Voluntary Prayer
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Fatwa No. ( 1443 )
Q: Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) perform the witr prayer with one unit or with three consecutive units? And did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) perform the qunut in the witr until he departed this world, and did he command it?
A: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed the witr with one unit, and he taught those who asked him about the night prayer to pray in pairs, then to perform the witr with one unit before the dawn. For Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:Mishkat al-Masabih 1188 It was narrated by the group except al-Tirmidhi, and from Ibn Umar it was said: It was narrated by the group, and from Ibn Umar and Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them
both) that they heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say:Sahih Muslim 752a It was narrated by Ahmad and Muslim . The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sometimes performed the witr with three units without separating them with a salam at times. From Abu ibn Ka'b (may Allah be pleased with him), the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) Sunan an-Nasa'i 1701Da'if (Darussalam), it was narrated by al-Nasa'i, and from Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) she said: Mishkat al-Masabih 1281, it was narrated by Ahmad and al-Nasa'i and al-Hakim, who said: It is authentic according to the conditions of the two Shaykhs. However, it was reported from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that he prohibited performing the witr with three; from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: It was narrated by al-Daraqutni with his chain, and he said: They are all trustworthy. Some scholars reconciled these hadiths by interpreting the hadith of prohibition as applying to one who prays the three units like the Maghrib prayer, for this is imitating the Maghrib, and interpreting the hadiths of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performing the witr with three as applying when he did not sit for the tashahhud except in the third unit. Some reconciled it by interpreting the prohibition of performing the witr with three as being disliked, and that it is better to leave off performing the witr with three. In any case, the matter is broad in this regard; for what was narrated by Abu Ayyub who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Abi Dawud 1422Sahih (Al-Albani) It was narrated by the five except al-Tirmidhi, except that it is better to perform the witr with a single independent unit; due to the frequency of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) performing it with one, and the authenticity and abundance of the hadiths reported in that regard
and their abundance. As for the qunut in the witr, it was reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he did it and that he taught it to al-Hasan ibn Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). From Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say in the last of his witr:Sunan Ibn Majah 1179Sahih (Darussalam) It was narrated by the five. And from al-Hasan ibn Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both) he said: Mishkat al-Masabih 1273 It was narrated by the five. The Hanafis and the Hanbalis acted upon this, and some hadith scholars weakened these two hadiths and did not act upon them. The matter is broad in this, but the best is the qunut in the witr; because of these two hadiths, for they do not fall below the level of a good hadith. As for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performing the qunut in the witr until he departed this world, we do not know of a sound hadith indicating that.
And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.
Q: Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) perform the witr prayer with one unit or with three consecutive units? And did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) perform the qunut in the witr until he departed this world, and did he command it?
A: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) performed the witr with one unit, and he taught those who asked him about the night prayer to pray in pairs, then to perform the witr with one unit before the dawn. For Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
between the time when he finished the evening prayer and the dawn prayer the Prophet used to pray eleven rak'as , uttering the salutation at the end of every two and observing the witr,* with a single one
كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يصلي ما بين أن يفرغ من صلاة العشاء إلى الفجر إحدى عشرة ركعة، يسلم من كل ركعتين ويوتر بواحدةA man stood up and said: O Messenger of Allah, how is the night prayer? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: In pairs, in pairs. When you fear the dawn, perform the witr with one
قام رجل فقال: يا رسول الله: كيف صلاة الليل؟ فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: مثنى مثنى، فإذا خفت الصبح فأوتر بواحدةboth) that they heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say:
Witr is a rak'ah at the end of the prayer.
الوتر ركعة من آخر الليلThe Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to recite: "Glorify the Name of Your Lord, the Most High;" in witr, in the second rak'ah he would recite: "Say: O you disbelievers!"; and in the third "Say: He is Allah, (the) One". And he only said the taslim at the end
كان يقرأ في الوتر في الركعة الأولى بـ: سَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الأَعْلَى ، وفي الركعة الثانية بـ: قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ ، وفي الثالثة بـ: قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ، ولا يسلم إلا في آخرهنGod’s Messenger used to pray three rak'as when observing the witr
كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يوتر بثلاث لا يفصل بينهنDo not perform the witr with three, perform it with five or seven, and do not imitate the Maghrib prayer
لا توتروا بثلاث، أوتروا بخمس أو سبع، ولا تشبهوا بصلاة المغربThe witr is a duty for every Muslim so if anyone wishes to observe it with five rak'ahs, he may do so; if anyone wishes to observe it with three, he may do so, and if anyone wishes to observe it with one, he may do so.
الوتر حق، فمن أحب أن يوتر بخمس فليفعل، ومن أحب أن يوتر بثلاث فليفعل، ومن أحب أن يوتر بواحدة فليفعلand their abundance. As for the qunut in the witr, it was reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he did it and that he taught it to al-Hasan ibn Ali (may Allah be pleased with him). From Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say in the last of his witr:
Allahumma inni a’udhu biridaka min sakhatika, wa a’udhu bimu’afatika min ‘uqubatika, wa a’udhu bika minka, la uhsi thana’an ‘alaika, Anta kama athnaita ‘ala nafsika
اللهم إني أعوذ برضاك من سخطك وأعوذ بمعافاتك من عقوبتك، وأعوذ بك منك، لا أحصي ثناءً عليك أنت كما أثنيت على نفسكGod’s Messenger taught me some words to say when standing in supplication during the witr . They were, “O God, guide me among those Thou hast guided, grant me security among those Thou hast granted security, take me into Thy charge among those Thou hast taken into Thy charge, bless me in what Thou hast given, guard me from the evil of what Thou hast decreed, for Thou dost decree and nothing is decreed for Thee. He whom Thou befriendest is not humbled. Blessed and exalted art Thou, our Lord.”
علمني رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كلمات أقولهن في قنوت الوتر: اللهم اهدني فيمن هديت وعافني فيمن عافيت وتولني فيمن توليت وبارك لي فيما أعطيت وقني شر ما قضيت، فإنك تقضي ولا يقضى عليك إنه لا يذل من واليت، تباركت ربنا وتعاليتAnd success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.