Ruling on Reciting Al-Fatihah After Witr Following the Isha Prayer

The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta

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Fatwa No. ( 7012 ):

Q: I ask you, may Allah reward you, to issue a ruling to me regarding reciting Surat al-Fatihah after the Isha prayer — that is, after Witr — for an unspecified number of times, such as one hundred times or less or more, without specifying a particular number or time. I am aware that I constantly recite the Qur'an, hoping that the Lord, Exalted and Majestic, will increase my reward and recompense. Is this considered a religious innovation or not? And after reciting Al-Fatihah, I ask Allah for repentance, forgiveness, and guidance. May Allah guide you to serving Islam and Muslims.
A: The Qur'an is the speech of Allah the Exalted, and the virtue of His speech over the speech of humans is like the virtue of Allah over His servants. The virtue of reciting the Qur'an is immense, and none but Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) can measure it. However, the reciter is not permitted to single out a specific surah or verse for recitation at a specific time or for a specific purpose, except for what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) singled out.
Such as reciting Al-Fatihah for ruqyah (healing by Qur'anic recitation), or in prayer in every rak'ah, and reciting Ayat al-Kursi when he takes his place in his bed to sleep, hoping that Allah will protect him from Satan, and reciting the Mu'awwidhat

Say, "He is Allah, [who is] One,

قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ

[Al-Ikhlas 112:1]

and

Say, "I seek refuge in the Lord of daybreak

قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ الْفَلَقِ

[Al-Falaq 113:1]

and

Say, "I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind,

قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ

[An-Nas 114:1]

for ruqyah. Likewise, he is not permitted to commit to repeating a surah or verse a limited number of times unless that is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); because that is an act of worship, and in it, the restriction by the Shari'ah must be observed. From this, it becomes clear that singling out the recitation of Surat al-Fatihah at night after Witr for a number of times is a religious innovation, even if the number is not specified; because that is not established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) nor from any of his Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them). The good lies in reciting without restricting oneself to Al-Fatihah, and without singling out the recitation for the night after Witr. Rather, it is prescribed to recite much of the Noble Qur'an, including Al-Fatihah and others, without specifying a particular number or time, except for what has come in the pure Shari'ah, as previously explained. And 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.

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