There is an imam who prays tarawih in sets of four, so some of the brothers follow him, while others say the taslim after every two rak'ahs. Which of the two is more correct?

The Shaykh : Yes, it is valid.

The questioner : It passed us by...

The Shaykh : Yes, in reality, some of the brothers who care about the Sunnah pray tarawih as four rak'ahs with one taslim, then four rak'ahs with one taslim, then three rak'ahs with one taslim. They interpret this based on the hadith of A'ishah when she was asked how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray at night. She said: , but in reality, they have not fully grasped this issue, because the hadith of A'ishah herself (may Allah be pleased with her) came in other wordings that clarify how he used to pray: that he would pray two rak'ahs, two rak'ahs, in the eleven rak'ahs, two rak'ahs at a time. Accordingly, her statement is understood to mean that these four rak'ahs are of the same kind, , which is why the word "then" was used, . In the past, in the era of the Salaf, they would pray four rak'ahs, meaning with two taslims, and then rest. This is why this prayer was named tarawih, because every time they prayed four rak'ahs, they would rest. This is the definitive interpretation, based on reconciling parts of her hadith with each other. Furthermore, even if it is possible that he would combine all four rak'ahs, it is said that this is a possibility, but it is contradicted by another possibility that he would say the taslim after every two rak'ahs. Thus, it falls under the ambiguous hadiths. We have a principle upon which the people of the Sunnah and the community agree: the ambiguous is interpreted according to the clear. Therefore, what A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated is interpreted according to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) . Consequently, it is established that her meaning by "four" is with two taslims. This is a deficiency; I do not say it is a deficiency of knowledge, because they may have knowledge of the other wordings, but it is a deficiency of understanding. So let the student of knowledge beware of a deficiency of understanding, and success is from Allah.
Allah is the Greatest.
The reader: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings and bestow grace upon His servant and messenger, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions.
Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his Sahih, in the Book of the Prayer of the Traveler and its Shortening: