The Ruling on Delaying the 'Isha' Prayer and the Disappearance of the Twilight
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Question:
May Allah reward you. The Honorable Shaykh says: It is well known that people in these countries, and perhaps in some Islamic countries, pray the 'Isha' prayer after approximately an hour and a half have passed from the time of the Maghrib prayer. However, in our country, we pray 'Isha' after approximately half of that duration has passed. Is that permissible? They say that this duration is sufficient for the disappearance of the red twilight. Also, in our country, there are two main schools of jurisprudence, and yet they agree on this matter, meaning on this timing. Our question is: What is the cause of this great difference? And are there opinions in other schools of jurisprudence regarding determining the duration of the twilight's presence in the horizon?
Answer:
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) specified that the 'Isha' prayer is when the red twilight disappears. This is because twilight is of two kinds: white twilight, which is in the rays of the sun, and red twilight. When the red twilight disappears, the 'Isha' prayer becomes obligatory. Its time is expansive; the time for 'Isha' is expansive. The best time varies according to the people. If the people gather at the beginning of the time, they pray it at the beginning of the time. If the people delay, they pray it in the last third of the night; this is better. All of it in the night is better for one who does not find it difficult. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), regarding the 'Isha' prayer, would hasten if he saw them gathering, and would delay if he saw them delaying. He loved to delay, but he disliked to be a burden on his Ummah. The disappearance of the twilight varies according to the regions. The disappearance of the twilight in one place where it all disappears at the same time varies, just as the setting of the sun and the appearance of the crescent moon vary. This is according to the regions, and the astronomers know that. And this is seen by knowledge: if the twilight has disappeared, pray wherever you are. As long as the red twilight is present, do not pray.
May Allah reward you. The Honorable Shaykh says: It is well known that people in these countries, and perhaps in some Islamic countries, pray the 'Isha' prayer after approximately an hour and a half have passed from the time of the Maghrib prayer. However, in our country, we pray 'Isha' after approximately half of that duration has passed. Is that permissible? They say that this duration is sufficient for the disappearance of the red twilight. Also, in our country, there are two main schools of jurisprudence, and yet they agree on this matter, meaning on this timing. Our question is: What is the cause of this great difference? And are there opinions in other schools of jurisprudence regarding determining the duration of the twilight's presence in the horizon?
Answer:
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) specified that the 'Isha' prayer is when the red twilight disappears. This is because twilight is of two kinds: white twilight, which is in the rays of the sun, and red twilight. When the red twilight disappears, the 'Isha' prayer becomes obligatory. Its time is expansive; the time for 'Isha' is expansive. The best time varies according to the people. If the people gather at the beginning of the time, they pray it at the beginning of the time. If the people delay, they pray it in the last third of the night; this is better. All of it in the night is better for one who does not find it difficult. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), regarding the 'Isha' prayer, would hasten if he saw them gathering, and would delay if he saw them delaying. He loved to delay, but he disliked to be a burden on his Ummah. The disappearance of the twilight varies according to the regions. The disappearance of the twilight in one place where it all disappears at the same time varies, just as the setting of the sun and the appearance of the crescent moon vary. This is according to the regions, and the astronomers know that. And this is seen by knowledge: if the twilight has disappeared, pray wherever you are. As long as the red twilight is present, do not pray.
Source
بداية وقت صلاة العشاء — alfawzan.live
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.