NIGHT
PRAYER DURING RAMADAN (AL-QIYAAM OR TARAWEEH), VIRTUES AND BENEFITS
ASSEMBLED
BY MALLAM ABBA ABANA, KUBWA, ABUJA, NIGERIA
http://variousislamicdawadocuments.blogspot.com
https://web.facebook.com/abba.abana
emails:gonidamgamiri@yahoo.com;
abba.abana@gmail.com
SUNDAY
6TH SHAABAN 1439 AH – 22ND APRIL 2018 CE
(Part
8 of 11: NIGHT PRAYER DURING RAMADAN (AL-QIYAAM OR TARAWEEH), VIRTUES AND
BENEFITS)
(NIGHT
PRAYER Part 2 of 2)
5.0 QUESTION
AND ANSWER SESSION
QUESTION[1]:
In Japan, only eight rakat Tarawih is followed. Can someone pray individually
the remaining 12 rakat at the mosque or home or is it also right to perform 8
rakat only?
ANSWER: Regarding the Salah, offered after the Isha Salah
(i.e. Tarawih), in Ramadan, the right opinion is that one can offer as many
number of rakats as one wishes because there is no fixed limit on it.
i. NARRATED
NAFI
Ibn 'Umar said, "While the prophet was on the pulpit, a
man asked him how to offer the night prayers. He replied, ' Pray two Rakat at a
time and then two and then two and so on, and if you are afraid of the dawn
(the approach of the time of the Fajr prayer) pray one Rakat and that will be
the witr for all the Rakat which you have offered." Ibn 'Umar Said,
"The last Rakat of the night prayer should be odd, for the prophet ordered
it to be so. ( Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 1, Hadith No. 461).
ii. NARRATED
AMR IBN ANBASAH AS-SULAMI
I asked: "Apostle of Allah, in which part of the night
the supplication is more likely to be accepted? He Replied: In the last part:
Pray as much as you like, for the prayer is attended by the angels and it is
recorded till you offer the dawn prayer. (Abu Dawood, Vol. 1, Hadith No. 1272).
We also find that some of the Taba'een used to pray 20 and
some used to pray 36 Rakats in Tarawih. (Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaiba, Vol.2, Pages
165 & 166). However, it is preferable to offer it the way prophet Muhammad
(Pbuh) did. He used to offer 11 or 13 Rakats, as mentioned in the following
Hadith.
iii. NARRATED
ABU SALMA BIN ABDUR RAHMAN
I asked Aisha, "How is the prayer of Allah's Apostle
during the month of Ramadan." She said, "Allah's Apostle never
exceeded eleven Rakats in Ramadan or in other months; he used to offer four
Rakats do not ask me about their beauty and length, then four Rakats, do not
ask me about their beauty and length, and then three Rakat." Aisha further
said, " I said, ' O Allah's Apostle! Do you sleep before offering the Witr
prayer?' He replied, 'O 'Aisha! My eyes sleep, but my heart remains awake!'
(Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 2, Hadith No. 1147). From all the above mentioned Hadith,
it is clear that there is no fixed limit for the Tarawih Prayer; therefore, one
should refrain from getting into any controversy in this regard. However, in
mosques, where eight congregational Rakats are offered, it is advisable not to
offer further 12 Rakats in congregation, thus avoiding any unwanted disputes
amongst the Muslims. For those who wish to offer more Rakats can very well do
so at their homes. Similarly, in mosques, where 20 congregational Rakats are
offered, it is advisable not to offer 8 Rakats in different congregation so
that there is no conflict among the Muslims.
6.0 NIGHT
PRAYER DURING RAMADAN (AL-QIYAAM OR TARAWEEH)[2]
Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to
encourage us to pray at night in Ramadaan, without making it obligatory. Then
he said, whoever prays at night in Ramadaan out of faith and the hope of reward,
all his previous sins will be forgiven. When the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) died, this is how things were (i.e., Taraaweeh
was not prayed in congregation), and this is how they remained during the
khilaafah of Abu Bakr (may Allaah be pleased with him), until the beginning of
the khilaafah of Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him).
