything.

(Abridged, Kitāb Liqā’a al-Bāb al-Maftūh of Ibn ‘Uthaymīn 59/24)

The distance for one to be considered a traveller & a summary of licenses given to the traveller & the Sunnah prayers performed during a journey

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Question:

What is the distance by which a traveller may shorten his prayers? Is combining them permissible rather than shortening them?


Answer:

The distance in which it is permitted to shorten the prayers has been specified by some scholars as around 83 kilometers. Other scholars specified it to be whatever is customarily considered traveling, even if (the distance) did not reach 80 kilometers. And whatever the people consider not to be traveling, then it is not traveling even if it reached 100 kilometers.


The latter (opinion) is the opinion of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah and that is because Allāh did not define a specific distance by which shortening the prayers is allowed nor did the Prophet (ﷺ) specify an exact distance.

Anas ibn Mālik narrated:

“When the Prophet (ﷺ) went out for 3 miles or Farsakhs (a measure of distance) then he used to shorten the prayer and pray two Rak’ah.” (Sahīh Muslim 691)

The opinion of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah is closer to what is correct.

There is also no sin, whenever there is a difference in what is customarily considered traveling, if the person acts according to the statement of the specific, defined distance because some of the scholars of ijtihād (sincerely striving towards a correct verdict) have said it. So there is no problem, In shā Allāh. As long as the issue is left undefined, then acting in accordance to what is customarily considered travel is the correct opinion.

As for (the question), “Is combining (the prayers) permissible when shortening is allowed?” Then we say, “Combining (the prayers) is not associated with shortening. Rather, combining is associated with a need.” So whenever the person needs to combine whether he is traveling or not, then let him combine. For this, the people combine because of rain, which due to it; it would be a difficulty to return to the mosques. Also, the people combine if there is harsh, cold wind during the days of winter, which due to it, it would be a difficulty to go out to the mosques. He combines if he fears losing his wealth/property or (fears) any harm to it, or whatever is similar to that – the person combines (his prayers). It is reported in Sahīh Muslim from ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās that he said:

“The Prophet (ﷺ) combined between Dhuhr and ‘Asr, and between Maghrib and Ishā not due to any fear nor rain.” (Sahīh Muslim 705)

They asked, “Why did he do this?” He said that he did so in order not to cause any hardship upon his Ummah. Meaning, he did not want to place any hardship that would make one leave the congregation.

This is the condition – whenever the person finds a hardship which would lead him to leave off the congregation, then it is permissible for him to combine. If there is no hardship upon him, then he doesn’t combine. However, difficulty is expected when traveling which would lead to leaving the congregation. If this is so, then it is permissible for the traveler to combine whether he was in the middle of his journey or has stopped to reside (at his destination). If he is in the middle of his journey, then combining is preferable and if he has stopped traveling (reached his destination) then not combining is preferable.

The exception to this is when a person is residing (reached a destination) in a land where the congregation is established, then it is obligatory to attend the congregation. In that case, he would neither combine nor shorten (his prayers). However, if he missed the congregation, then he shortens and does not combine, unless he needs to combine (for some reason such as difficulty).

(Fatawā arkān al-Islām of Shaykh al-‘Uthaymīn, Question #312)

Question:

What are the concessions granted when travelling?


Answer:

There are four concessions granted during travelling:


1) The prayers consisting of 4 Rak’ah are shortened to 2 Rak’ah.

2) Breaking the fast during Ramadān, making the same number of days up at a later date.

3) Wiping over the socks for 3 days and nights, starting from the first time the person wipes over them.

4) The recommendation for the Sunnah prayers of Dhuhr, Maghrib, and Ishā is lifted. As for the Sunnah prayer of Fajr and the rest of the optional prayers, performing those remains legislated and preferred.

