What is the Description of the Night-Prayer in the Last 10 Nights
Question & Answers with Shaykh Ubayd ibn Abdullah al-Jaabiree
Our Shaykh, May Allah preserve you, most of the questions that have come to us revolve around the description of the night-prayer in these ten blessed nights, and ask about the method of praying them.
Some people pray with the Imam straight after Ishaa only and some delay the salah i.e. they pray with the Imam in the last part of the night and some divide the salah between the taraaweeh and the qiyaam. Is this permissible? And what guidance do you give in regards to this?
Barakallahu Feekum our Shaykh.
And is it permissible to increase the number of rakats to more than 11?
Asalaamu-Alaikum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.
All praise is for Allah, may the peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his companions. And to proceed, I ask Allah the Most Generous, Lord of the Magnificent Throne, that Allah makes us all from those who Allah frees from the hellfire this month. And that Allah allows us and you all to complete the fasting and the standing and that He aids us upon this and that He accepts it from us.
It was from the guidance of the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) that when the last ten nights entered He would tighten his waist belt and make his night come alive [i.e. due to an increase in worship] and He would wake His family. And the meaning of shadda mehzarahu is that he forsaked his bed and left off relations with his family. And the Itiqaaf is from the sunnan of these ten days. And if this understood then I move on to the matters that are brought forth in question.
It is not from the sunnah of the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), nor of his rightly guided caliphs, and nor from the actions of the Imams from the blessed generations who were close to the time of the Prophethood, to perform salatul-taraweeh and salatul-at-tahajuud [i.e. in one night]. Rather they only used to perform the prayer once. And what indicates this is;
Firstly, that the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) stood in prayer with the Muslims in the night and the narrator mentions, “Up until we nearly missed the success (falaah).” And it was said, “What is the success?” He said, “The Suhoor.” They said, “If only you were to lead us in prayer for the rest of our night O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “Whoever stands in prayer with the Imam up until he leaves, it is as if he has stood his entire night in prayer” or “has prayed the entire night.” And the affair in this regard is vast.
Secondly, that when Umar ibn al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) gathered the people [in congregational night prayer] – whereas they used to pray separately [in groups] in the time of the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), in the time of Abu Bakr Siddique (May Allah be pleased with him), and in the beginning of the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him), so a man would pray on his own, or he would pray with another person or he would pray with two other people, and the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) prayed with the people a few nights then after that He left them and said “Verily, I fear it may become obligatory upon you,” the [affair] remained [like this] as I have mentioned to you – and then Umar (May Allah be pleased with him), decided to gather the people [in congregation] behind one Imaam [reciter]. So he consulted whomever he consulted from the companions and they approved. So that night passed whilst they prayed behind their [appointed] reciter. And Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said, “Blessed is this innovation and that prayer [later in the night] for which [they prepare] with by sleep is better.”
And his statement ‘blessed is this innovation’ this is in regards to the linguistic [meaning] and it is not appropriate to label the gathering behind one Imam for salah whether referring to it as taraweeh or tahajuud, it is not correct to call it an innovation because the foundation [for this act] is legislated and the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) did it. But He left it fearing it may become obligatory upon his ummah.
So his statement (May Allah be pleased with him), ‘blessed is this innovation’ can bear two matters. The first of them, perhaps he replied to the one who disapproved of this action. And I have not come across [any proof of] this. The second one is as I have mentioned [previously] i.e. it is used with a linguistic meaning only.
That which I see and what I direct you with is firstly, that the people have a choice between praying straight after Ishaa behind the Imam and they prolong the prayer up until half the night or the third of the night. Or secondly, that they delay the prayer up until half the night then they pray that which they are able, 11 rakats or 13 rakats, because the way of the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) was between these two. So if one hour remains until fajr or less than an hour then they should stop.
Thirdly, it is not permissible to label the people’s division of the night prayer in Ramadaan into two parts, taraweeh and tahajuud, it is not permissible that it is labelled an innovation because masses of the Imams of the Muslims traversed upon this and so it is not permissible to label it as an innovation. To do so would be an injustice and an error. However, to suffice with one salah [congregation] in the last ten days or in all of Ramadaan is more befitting and superior. And I have preceded with the statement of Umar (May Allah be pleased with him), and I bring to your attention that verily the Messenger of Allah as is reported by His wife as-Siddeeqah daughter of as-Siddeeq, (May Allah be pleased with them both), that [praying] through all of the night he ended with the odd-prayer [witr], from the beginning of the night, the middle of the night and [to its] end, then he concluded with the odd-prayer [witr] at the time of early morning.
This is in connection with the number of rakats. I mentioned previously to you that the way of the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) was between 11 rakats or 13 rakats and this is authentically reported upon by as-Siddeeqah bint as-Siddeeq, and from her father (May Allah be pleased with them), both this and that, and that He would not increase upon it, neither in Ramadaan and nor outside of Ramadaan. But the verifiers [al-muhaqqiqoon] from the Imams of Islam, as is reported by Shaykh ul-Islam ibn Taymiyyah and other than him, say that they can increase upon that. So if they shortened their recitation they would increase in their raka’aat and if they lengthened their recitation, they would decrease their raka’aat.
And what is agreed upon between the muhaqiqeen, as I have previously mentioned, is that sufficing with what the Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) did and that is to only do 11 rakat or 13 rakat is more befitting. And the proof upon increasing is His statement (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), that “the night prayer is two units and two units” [i.e.in units of two rakats each]. So if one of you fears that the morning is drawing near then he should complete one on top of what he has prayed.” His statement ‘two units, two units’ to the end of the hadeeth is a proof that there is no restriction on increasing 20 rakats, 23 or 15.
But it is obligatory upon the Imams of the Muslims that they should not rush in their recitation, like the haste of reciting poetry. And they should not hasten and speed through their rakat as if pecking. Rather it is obligatory upon them to recite calmly and have tranquillity with the actions of salah, from the ruk’u, and rising from it and the prostration and to rise from it ensuring straightness [after rising], and the sitting between the two prostrations and other than that. And it is not obligatory to make it binding to pray 20 rakats or to recite a juzz from the Qur’an. They have made it binding upon themselves that which Allah (all praise be to Him) did not make binding upon them.
So the middle path and not to go into extremes in the non-obligatory acts of worship is required. Ibn Masud (May Allah be pleased with him), was questioned or a man said to him, “Verily I recited last night al-Mufassal [Surat al-Hujurat to the end of the Qu’ran].” Ibn Masud (May Allah be pleased with him) replied “This is rushing like the haste of reciting poetry.” So how will it be if Ibn Masud (May Allah be pleased with him), was to come across the salah of many of the Imams of the masajid in the taraweeh prayers? He would have said ‘this is rushing like the haste of reciting poetry’ and ‘they are pecking like the pecking of a crow.’ And singing in melody in at-takbeer, at-tasmih, at-tahmeed and at-tasleem and to prolong in supplication. I don’t know what he would have said (may Allaah be pleased with him)!
I do not generalise [this observation] but I say and repeat, [this is done by many] except those whom Allah has mercy upon.
This is what Allah the Most High has made easy regarding the answer to this question.
Translated by Abu Idrees Muhammad ibn Aslam
