What is your comment on the one who said that persisting in the qunut in Ramadan is not a sunnah, and that there is an excess in using supplications that are not authentically reported?

The questioner : With this article in which its author says: that persisting in the qunut in Ramadan is not from the sunnah, and that there is an excess in using supplications that are not authentically reported, and that the prayer of twenty rak'ahs in Ramadan has only weak chains of narration reported regarding it. This is a form of worship and its basis is divine restriction. So what is your comment, Your Eminence?

The Shaykh : What is it?

The questioner : That all of these are forms of worship and their basis is divine restriction, and it is not befitting for this to be done by Muslims.

The Shaykh : And it is not befitting.

The questioner : Yes, meaning the summary of the article is that it is not befitting to pray twenty rak'ahs and that all its hadiths are weak.

The Shaykh : Okay, let us start with them one by one. The first issue.

The questioner : The first issue.

The Shaykh : The issue of the qunut.

The questioner : Persisting in the qunut.

The Shaykh : Persisting in the qunut; he says that the sunnah did not come regarding it. And we say with him likewise. That it did not come from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he used to persist in it. Rather, he used to teach al-Hasan ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with them both) to say in the supplication of the qunut: And it is known that the sunnah of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is his saying, his doing, and his approval. So when he taught al-Hasan ibn 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with them both) to say in the qunut of the witr such and such, and did not say to him "do not persist in it," it is known that persisting in it is permissible, because it is not possible for something not prescribed to be imagined by a person from the words of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and then the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) not clarify it. Because Allah said to him: . And He says: . And Allah is All-Seeing of the servants. So persisting in the qunut in the witr is permissible. We cannot say that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) used to persist in that. But we also cannot say that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade that.
And if it is so, then in my view, persisting in it is permissible, especially in the days of Ramadan when the Muslims gather on one word behind one imam, supplicating with one supplication and saying "Ameen" to it. For this is among the most likely things to be answered.
As for his statement regarding the supplications that come from some imams, this is correct. There are some imams who have supplications that did not come, and it is possible that there is some consideration in their meaning as well. Then, some of the imams prolong the prayer for the people, and prolonging the prayer for the people is not prescribed. Rather, prolonging that goes beyond the sunnah is among the things that are condemned. Because a man came to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and said: "O Messenger of Allah, I miss the Fajr prayer because of so-and-so, due to the length he makes for us," meaning the imam. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) became angry with an anger he had never shown in anything like it before, and he said: . And there is no doubt that prolonging the qunut and tiring the people, until you see the young man shifting between his feet due to the length of standing, is not prescribed. If a person were to restrict himself to the words that were reported, or add a little so that the people leave and say "I wish he had prolonged it, but he did well." As for some people who, due to their intense enjoyment of supplication and their intense insistence upon Allah the Mighty and Majestic, think that everyone is on the same level, this is not befitting. The imam prays not only for himself, but for himself and for those behind him.
And for this reason, we also say that some imams, especially in the tarawih prayer, hasten and speed up at a speed that prevents a person from doing what is obligatory. Until some of the ma'mums cannot manage to perform the pillar, which is tranquility. And this is also forbidden for him to speed up at a speed that prevents people from doing what is obligatory. Rather, it is obligatory for him to be deliberate so that people can manage to perform the pillars with tranquility, and so that he can also manage to supplicate.
The next paragraph

The questioner : The number of rak'ahs.

