What is the best deed during the time of the last third of the night?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : ... What is better ... supplication or sleep?
The Shaykh : The best thing to do in that time is to sleep, if a person has already gotten up in the middle of the night, it is better for him to sleep. If he got up in the last third of the night, he should sleep, as this was the practice of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in most cases, and as this was the prayer of Dawud (peace be upon him). As for the one who is late, it is better for him to pray until he approaches the dawn, then he should perform the witr prayer.
The questioner : ... His saying, the Exalted:[Adh-Dhariyat 51:18].
The Shaykh : Yes, in the last third of the night, meaning that when they finish their prayer, they evaluate themselves and say, perhaps we made a mistake, perhaps we fell short.
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : So they seek forgiveness, no, before the dawn.
The questioner : And in this hour, what is the best, O Shaykh ...?
The Shaykh : As I told you, it is better for you to sleep if you are early. But if you are late, it is better for you to pray until the dawn appears. And if you wish, for example, if you are short on time or tired, you can finish and then seek forgiveness, yes.
The Shaykh : The best thing to do in that time is to sleep, if a person has already gotten up in the middle of the night, it is better for him to sleep. If he got up in the last third of the night, he should sleep, as this was the practice of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in most cases, and as this was the prayer of Dawud (peace be upon him). As for the one who is late, it is better for him to pray until he approaches the dawn, then he should perform the witr prayer.
The questioner : ... His saying, the Exalted:
And in the hours before dawn they would ask forgiveness,
وَبِالأَسحارِ هُم يَستَغفِرونَThe Shaykh : Yes, in the last third of the night, meaning that when they finish their prayer, they evaluate themselves and say, perhaps we made a mistake, perhaps we fell short.
The questioner : ... .
The Shaykh : So they seek forgiveness, no, before the dawn.
The questioner : And in this hour, what is the best, O Shaykh ...?
The Shaykh : As I told you, it is better for you to sleep if you are early. But if you are late, it is better for you to pray until the dawn appears. And if you wish, for example, if you are short on time or tired, you can finish and then seek forgiveness, yes.