Amr ibn Murrah al-Juhani said: A man from Qudaaah came to
the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and said, O
Messenger of Allaah! What do you think if I testify that there is no god except
Allaah, and that you, Muhammad, are His Messenger, and I pray the five daily
prayers, and fast in the month (of Ramadaan), and pray at night in Ramadaan,
and pay zakaah? The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
Whoever dies on that will be among the siddeeqeen (those who tell the truth)
and the martyrs.
6.1 PRAYING
QIYAAM IN CONGREGATION[3]
It is allowed to pray qiyaam in congregation, indeed it is
better than praying individually, because this is what the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) did himself and explained its virtues. Abu
Dharr (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: We fasted Ramadaan with the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and he did not
lead us in qiyaam at all until there were only seven days left, when he led us
in prayer until a third of the night had passed. When there were six days left,
he did not lead us in qiyaam. When there were five days left, he led us in
prayer until half the night had passed. I said, O Messenger of Allaah, I wish
that you had continued until the end of the night. He said, If a man prays with
the Imaam until he finishes, it will be counted as if he prayed the whole night.
When there were four nights left, he did not lead us in qiyaam. When there were
three nights left, he brought together his family, his wives and the people,
and led us in qiyaam until we were afraid that we would miss al-falaah. I
asked, What is al-falaah? He said, Suhoor. Then he did not lead us in qiyaam
for the rest of the month.
6.2 THE REASON
WHY THE PROPHET (PEACE AND BLESSINGS OF ALLAAH BE UPON HIM) DID NOT CONTINUALLY
LEAD THE PEOPLE IN PRAYING QIYAAM IN CONGREGATION
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did
not lead them in qiyaam for the rest of the month because he feared that it
would then become obligatory, and they would not be able to do it, as is stated
in the hadeeth of Aaishah reported in al-Saheehayn and elsewhere. Following the
death of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), that fear was
no longer a factor, because Allaah had completed the religion. The reason for
not praying qiyaam in congregation during Ramadaan no longer applied, and the
previous ruling, that congregational prayer is something prescribed in Islam,
remained in effect. So Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) revived the
practice, as is recorded in Saheeh al-Bukhaari and elsewhere.
6.3 WOMEN CAN
PRAY QIYAAM IN CONGREGATION
Women can attend the prayers too, as is stated in the
Hadeeth of Abu Dharr referred to above. Indeed, it is permissible to appoint an
imaam just for them, apart from the imaam of the men. It was proven that when
Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) gathered the people to pray qiyaam, he
appointed Ubayy ibn Kab to lead the men and Sulaymaan ibn Abi Hathmah to lead
the women. Arfajah al-Thaqafi said: Ali ibn Abi Taalib (may Allaah be pleased
with him) used to command the people to pray during the night in Ramadaan, and
he would appoint an imaam for the men and an imaam for the women. I was the
imaam for the women.
I say: this is fine in my view so long as the mosque is big
enough so that they will not disturb one another.
6.4 RECITING
QURAAN IN QIYAAM
As regards reciting from the Quraan during qiyaam, whether
in Ramadaan or at other times, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) did not set a limit or state what was too much or too little. His
recitation used to vary, sometimes it would be long, at other times short.
Sometimes in every rakah he would recite the equivalent of Yaa
ayyuhal-muzammil, which is twenty aayaat; sometimes he would recite the
equivalent of fifty aayaat. He used to say, Whoever prays at night and reads
one hundred aayaat will not be recorded as one of the negligent. According to
another hadeeth: & #147; and reads two hundred aayaat, will be recorded as
one of the devout and sincere believers.
When he was sick, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) recited the seven long soorahs in his night prayers, i.e.,
al-Baqarah, Aal Imraan, al-Nisaa, al-Maaidah, al-Anaam, al-Araaf and al-Tawbah.
In the account of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yamaan praying behind the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), in one rakah he recited
al-Baqarah, al-Nisa and Aal Imraan, and he recited them in a slow and measured
tone. It is proven with the soundest (most saheeh) of isnaads that when Umar
(may Allaah be pleased with him) appointed Ubayy ibn Kab to lead the people in
praying eleven rakahs in Ramadaan, Ubayy used to recite aayaat by the hundreds,
so that the people behind him would be leaning on sticks because the prayers
were so long, and they did not finish until just before Fajr.
It is also reported in a saheeh account that Umar called the
readers during Ramadaan, and told the fastest of them to recite thirty aayaat,
the moderate ones to recite twenty-five aayaat, and the slowest ones to recite
twenty aayaat.
However, is a person is praying qiyaam by himself, he can
make it as long as he wishes; if others agree with the imaam, he may also make
it as long as he wishes. The longer it is, the better, but a person should not
go to extremes and spend the whole night in qiyaam, except on rare occasions,
following the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) who said: The best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (Sallalahu Alaihi
wa Salaam). If a person is praying as an imaam, he should make it only as long
as is easy for the people behind him, because the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: If any of you leads the people in prayer, let him
make it short, because among them are the young and the old, the weak, and
those who have pressing needs. But if he is praying alone, let him make it as
long as he likes.
6.5 FOLLOWING
THE IMAAM UNTIL HE FINISHES TARAAWEEH
The most correct opinion is that the number of rakahs for
Taraaweeh is eleven, but I pray in a mosque where they do twenty one rakahs.
Can I leave the mosque after the tenth rakah, or is it better to complete the
twenty one rakahs with them?
It is better to stay with the imaam until he finishes, even
if he is doing more than eleven rakahs, because it is permissible to do the
extra rakahs, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
Whoever prays qiyaam with the imaam until he finishes, Allaah will record it as
if he prayed the whole night[4].
There is no doubt that adhering to the Sunnah of the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is better and brings more reward,
so long as it is done properly and without haste, but if it is the matter of a
choice between leaving the imaam because of the number of rakahs or going along
with the extra that he does, it is better to go along with him, because of the
ahaadeeth referred to above. At the same time, you should advise the imaam to
follow the Sunnah.
7.0 LAYLAT
AL-QADR AND ITS TIMING[5]
The best of its nights is Laylat al-Qadr, because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: Whoever prays at
night during Laylat al-Qadr {and manages to catch it} out of faith and the hope
of reward, all his previous sins will be forgiven.
According to the most correct opinion, it is the
twenty-seventh night of Ramadaan. Most of the ahaadeeth state this, such as the
hadeeth of Zurr ibn Hubaysh, who said: I heard Ubayy ibn Kab saying and it was
said to him that Abd-Allaah ibn Masood said: Whoever follows the Sunnah will
catch Laylat al-Qadr! Ubayy (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: May Allaah
have mercy on him, he did not want people to take it for granted and only stay
up to pray on one night. By the One besides Whom there is no other god, it is
in Ramadaan he was swearing without a doubt and by Allaah, I do know which
night it is. It is the night in which the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded us to pray (qiyaam). It is the night
the morning of which is the twenty seventh, and the sign of it is that the sun
rises on that morning white and without rays[6].
8.0 WHICH IS
BETTER DURING THE DAY IN RAMADAAN READING QURAAN OR PRAYING VOLUNTARY PRAYERS?
The Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) was to do a lot of different kinds of worship during Ramadaan.
Jibreel AS used to review the Quraan with him at night, and when Jibreel met
with him, he was more generous in charity than the blowing wind. He was the
most generous of people, and he was at his most generous in Ramadaan. At this
time he used to give more in charity and treat people even more kindly; he
would read more Quraan, pray more, recite more dhikr, and spend time in Itikaaf
(retreat). This is the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) in this aspect of this holy month.
As to whether it is better to read Quraan or to pray
voluntary prayers, this depends on people’s circumstances, and the true
evaluation of this is up to Allaah, because He knows all things[7].
A specific action may be better in the case of any given
individual, and another may be better for another individual, according to the
degree to which a particular action brings a person closer to Allaah. Some
people may be influenced more by naafil prayers and may focus on them and do
them properly, which will bring them closer to Allaah than other deeds might,
so in their case those deeds are better. And Allaah knows best.