So the traveler prays the night prayer, the Sunnah prayer of Fajr, the two Rak’ahs of Duhā, the Sunnah prayer after making Wudū, the two Rak’ah of entering the mosque, and the two Rak’ah of arriving from a journey – for indeed, from the Sunnah is that when a person arrives [at ones hometown] from a journey, before he enters his house, he first begins with the masjid, entering it and praying two Rak’ahs in it. (Sahīh Bukhārī 4418 and Sahīh Muslim 2769)

Likewise, the remainder of the optional prayers remain legislated with regards to the traveler except for what I have previously said, and they are: the Sunnah prayers of Dhuhr, Maghrib, and Ishā because the Prophet (ﷺ) did not to pray these three sunnah prayers (while traveling).

(Fatawā arkān al-Islām of Shaykh al-‘Uthaymīn, Question #315)

Is it better to do istinjā or istijmār?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Anas bin Mālik narrated:

انَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَدْخُلُ الْخَلاَءَ فَأَحْمِلُ أَنَا وَغُلاَمٌ نَحْوِي إِدَاوَةً مِنْ مَاءٍ وَعَنَزَةً فَيَسْتَنْجِي بِالْمَاءِ

When the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) entered the khalā (i.e. privy), I and another boy like me (i.e. close in age) would carry a small water skin and a small spear. He would make istinjā – clean himself with water. (Sahīh Muslim 271)



Ibn Mulaqqin said:

The doctrine of the majority of the predecessors (salaf) and the successors (khalaf), and upon which the imāms of verdicts (fatwas) from the people of the regions agreed upon;

It is better to combine water and stone, to precede with stone and then use water – so that the impurity is reduced and touching (the impurity) with ones hand is lessened, and is better in cleanliness.

If one wants to limit himself to one of them, then water is better because it removes the impurity itself and its traces, and the stone removes the impurity itself but not the traces, but one is pardoned in their own right and prayer with it is valid as (the case) with other impurities.

(Al-‘Ilām Bi Fawāid ‘Umdatul-Ahkām 1/487)

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 then the night prayer.” (Qiyām al-Layl of Marwazī pg. 225)

Abū Dawūd narrated: It was said to (Imām) Ahmad, while I was listening: Should Qiyām, meaning the Tarāwīh prayer be delayed until the last part of the night? 

He said: “No, the Sunnah of the Muslims is more beloved to me.” (Qiyām al-Layl of Marwazī pg. 225)

Shaykh al-Islām ibn Taymiyyah said: The Sunnah of the Tarāwīh prayer is that it is to be prayed after the ‘Ishā prayer, as agreed upon by the salaf and the great imāms. (Majmū’ 21/119)

Shaykh Al-Albānī was asked:

Questioner: What is happening now, Sheikh, in the last ten nights of Ramadān, they divide the night prayer in the beginning of the night and at the end, and this has become a continuous practice?


Shaykh: (This is a) an innovation (Bid’ah).


Questioner: Does this mean that the situation (of the night prayer) remains as it was before the (last) ten nights?


Shaykh: Yes.

(Abridged, Silsilah al-Hudā wal-Nūr 719, #18)

Shaykh Al-Albānī was also asked regarding the difference between the Tarāwīh prayer, Tahajjud prayer and Qiyām al-Layl (the night prayer)…

He said: There is no praying twice in the night; Rather, these are multiple names (referring to the same prayer); Qiyām al-Layl (the night prayer), Tahajjud prayer, Tarāwīh prayer in Ramadān – all of these are names for the same prayer. For in the one night, the messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) – as the Mother of the Believers ‘Āishah said: “The Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) did not pray more than eleven rak’ahs in Ramadān or outside (of Ramadān).”

(Link to the fatwa: https://www.alathar.net/home/esound/index.php?op=codevi&coid=252303)

Arabic text

عِمْرَانُ بْنُ حُدَيْرٍ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ: أَرْسَلْتُ إِلَى الْحَسَنِ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ فَسَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ صَلَاةِ الْعِشَاءِ فِي رَمَضَانَ أَنُصَلِّي , ثُمَّ نَرْجِعُ إِلَى بُيُوتِنَا فَنَنَامُ , ثُمَّ نَعُودُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ؟ , فَأَبَى , قَالَ: «لَا , صَلَاةُ الْعِشَاءِ ثُمَّ الْقِيَامُ» أَبُو دَاوُدَ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ: قِيلَ لِأَحْمَدَ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ وَأَنَا أَسْمَعُ يُؤَخَّرُ الْقِيَامُ يَعْنِي التَّرَاوِيحَ إِلَى آخِرِ اللَّيْلِ؟ قَالَ: «لَا , سُنَّةُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ»

