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The Increase over Eleven Rak`ahs
Author : Mufti Mohammad Al-Shurman
Date Added : 22-02-2024

The Increase over Eleven Rak`ahs 

 

Discussion of the Evidence of Those Who Prohibit Increasing the Number of Taraweeh Prayers beyond Eleven Rak'ahs

 

 

All praise is due to Allah, we praise Him and seek His help and forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our actions. Peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad, his family and all his companions.

 

There has been much discussion about the number of rak'ahs (units of prayer) in Tarawih prayer during Ramadan. Many people accuse others of violating the Sunnah by praying more than eleven rak'ahs, including the Witr prayer. However, according to the reliable opinion of the four Imams of Islamic Jurisprudence (Imam AbuHanifa, Imam Malik, Imam As-Shafi'i, and Imam Ahmed ibn Hanbal) the number of rak'ahs for Tarawih is twenty. Nevertheless, the Maliki school of thought holds that the number of rak'ahs is thirty-six, excluding the Witr prayer. (Here are some references for these opinions: Al-Mabsut by Al-Sarakhsi, Vol.2/P.145 Sharh Al-Zarqani on Muwatta Malik by Al-Zarqani, Vol.1/P.420 Al-Majmu' by Al-Nawawi, Vol.4/P.31 Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudamah, Vol.1/P.457).

 

Some Hanafi scholars, such as Ibn al-Humam, have differed on this issue. Ibn al-Humam stated that the Sunnah regarding Tarawih prayer is to pray eleven rak'ahs (Fateh Al-Qhadeer by Ibn Al-Humam, Vol.1/P.468). He based this opinion on the hadith narrated by Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) when Abu Salama ibn Abd al-Rahman asked her about the Prophet's (peace be upon him) prayer in Ramadan. She replied, "He did not pray more than eleven rak'ahs in Ramadan or in any other month. He would pray four rak'ahs, and do not ask about their beauty and length, then he would pray four rak'ahs, and do not ask about their beauty and length, then he would pray three rak'ahs." (Sahih al-Bukhari 3/45, hadith 2013).

 

Responses of Scholars to the Hadith of Aisha:

 

Scholars have responded to the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) in a number of ways:

1. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) was reporting what she had seen of the Prophet's (peace be upon him) usual practice. As stated in Mar'at al-Mafatih Sharh Mishkat al-Masabih (Vol. 4/P. 171), Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) intended to describe his usual and most frequent practice, even though he may have sometimes prayed more than that.

 

2. Some scholars have mentioned this hadith in the context of discussing the night prayer (tahajjud). For example, Imam Bukhari included it in his book "Sahih al-Bukhari" in the chapter on "Encouraging the Prophet (peace be upon him) to pray at night and perform voluntary prayers without making them obligatory.

 

3. There is another hadith, although it is weak, that can be used as a reference, narrated by Ibn Abi Shaybah from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both): "The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to pray twenty rak'ahs and the Witr prayer in Ramadan." (Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, Vol.2/P.164, hadith 7692, Book of Voluntary Prayer. This hadith was considered weak by Al-Zarqani in Sharh Al-Zarqani on Muwatta Malik (Vol.1/P.431), and its weakness is attributed to Abu Shaybah Ibrahim ibn Uthman, who is considered weak. See Nayl al-Awtar by Al-Shawkani (Vol.3/P.66)).

 

4. It is well-known that Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) gathered the people behind Ubayy ibn Ka'b (may Allah be pleased with him) to pray twenty rak'ahs after they had been praying in different groups. He said, "What an excellent innovation this is!" He meant the innovation of gathering behind one imam, not specifically praying twenty rak'ahs.

 

It is possible that Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) also intended to specify the number of rak'ahs. This is because the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not specify a number for the night prayer (qiyam). As narrated by al-Sa'ib ibn Yazid, "During the time of Umar ibn al-Khattab, they used to pray twenty rak'ahs in Ramadan. They would recite long surahs (one hundred verses and more), and in the time of Uthman, they would lean on their sticks from the intensity of standing." (Sahih al-Bukhari Vol.3/P.45, hadith 2013). This hadith is sahih (authentic) according to al-Nawawi in al-Majmu' (Vol.4/P.32).

 

5. Many scholars have agreed to accept the (pronouncements) of a single companion on certain conditions. (See: Ibn al-Laham, al-Mukhtaṣar fi Uṣūl al-Fiqh (Vol.1/p.161), al-Amidi, al-Iḥkām (Vol.4/P.149), and Khalaf, ʿIlm Uṣūl al-Fiqh (95)). A stronger evidence on this point is the consensus that occurred during the time of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) where he gathered the people behind one imam to pray twenty rak'ahs, and the nation accepted this command. It is known that Umar and all the companions were the most committed people to the Sunnah. If they were not sure of the permissibility of what was done during the time of Umar, they would have been the most opposed to it. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Stick to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly-guided caliphs who will come after me. Bite onto it with your molar teeth." (Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol. 1/P.15, hadith 42, Book of Faith, Virtues of the Companions and Knowledge, Chapter on Following the Sunnah of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs).