8.1 TARAWEEH
IN JAMAA`AH
The Messenger of Allah (Sallalahu Alaihi wa Salaam) was the
first to establish the Sunnah of congregational, jamaa`ah prayer of Taraweeh in
the Masjid. Then he did not continue with the Sunnah for fear that it might be
made mandatory on the Ummah in Ramadan, and they might not be able to do it. In
the books of Bukhari and Muslim, 'Aishah (raa) has been reported as saying:
"The Messenger of Allah (Sallalahu Alaihi wa Salaam) observed Taraweeh
prayer in the Masjid one night and people prayed with him. He repeated the
following night and the number of participants grew. The companions congregated
the third and fourth night, but the Messenger did not show up. In the morning
he told them, "I saw what you did last night, but nothing prevented me
from joining you except my fear that it might be made mandatory on you in
Ramadan." This hadith is a clear indication that the Taraweeh in
congregation was not an innovation of 'Umar, the second Khalifah, despite his
saying to the contrary. For it has been related that: "Umar bin Al-Khattab
attended the Masjid at night in Ramadan and saw people praying individually in
every corner of the Masjid with a few in groups. He did not like the sight a
bit. 'Umar said, `I thought it would be better to gather these under one Imam'.
So, he combined them under 'Obayi bin Ka'ab and Tamimu Ad-Dari to alternate and
lead the believers in eleven raka'ats of night prayer. The next day `Umar was in
the Masjid which was full with Taraweeh prayers. He was delighted. He said:
`Well, this is the best Bid'ah (innovation).'" `Umar's use of the word
bid'ah in this report has been presented and unjustifiably cited as
justification for concocting up various so called good innovations. In truth,
the Khalifah 'Umar's act to gather the believers in Jama'ah is not bid'ah. For
it was the Messenger of Allah himself who started jama'ah by praying in
congregation the first and second day, then stopped only as he feared it would
become mandatory? After his death, the fear of Taraweeh becoming mandatory
(Fard) was not only remote, it was impossible. With the death of the Prophet
Muhammad (Sallalahu Alaihi wa Salaam), there will be no more revelation to
change any law or rule by abrogation.
9.0 ADDING
ANOTHER RAKAH TO THE IMAAMS WITR BECAUSE ONE WANTS TO PRAY SOME MORE
Some people, when they pray witr with the imaam and he says
salaam, they get up and do another rakah, because they want to do more prayers
before praying witr later in the night.
What is the ruling on this action? Is it considered to be
forsaking the prayer with the imaam?
We do not see anything wrong with this, and the ulama stated
that there is nothing wrong with doing this, so that his witr will be at the
end of the night. He will be considered to have prayed with the imaam until he
finished, because he stayed with him until he finished, and added another rakah
for a shar'i reason, which was so that he could pray witr later in the night.
There is nothing wrong with this, and it does not mean that he did not stay
with the imaam until he finished, but he did not finish with him he delayed it
a little longer[8].
9.1 RECITATION
DURING THREE RAKAHS OF WITR
It is Sunnah to recite Sabbih ismi Rabbika al-Alaa in the
first rakah, Qul Yaa ayyuhal-Kaafiroon in the second rakah, and Qul Huwa
Allaahu ahad in the third rakah. Sometimes Qul aoodhu bi Rabbil-Falaq and Qul
aoodhu bi Rabbil-Naas may be added as well.
It was reported in a saheeh report that the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) once recited one hundred aayaat of Soorat
al-Nisa in one rakah of witr.
9.2 DUAA
AL-QUNOOT
A person may also humble himself before Allaah by reciting
the duaa which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) taught
to his grandson al-Hasan ibn Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him), which is:
Allaahummahdinee fiman hadayta wa
aafinee fiman aafayta wa tawallanee fiman tawallayta wa baarik lee fimaa atayta
wa qinee sharra maa qadayt, fa innaka taqdee wa laa yuqdaa alayk. Wa innahu laa
yadhillu man waalayta wa laa yaizzu man aadayt. Tabaarakta Rabbanaa wa
taaalayt. Laa majaa minka illa ilayk
(O Allaah, guide me along with those whom You have guided,
pardon me along with those whom You have pardoned, be an ally to me along with
those whom You are an ally to, and bless for me that which You have bestowed.
Protect me from the evil You have decreed for verily You decree and none can
decree over You. For surety, he whom You show allegiance to is never abased and
he whom You take an enemy is never honored and mighty. O our Lord, Blessed and
Exalted are You. There is no refuge from You except with You).
