The Regular Voluntary Prayers and How to Perform Them

Question:
You are asking Your Eminence about the regular voluntary prayers. If there are four rak'ahs, for example, before the midday prayer or before the afternoon prayer, do I say the closing salam after every two rak'ahs? Or how is it done? May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
The regular voluntary prayers are twelve rak'ahs: four before the midday prayer with two closing salams, two after it with one closing salam, two after the sunset prayer with one closing salam, two after the night prayer with one closing salam, and two before the dawn prayer with one closing salam. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to be consistent in performing them while resident, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
It came in the hadith of Umm Habibah that these twelve are interpreted as these regular voluntary prayers. So whoever is consistent in performing them is upon great good, and in this hadith, he is promised Paradise. If he prays them voluntarily in a day, a house is built for him in Paradise with them. They are, as mentioned earlier: four before the midday prayer, saying the salam after every two, two after the midday prayer, meaning two rak'ahs, two after the sunset prayer, two after the night prayer, and two before the dawn prayer. These are called the regular voluntary prayers.
And if he prays four after the midday prayer, that is better, due to his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): But they are not regular voluntary prayers. Four after the midday prayer are not regular; the regular ones are two. So if he increases and prays two, acting upon the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), that is better, due to his saying (peace and blessings be upon him) from the hadith of Umm Habibah bint Abi Sufyan, the Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her), that she heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: .
It is also recommended to pray four before the afternoon prayer. They are not regular voluntary prayers, but it is recommended to pray them with two closing salams, due to his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): It was narrated by Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi, and a group with a sound chain from Ibn 'Umar.
It is also recommended to pray between every two calls to prayer, between the call to the sunset prayer and the second call, and between the call to the night prayer and the second call, two rak'ahs, due to his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): And he said: And the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) used to pray two rak'ahs before the sunset prayer, after the call to the sunset prayer, two rak'ahs before the prayer is established. This is a recommended practice, not a regular voluntary prayer, but a recommended practice. Four after the midday prayer is a recommended practice, not a regular voluntary prayer; the regular one is two. Four before the afternoon prayer with two closing salams is a recommended practice, but not a regular voluntary prayer, meaning: the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not consistently perform them. But if the believer is consistent in performing them, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): that is better ...... he is consistent in performing them before the afternoon prayer, acting upon the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
So if he prays between the sunset prayer, between the call to the sunset prayer and the second call, two rak'ahs, and between the call to the night prayer and the second call, two rak'ahs, that is better. And so is the morning prayer; because the morning prayer is a recommended practice. The morning prayer is after the sun has risen until it stands high. He prays two rak'ahs, or four, or more. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do it sometimes, and he recommended it to a group of the Companions. The morning prayer is a recommended practice, and it is recommended in travel and residence.
And so is the late-night prayer, that he prays the late-night prayer after the night prayer. He prays what Allah makes easy for him, and he prays the odd-numbered prayer with one rak'ah. He prays three, or five, or seven, or nine, or eleven, or thirteen, or more. He prays what is easy for him in the first part of the night, or in the middle of the night, or in the last part of the night, following the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He used to pray the late-night prayer at night (peace and blessings be upon him) and pray the odd-numbered prayer with one rak'ah (peace and blessings be upon him). And he (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray the odd-numbered prayer in the first part of the night, and sometimes in the middle of the night. Then his final independent legal reasoning and his odd-numbered prayer and late-night prayer settled in the last part of the night (peace and blessings be upon him), and that is the best if it is easy. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: .
And the minimum of that is one rak'ah. The least thing is one rak'ah, with which he prays the odd-numbered prayer after the night prayer, after the regular voluntary prayer of the night prayer. And if he prays the odd-numbered prayer with three, that is better. And if he prays the odd-numbered prayer with more, that is better. He says the closing salam after every two.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) usually prayed the late-night prayer with eleven rak'ahs, saying the closing salam after every two, and praying the odd-numbered prayer with one in the last part of the night. And sometimes he prayed thirteen, saying the closing salam after every two (peace and blessings be upon him). And this is the best. And if he prays three all at once, and does not sit except in the last one, or five all at once, and does not sit except in the last one, there is no blame on him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did this, which is a type of recommended practice. And if he prays seven all at once, there is nothing wrong with it, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did this, praying seven all at once in some nights. And in some nights, he sits in the sixth, and recites the first testification, then stands and performs the seventh. And if he prays nine all at once, there is nothing wrong with it, but he sits in the eighth. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to sit in the eighth, and recite the first testification, then stand, and perform the ninth.
But the best, as mentioned earlier, is that he says the closing salam after every two. This is the best. Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to pray the odd-numbered prayer, praying eleven in the night, saying the closing salam after every two, and praying the odd-numbered prayer with one. And he said (peace and blessings be upon him): meaning: two by two This is the best.
And if he fears that he will not get up in the last part of the night, as mentioned earlier, he prays in the first part of the night before he sleeps. He prays three, or five, or more, saying the closing salam after every two, as a precaution, fearing that he will not get up, from the door of caution. May Allah guide them all. Yes.

The presenter : O Allah, amen. May Allah reward you with good.