The Shaykh : As for the number of rak'ahs, it is true that acts of worship are based on divine restriction, and we agree with him in that. And any person who brings a form of worship that Allah and His Messenger have not prescribed is considered an innovator, and it is condemned against him But we say to him: From where do you have the right to say that the number is based on divine restriction? No one can absolutely prove that the number of tarawih or the number of night prayers is based on divine restriction, ever. And we, from here, from this place, ask our brothers who have knowledge in that to clarify it to us. And I believe, rather I am certain, that they do not have knowledge in this. The most that is in that is that 'Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) was asked: How was the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in Ramadan? She said: . And she clarified it. And it was also established from her . And it was also established from Ibn 'Abbas likewise . But did he say to the people in the position of conveying and answering: "Do not exceed that"? Absolutely not. He did not say this. In the two Sahihs, from Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), a man said: "O Messenger of Allah, how is the night prayer?" He said: . This position is a position of clarification and conveying, because it is an answer to a question, and the man did not know how to pray, let alone the number of rak'ahs. And for this reason he said: . So did the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) say in this position of conveying and answering: "Do not exceed eleven rak'ahs"?
The answer is: No. And any person who can prove that he said "Do not exceed," let him bring it to us, and we, by the power of Allah, will examine it and follow it. And the one who restricts the night prayer to thirteen and eleven and says that it is not permissible to exceed that, has said a word without knowledge. Rather, he has said a word that knowledge is contrary to it. Because the position of clarification and conveying must clarify the quantity and the manner. And when the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified the manner and was silent about the quantity, it is known that the quantity is a broad matter and that it is not restricted to eleven rak'ahs or thirteen rak'ahs. But if we were asked: Which is better? Eleven, or thirteen, or twenty-three, or thirty-nine?
We would say: The better is eleven. This is the better. As for saying that it is not permissible, we seek forgiveness from Allah and repent to Him, and we ask Allah to forgive the one who said it. We do not say this. Rather, we say that the matter is broad in this. This is from the side of the ruling of the issue in itself.
As for what some of the mujtahids do, who pray behind imams who exceed eleven or thirteen, you find that when he prays ten rak'ahs, he sits and leaves the Muslims praying above his head, and he watches them praying and separates from them. This is the true condemnation. This is the condemnation itself. And the wonder is that some of them sit and have what? They have coffee and tea, and you find him drinking tea and coffee, and the cups are scattered, while the Muslims are praying and worshipping Allah. This is the anomaly in reality, and the anomaly from the congregation of the Muslims. And it is contrary to the guidance of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). When the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) saw 'Uthman complete the prayer in Mina, when 'Uthman was in Mina, he prayed the Dhuhr as four, or the 'Asr as four, and the 'Isha as four in Mina during the days of Hajj, they condemned that to him. They said: How does the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) pray two, and Abu Bakr two, and 'Umar two, and you, in the beginning of your caliphate, two, and then in the end of the caliphate you pray four? They condemned this to him until Ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), when it reached him, said: . He said "Aww" (a sound of grief) and considered it a calamity that a person should complete the prayer in a place where the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) shortened it. And we testify to Allah that 'Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) did not complete the prayer in opposition to the guidance of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and his two caliphs, ever. But he interpreted it, and the one who interprets may hit the mark or may miss. And the error from ijtihad is not blamed upon a person if it is in a place where disagreement is permissible. And despite that, listen, despite that, they were praying behind him four while they were condemning it to him. The issue is not an issue of increasing the number of a voluntary prayer. The issue is increasing rak'ahs in one prayer, and such a thing invalidates the prayer. If we say by the obligation of shortening, and despite that, the Companions were praying behind 'Uthman four, increasing the number prescribed in one prayer. So Ibn Mas'ud was asked: Why, O Abu 'Abd al-Rahman? How do you pray four with 'Uthman while you condemn it to him? He said: . Allahu Akbar! A word that should be written with gold ink. Disagreement is evil, meaning opposing the Muslims is evil. And for this reason, how good is agreement!
The method of the Salaf in matters of independent legal reasoning (ijtihad) was to agree on the general principles. Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him), Ahmad ibn Hanbal, held that the qunut in the Fajr prayer is a religious innovation (bid'ah) that is not prescribed, and his statement is correct without a doubt. Nevertheless, he said: "If you follow an imam who recites the qunut in the Fajr prayer, follow him and say 'Ameen' to his supplication." Why is that, when he considers it an innovation? Answer, everyone. Yes, disagreement is evil because a person should not oppose the community of Muslims. So we tell our brother the questioner that the matter regarding the number of rak'ahs in the tarawih prayer is broad, so do not restrict what Allah has made broad for His servants, and remain silent about what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent about, for this is the reality of following and emulating: what Allah and His Messenger remained silent about, we must remain silent about. And what Allah and His Messenger prescribed, we must follow. Among the things the Messenger prescribed is that the number of rak'ahs in the night prayer is a broad matter, because he (peace and blessings be upon him) did not specify it. And Allah the Exalted says: . And Allah Mighty and Majestic says: . Yes. Is the question finished? Yes, another question.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good. We are addressing questions about zakah, O Shaykh.