 

Sheikh Khallaf said about this issue: "There is no disagreement that the pronouncements of a companion on matters that cannot be grasped by opinion or reason is a proof upon the Muslims, because it must have been said based on what he heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).....There is also no disagreement that the pronouncements of a companion who is not known to have any disagreeing companions is a proof upon the Muslims. This is because their agreement on a ruling of an incident with their closeness to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), their knowledge of the secrets of legislation, and their disagreement on many other incidents, is evidence that they relied on a decisive proof." (Khallaf, Science of Ususl Al-Fiqh, 95).

 

6-A companion asked the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) about the night prayer, and he said to him: "Pray the night prayer in pairs." Narrated by Nafi', from Abdullah ibn Umar, who said: The night prayer consists of pairs and when you see the approach of dawn, make this number odd by one rak'ah. It was said to Ibn 'Umar: What does the (word) pair imply? He said: (It means) that salutation is uttered after every two rak'ahs." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol.1/P.102, hadith 472, Book of Prayer, Chapter on Study Circles and Sitting in the Mosque).

 

The evidence:

 

The hadith explicitly indicates that the night prayer is prayed two rak'ahs at a time, in pairs, and that it does not have a specific number that cannot be contradicted.

 

7-Narrated by Amr ibn Absah al-Salami: I said: O Messenger of Allah, which part of the night is best for prayer? He said: "The latter part of the night. Pray as much as you wish, for the prayer is witnessed and recorded until you pray the dawn prayer." (Sunan Abi Dawud, Vol.2/P.25, hadith 1277, Book of Prayer, Chapter on Permission to Shorten the Prayer When the Sun is High).

 

The hadith explicitly indicates that the night prayer is not limited to a specific number, but rather it is up to the person's motivation and energy.

 

8. Aisha's (may Allah be pleased with her) hadith is contradicted by other narrations that say he used to pray thirteen at night. Al-Bukhari and others narrated 2/51, number 1138 from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), who said: "The prayer of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was thirteen rak'ahs," meaning at night. And it seems that there is no contradiction between these narrations that prove the increase of more than eleven rak'ahs. This is because each of the companions narrates what he saw himself.

 

9. The scholars said about the evidence of this hadith that this is from the actions of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and the reliable opinion is that the action does not indicate obligation (see: Al-Ahkam by Al-Amidi, 1/134).

 

And all perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

Is the father a Mahram (Non-marriageable) to his son`s mother-in-law?

The father is a non-Mahram (Marriageable) to his son`s mother-in-law, so it is impermissible for them to look at each other, or to have a seclusion (Khalwah).

What is the ruling on performing the night prayer (*qiyām al-layl*) between the first and second adhān of Fajr? And which is better: delaying the prayer until shortly before the Fajr adhān, or performing it earlier than that?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The time for night prayer (qiyām al-layl) begins after the Maghrib prayer and lasts until the second adhān of Fajr. The best time for it is the last third of the night, and best of all are the fourth and fifth sixths of the night. If the night is divided into two halves, the latter half is better.
Whoever intends to pray at night is encouraged to delay the Witr until he has prayed the night prayer. If he knows that he will not wake up, it is better for him to pray and perform Witr before sleeping, so that he does not miss both the night prayer and the Witr.
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vpl.1/p.462): “I say: The voluntary prayer of the night, that is, the absolute voluntary prayer (al-nafl al-muṭlaq), is better than the absolute voluntary prayer of the day, because of the report in Muslim: ‘The best prayer after the obligatory prayer is the night prayer.’ In another narration of his: ‘In the night there is an hour that no Muslim man meets while asking Allah for any good of this world and the next except that He gives it to him, and that is every night.’ It is also because the night is a time of heedlessness. I restricted the voluntary prayer to the absolute kind following the commentator, although what the ḥadīth and the underlying meaning require is that the night rawātib be preferred over the day rawātib, since the jurists preferred the two rakʿahs of Fajr over everything except Witr. The middle of the night is better than its two ends if it is divided into thirds, because heedlessness is greatest then and worship is hardest. If he wishes to pray during some third, the best is the fourth and fifth sixths, based on the ḥadīth in the two Ṣaḥīḥs: ‘The most beloved prayer to Allah the Exalted is the prayer of Dāwūd: he would sleep half the night, stand for a third of it, and sleep for a sixth.’ Then the latter part is better than the first if he divides it into two halves, because of the saying of Allah the Exalted: ‘And in the hours before dawn they would ask forgiveness’ [al-Dhāriyāt: 18], and the report of the two Shaykhs: ‘Our Lord, Blessed and Exalted, descends,’ meaning His command descends, ‘to the lowest heaven when the last third of the night remains, and says: Who calls upon Me, that I may answer him? Who asks of Me, that I may give him? Who seeks My forgiveness, that I may forgive him?’”
It is also stated in ʿUmdat al-Sālik (p. 60): “It is better to perform it [the Witr] immediately after the sunnah of ʿIshāʾ, unless he has tahajjud, in which case it is better to delay it so that he performs Witr after it. If he performs Witr and then wishes to pray tahajjud, he prays two rakʿahs at a time and does not repeat the Witr, nor does he need to cancel it with a single rakʿah before the tahajjud. It is recommended that he not deliberately pray after it.”
Qiyām al-layl is a term applied to any prayer performed at night. Tahajjud, on the other hand, refers to the night prayer that follows sleep, whether it is prayed after Maghrib or after ʿIshāʾ, or the prayer performed after ʿIshāʾ without sleep. On this basis, the Witr is also called tahajjud, since it is only prayed after ʿIshāʾ.
It is stated in al-Majmūʿ (Vol.4/p.84): “The sound position, as stated in al-Umm and al-Mukhtaṣar, is that the Witr is called tahajjud.”
It is stated in Nihāyat al-Zayn (Vol.1/p.114): “Among the absolute voluntary prayers is qiyām al-layl. If it is performed after sleep, even during the time of Maghrib and after having prayed ʿIshāʾ early (taqdīman), it is called tahajjud.”
And it is stated in Ḥāshiyat al-Bujayrimī ʿalā al-Khaṭīb (Vol.1/p.418): “His statement: ‘(the night prayer)’: the genitive construction (iḍāfah) carries the sense of fī, meaning a prayer in the night. His statement: ‘(it would be more fitting)’: the reason it is more fitting is that the night prayer includes both tahajjud and other prayers.” And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on the follower`s prayer if the Imam stands for a fifth rak`ah?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
If the Imam stands up for an extra unit (rak‘ah) of prayer out of forgetfulness, he must return to the sitting position as soon as he remembers, and he should perform the prostration of forgetfulness (Sujud al-Sahw). It is the duty of the congregants (Ma’mumin) behind him to remind him. However, if the Imam is in a state of doubt regarding the extra unit (and not certainty), it is not permissible for him to return.
 
As for the congregants: anyone who is certain that the Imam has stood for an extra unit is forbidden from following him. In this case, the follower has two choices: either intend to separate from the Imam (Mufaraqah) and finish the prayer alone, or wait for the Imam in the sitting position and perform the final salams with him—the latter being the preferred option. If a follower knowingly follows the Imam into an extra unit, their prayer becomes invalid. However, if a follower is in doubt and not certain of the mistake, they must continue following the Imam, as the Imam was appointed to be followed.
 
It is stated in Al-Majmu’ (Vol.4/P.145): 'If [the Imam] stands for a fifth rak‘ah, the follower should not follow him, even if it is assumed that the Imam might have omitted a pillar from a previous unit; because if the reality is known, following him is impermissible since the follower has certainly completed their own prayer. Even if the follower had missed a previous unit (Masbuq) or was in doubt about performing a pillar like the Fatihah, and the Imam stood for the fifth, it is not permissible for the latecomer to follow him in it. This is because we know that this unit is not counted for the Imam and that he is mistaken in performing it.' And Allah the Exalted knows best.

What is the ruling on discharging one's zakāh obligation through the provision of a specific benefit (manfa‘ah) — such as performing a surgical operation for a patient, or providing housing to a tenant, and counting the value of this service as zakāh?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is obligatory to pay zakāh from the actual asset (‘ayn al-māl) upon which zakāh is due, except in the case of zakāh on trade goods ('urūḍ at-tijārah), which is paid based on their monetary value. In all cases, zakāh must be given in the form of tamlīk (a full transfer of ownership), based on the words of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic (which mean): "Zakāh expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy, and for those employed to collect [zakāh], and for bringing hearts together [for Islam], and for freeing captives [or slaves], and for those in debt, and for the cause of Allah, and for the [stranded] traveler — an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise" [at-Tawbah/60]. The letter "lām" (لِ) in this verse — as in "lil-fuqarā'" ("for the poor") — indicates possession/ownership (lām al-milk).
It is not permissible to fulfill one's zakāh obligation by providing a benefit or service (manfa‘ah) — such as housing, education, or medical treatment — in place of the zakāh itself. This is because zakāh must be paid as wealth (māl) that is transferred into the ownership of the poor recipient, whereas such services are intangible benefits that are not, in themselves, capable of being formally transferred in ownership (ghayr qābilah lit-tamlīk). And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

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