The ruling on praying twenty rak'ahs of tarawih

Question:
One of the female listeners sent a message containing three questions. In one of them, she says: I have read in some books that the twenty rak'ahs of tarawih prayer were not reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), nor from 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, as some people claim. Is praying twenty rak'ahs a religious innovation, or is it permissible with no blame at all?
May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
There is no fixed limit for the tarawih prayer. If one prays twenty, there is no harm; if one prays thirty, there is no harm; if one prays forty, there is no harm; if one prays eleven, there is no harm; if one prays thirteen, there is no harm; and if one prays more or less, there is no harm. The matter is broad, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): He did not specify a limit—(peace and blessings be upon him). This is how it came in the two Sahihs from the hadith of Ibn 'Umar, who said: —and this covers Ramadan and other times— Thus, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that the night prayer is prayed in pairs. If one prays ten, he concludes with one witr after that. If he prays twenty, he concludes with one witr. If he prays thirty, he concludes with one witr. If he prays forty, he concludes with one witr. If he prays one hundred, he concludes with one witr. There is no fixed limit. He did not say: "The night prayer is ten, or twenty." He said: meaning: if he prolongs the prayer and fears the dawn And likewise, if he prays witr at the beginning of the night, he prays what Allah has allotted for him and concludes with one witr, or in the middle of the night, likewise.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sometimes prayed witr with seven, sometimes with five, and sometimes with nine. Most of the time, he prayed eleven, concluding from every two and praying witr with one. Sometimes he prayed thirteen: twelve in pairs, then witr with one. This was the predominant practice of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Sometimes he reduced it and prayed seven, nine, five, or three. But the predominant and most frequent was eleven, and sometimes thirteen. However, he did not prohibit increasing—(peace and blessings be upon him). Whoever wishes may increase. It is established from 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and the Companions that they did so: they prayed eleven, and they prayed twenty-three. Both of these are established from 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) .
Therefore, whoever denies that it is established from 'Umar is mistaken. In fact, it is established from 'Umar that he prayed twenty-three, and on some nights he prayed eleven. The matter is broad, and praise be to Allah.
And if one prays more, as some of the Companions did, there is no harm. Some of the Salaf used to pray thirty-six and conclude with three witr, making a total of thirty-nine. Some used to pray forty-one. There is no fixed limit in this, and praise be to Allah. But it is in pairs, two by two. This is the Sunnah in Ramadan and in other times.
However, praying thirteen or eleven is better because it is more comfortable, as it aligns with the practice of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). If one prays twenty-three, as 'Umar did on some occasions, there is no harm. If he and his congregation wish to increase, there is no harm, but he should be considerate of those with him, not prolonging it for them. He should be calm in his bowing and prostration, and recite the Quran in a measured manner, as this is more beneficial for the Muslims. It is not permissible for him to recite it hastily; rather, he must be calm. If he prays eleven with calmness and measured recitation, it is better than twenty. And if he prays thirteen, likewise. If it is difficult for him, praying seven with measured recitation and calmness is better, and so on: five, three, according to his capacity [Surat al-Taghabun: 16].
And among the most important matters is that he is calm and does not rush in his recitation. He should be calm and recite in a measured manner so that he benefits, and so that the congregation behind him benefits. They benefit from the recitation if he recites in a measured manner and is calm. He should be calm in his bowing and prostration, recite in a measured manner, and be humble in it, so that those behind him benefit, and so that he himself benefits. May Allah guide them all. Yes.

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