وقال كما في مجموع الفتاوى [ 23 /119]:”السنة في التراويح أن تصلى بعد العشاء الآخرة كما اتفق على ذلك السلف والأئمة “

[[السائل: ما يحدث الآن يا شيخ في رمضان في العشر الآواخر يقسمون الصلاة صلاة القيام في أول الليل وفي آخره وأصبح هذا يعني نظام دائم؟
العلامة الألباني: بدعة.
السائل: كيف يكون يعني أردنا أن نقيم السنة ونخفف عن الناس فكيف نفعل؟
العلامة الألباني:تُبَكِّرُونَ كما قال عمر والتي يؤخرونها أفضل، يعني هو أمر أُبي بن كعب
أن يقيم صلاة القيام بالناس بعد صلاة العشاء، ففعل و لما خرج يتحسس قال نعمت البدعة هذه والتي ينامون عنها أفضل.
السائل: يعني يبقى الحال على ما هو قبل العشر؟
العلامة الألباني: إي نعم.]]

السائل : في كمان سؤال نحن بنتعبك شوية
الشيخ : تفضل
السائل : صلاة التراويح لما أنا أصلي ثمان ركعات وبعدين الشفع والوتر المجموع كله بيكون احدى عشر
الشيخ : إي نعم
السائل : لما أنا أنام بعدها ، صلاة التهجد اللي هي بعد ما أصحى من النوم قبل الفجر هل هي هذا بتكون مشتقة غير التراويح وإلا هي قيام الليل وإلا إيش ؟
الشيخ : الله يهديك هذا هو سؤال صاحبك عبد الوهاب
السائل : نعم
الشيخ : قلنا له لا صلاة مرتين قيام ليل ما في إنما هي أسماء متعددة ، قيام ليل تهجد صلاة التراويح في رمضان كل هذه أسماء لمسمى واحد ففي الليلة الواحدة ما كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كما قالت أم المؤمنين عائشة ( ما كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يزيد في رمضان ولا في غيره على إحدى عشرة ركعة )
السائل : جزاك الله خيراً يا مولانا وبارك الله فيك
الشيخ : وفيك
السائل : في أخونا أحمد
الشيخ : يلا

What are the signs of Laylatul-Qadr (the Night of Decree)?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

1) In the narration of ‘Ubayy b. Ka’b:

أَنَّهَا تَطْلُعُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لاَ شُعَاعَ لَهَا

… on that day (the sun) would rise without having any rays. (Sahīh Muslim 762)

In a variant wording:

مِثْلَ الطَّسْتِ حتى ترتفعَ

… resembling a dish, until it becomes high. (Ibn Khuzaymah 2193. Declared Sahīh lighayrihi by Al-Albānī)

2) In the narration of Ibn ‘Abbās:

ليلةُ القدْرِ ليلةٌ سمِحَةٌ ، طَلِقَةٌ ، لا حارَّةٌ ولا بارِدَةٌ ، تُصبِحُ الشمسُ صبيحتَها ضَعيفةً حمْراءَ

Laylatul-Qadr is an easy and moderate night. It is neither hot nor cold. On the morning following it, the sun rises weak and reddish (Sahīh al-Jāmi’ of Al-Albānī 5475)

3) In the narration of Jābir:

لا يخرجُ شيطانُها حتَّى يُضيءَ فجرُها

The devils will not be able to come out until Fajr (Ibn Khuzaymah 2190. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

4) In the narration of Abū Hurayrah:

وإن الملائكةَ تلك الليلةَ أَكْثَرُ في الأرضِ من عَدَدِ الحَصَى

During that night, the angels on earth are more than the numbers of pebbles. (Ibn Khuzaymah 2194. Declared Hasan by Al-Albānī)

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 a hardship;  So when one of you performs the Witr prayer, he should perform two rak’ahs (afterwards), if he wakes up (he may pray them), otherwise they are (recorded) for him. (Ibn Khuzaymah 1106. Declared Sahīh by Shu’ayb al-Arnāūt, and Al-Albānī in al-Sahīhah 1993)

Hadīth 2.

Sa’d bin Hishām bin ‘Āmir narrated:I came to Ibn ‘Abbās and asked him about the Witr of the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ). Ibn ‘Abbās said: Should I not direct you to one who knows best amongst the people of the world about the Witr of the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ)? He said: Who is it? He (Ibn ‘Abbās) said: It is ‘Āishah. So go to her and ask her (about Witr) and then come to me and inform me about her answer that she would give you…

I said: Mother of the Believers, inform me about the Witr of the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ). She said: I used to prepare the siwāk for him and water for his ablution, and Allāh would wake him to the extent that He wished during the night. He would use the siwāk, and perform ablution, and would offer nine rak’ahs, and would not sit but in the eighth one and would remember Allāh and praise Him, say salāh upon the Prophet (ﷺ), and supplicate to Him, then he would get up without uttering the taslīm and pray the ninth rak’ah. He would then sit, remember and praise Him, say salāh upon the Prophet (ﷺ) and supplicate to Him and then utter a taslīm loud enough for us to hear. He would then pray two rak’ahs sitting after uttering the taslīm, and that made a total of eleven rak’ahs. O my son, but when the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) grew old and carried more weight, he observed Witr of seven Rak’ah, doing in the two rak’ahs as he had done before, and that made a total of nine Rak’ah. (Sahīh Muslim 746)

Hadīth 3.

Umm Salamah narrated:

أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ يُصَلِّي بَعْدَ الْوِتْرِ رَكْعَتَيْنِ، وَهُوَ جَالِسٌ

The Prophet would pray two Rak’ah after Al-Witr whilst sitting down (Ibn Mājah 1195. Al-Tirmidhī 471. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

Hadīth 4.

Abū Umāmah narrated:

كان يُصلِّي رَكعتَينِ بعدَ الوِترِ وهو جالسٌ، يَقرَأُ فيهما بـ: {إِذَا زُلْزِلَتْ} [الزلزلة: 1]، و{قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ} [الكافرون: 1]

The Prophet (ﷺ) would pray two Rak’ah after Al-Witr whilst sitting down, reciting in them: Sūrah al-Zalzalah and Al-Kāfirūn. (Tuhfah al-Ahwadhī 5/129. Declared Hasan by Shu’ayb al-Arnāūt in his checking of Zād al-Ma’ād 1/322. Authenticated by Al-Albānī in Qiyām Tarawīh)

Summary:

  • In the narration of Āishah, the Prophet (ﷺ) performed witr in two ways; 1) He would pray 9 Rak’ah, sitting only in the 8th and 9th Rak’ah; in the 8th Rak’ah he would say the tashahhud and stand up for the 9th Rak’ah, in which he would say the tashahhud and the taslīm. He would then pray 2 Rak’ah whilst seated.                                                                                                   2) He would pray 7 Rak’ah in a similar manner; sitting on the 6th and the 7th, giving taslīm on the 7th. Then he would pray two Rak’ah after Witr.
  • Some scholars such as al-Nawawī held that praying these two Rak’ah after Witr was not a habitual practise by the Prophet (ﷺ), but something he performed a few times to show the permissibility of doing so. (See al-Tuhfah al-Ahwadhī 5/129 and Zād al-Ma’ād 2/260).
  • Ibn Hajr said: Other (people of knowledge) recommended it and ordered it, including: Kathīr bin Damrah and Khāled bin Ma’dān. In the narration of Sa’d bin Hishām there is evidence that he (ﷺ) regularly preserved them (i.e. the two Rak’ah) (Fath al-Bārī 9/179).
  • Al-Albānī held that these two Rak’ah are a sunnah and that it’s from virtue to pray them consistently – using Āishas report as evidence (narration of Sa’d bin Hishām). Furthermore the Prophet (ﷺ) recommended praying the two Rak’ah to the travellers as reported by Thawbān. Thus, his command agrees with his action. (See Sifat al-Salāh pg. 106 and Silsilah al-Hudā wal-Nūr 484, also see: Link to Sh. Albānīs fatwa).
  • Muhammad Bazmūl said: Ibn Khuzaymah (Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah (159/2) included the hadīth of Thawbān by saying: (Chapter mentioning the evidence that praying after Witr is permissible for everyone who wants to pray after it), and that the two rak’ahs that the Prophet used to pray after Witr were not specific to the Prophet (ﷺ) alone, and not for his nation, since the Prophet (ﷺ) commanded us to perform the two rak’ahs after the Witr prayer, as a matter of recommendation and virtue, not an obligation. (Sharh Sifat al-Salāh of Al-Albānī pg. 223)
  • Ibn al-Qayyim said in Zād al-Ma’ād 1/322: These (two Rak’ah after witr) was problematic for many people, as they thought it contradicted what he (ﷺ) said : “Make your last prayer at night Witr.”   Mālik denied these two rak’ahs, and Ahmad said: I do not do it, nor do I prevent those who do it. Others said: He performed the two rak’ahs, to clarify the permissibility of prayer after Witr, and his saying: “Make your last prayer at night Witr” is a (command of) recommendation (and not an obligation), and thus praying the two rak’ahs after it is permissible.

    The correct thing is to say: These two rak’ahs are part of the Sunnah and complement the Witr prayer, for the Witr prayer is an independent act of worship – especially if it is said that it is obligatory; so the two rak’ahs are performed after it, which are similar to the Sunnah of Maghrib, which is the Witr of the day, and the two rak’ahs after it are a complement to it. Likewise, the two rak’ahs after the Witr of the night complement it.
  • Shaykh Al-Albānī said: these two Rak’ah should be performed seated in accordance to the sunnah. Ibn Hajr said:al-Hasan (al-Basrī) would pray them seated. (Albānis fatawā: Link to Sh. Albānīs fatwa, see also Fath al-Bārī 9/179)

Are wedding rings permitted in Islām? – Sh. ‘Uthaymīn

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

The Prophet (ﷺ) said:

إِنَّ الرُّقَى وَالتَّمَائِمَ وَالتِّوَلَةَ شِرْكٌ

Indeed, Ruqā, Tamīmah, and Tiwalah are Shirk (polytheism). (Abū Dawūd 3883. Declared Sahīh by Al-Albānī)

Shaykh Uthaymīn said:

Ruqā is the plural of Ruqyah which means incantation (recitation). Here it refers to Ruqyāh with which is not approved in the Sharī’ah (i.e. those that involve Shirk).

Tamāim (amulets) is the plural of Tamīmah – it is called so as they assume that it will protect against evil eye.

Tiwalah is something they hang around the husband, claiming that it makes the wife endear to the husband and the husband to the wife, and this is shirk;  Because it is neither legislated (in the sharī’ah) nor (is it) a preordained reason for love. An example of such is the dublah.

The dublah is a ring that is bought at the time of marriage and placed in the husband’s hand (i.e. finger), and if the husband removes it;  The woman says that he does not love her. They believe that it brings benefit and averts harm, and they say: As long as it is in the husband’s hand;  It means that the relationship between them is strong and vice versa.

If this intention exists then it is minor shirk, and if this intention is not present – which is far from possible-;  then it is from imitating the Christians, as it was taken from them.

And if it is (made of) gold, in the case of the man, there is a third prohibition, which is wearing gold. 

Thus, it is either shirk, or imitation of Christians, or prohibition of its nature if it is for men.

[the above] may fall under minor shirk or major shirk depending on the intention of the person; if one wears it thinking that love is caused by Allāh then it’s minor shirk. But if he believes that it has an impact on its own, then it is major shirk.

(Abridged and slightly paraphrased, Qawl al-Mufīd, Sharh Kitāb al-Tawhīd 1/179-183)