Sometimes one may send blessings on the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), and there is nothing wrong with adding other
duaas that are known from the Sunnah. There is nothing wrong with reciting
Qunoot after rukoo, or with adding curses against the kuffaar, sending
blessings on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) or praying
for the Muslims in the second half of Ramadaan, because it is proven that the
imaam used to do this at the time of Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him). At
the end of the hadeeth of Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Ubayd al-Qaari mentioned above, it
says: They used to curse the kuffaar in the middle, saying,
Allaahumma qaatil al-kafarata
alladheena yasuddoona an sabeelik wa yukadhdhiboona rusulak wa laa yuminoona bi
wadik. Wa khaalif bayna kalimatihim wa alqi fi quloobihim al-rub wa alqi
alayhim rijzaka wa adhaabak ilaah al-haqq
(O Allaah, destroy the kuffaar who are trying to prevent
people from following Your path, who deny Your Messengers and who do not
believe in Your promise (the Day of Judgement). Make them disunited, fill their
hearts with terror and send Your wrath and punishment against them, O God of
Truth). Then he would send blessings on the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him), and pray for good for the Muslims as much as he could, and
seek forgiveness for the believers.
After he had finished cursing the kuffaar, sending blessings
on the Prophet, seeking forgiveness for the believing men and women and asking
for his own needs, he would say:
Allaahumma iyyaaka nabud wa laka
nusalli wa najud, wa ilayka nasaa wa nahfud, wa narju rahmataka rabbanaa wa
nakhaafu adhaabak al-jadd. Inna adhaabaka liman aadayta mulhaq
(O Allaah, You do we worship, to You do we pray and
prostrate, for Your sake we strive and toil. We place our hope in Your Mercy, O
our Lord, and we fear Your mighty punishment, for Your punishment will
certainly overtake the one whom You have taken as an enemy.Then he would say
Allaahu akbar and go down in sujood.
9.3 WHAT
SHOULD BE SAID AT THE END OF WITR
It is Sunnah to say at the end of witr (before or after the
salaam):
Allaahumma innee aoodhu bi ridaaka
min sakhatika wa bi muaafaatika min aqoobatika, wa aoodhu bika minka. La uhsee
thanaaan alayka, anta kamaa athnayta ala nafsik
(O Allaah, I seek refuge in Your good pleasure from Your
wrath, and in Your protection from Your punishment. I seek refuge with You from
You. I cannot praise You enough, and You are as You have praised Yourself.
When he gave salaam at the end of witr, he said:
Subhaan il-Malik il-Quddoos, subhaan il-Malik il-Quddoos,
subhaan il-Malik il-Quddoos
(Glory be to the Sovereign, the Most Holy), elongating the
syllables, and raising his voice the third time.
9.4 TWO RAKAHS
AFTER WITR[9]
A person may pray two rakahs after witr if he wishes,
because it is proven that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
did this. Indeed, he said, this travelling is exhausting and difficult, so
after any one of you prays witr, let him pray two rakahs. If he wakes up, this
is fine; otherwise these two rakahs will be counted for him.
It is Sunnah to recite Idha zulzilat al-ard and Qul yaa
ayyuhal-kaafiroon in these two rakahs.
To be continued
Part 9 of 11: I’tikaaf Ruling, Virtues And Benefits
[1] In Japan, only eight rakat Tarawih is followed asked by .-
G.A. Basheer, Bangalore, Islamic Research Foundation, FAQ.
[4] (reported by al-Nisaa'i and others. Sunan al-Nisaa'i,
Baab Qiyaam Shahr Ramadaan), and because the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: Prayer at night should be two by two (rakahs), and
when dawn approaches, pray one for witr. (Reported by the seven; this version
reported by al-Nisaa'i).
[6] In another report, this was attributed to the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). (Reported by Muslim and others).
[7] (From al-Jawaab al-Saheeh min Ahkaam Salaat al-Layl
wal-Taraaweeh, by Shaykh Abd al-Azeez ibn Baaz, p. 45).
[8] From al-Jawaab al-Saheeh min Ahkaam Salaat al-Layl
wal-Taraaweeh by Shaykh Abd al-Azeez ibn Baaz, p. 41
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