Full Lecture Transcript (Cleaned)
Introduction — 0:33
Today we resume our Q&A's, and today insha'Allah I will answer a number of questions put together which will be beneficial given that Ramadan is around the corner. All of these questions deal with the reality of salah: What is the meaning of tarawih? What is the origin of tarawih? What is the difference between tarawih versus tahajjud versus witr? I'm just going to lump them together generically and give an answer to the generic questions about the reality of salat.
Quranic Terms for Night Prayer — 1:07
The Quranic terms for praying at night are two, both found in the Quran: qiyam ul-layl and tahajjud. The term "tarawih" is neither found in the Quran nor in the Sunnah. It was coined by some early scholars, perhaps in the second century of the Hijrah, and it did not become popular for at least another two to three hundred years. You will find with great difficulty references to the term "tarawih" in the first 300 years of Islam, even though you will find a few. The common term "tarawih" became standard from the fifth century onwards.
In the earliest revelation, Surah al-Muzzammil, Allah commands the Prophet to pray and praises the Prophet and the Sahaba for praying two-thirds, or half, or one-third of the night.
As for the term tahajjud, Surah al-Isra, verse 79: "And during the night, do the tahajjud — perhaps by you doing so, Allah will raise you to the Maqam Mahmud." Allah praises qiyam ul-layl and salat ul-layl in half a dozen verses in the Quran. Allah describes the righteous as those who pray in the night — "They would sleep very little at night" — these are the people of Jannah. In the last verses of Surat al-Furqan, where Allah describes the Ibad ur-Rahman, one of their characteristics is: "Yabituna — they spend the night doing sujud and qiyam."
The Difference Between Qiyam ul-Layl and Tahajjud — 4:18
Is there a difference between qiyam ul-layl and tahajjud? Some scholars said there is a technical difference. Qiyam ul-layl is done at any time of the night from after Isha until before the adhan of Fajr. Any voluntary prayer in this time is called qiyam ul-layl, and this is the night prayer. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: "The best prayer after the fard is the prayer of the night."
Tahajjud comes from hajjadah, which means to sleep and to wake up. So tahajjud requires that you first sleep and then wake up. Qiyam ul-layl is the broader category, and tahajjud is a subset of it. Allah praises this category even more explicitly in Surah as-Sajdah, verses 15-17: "Their sides forsake their beds" — they have broken away from their beds, waking up to pray to Allah.
The Blessings of Night Prayer — 6:28
The blessings of qiyam ul-layl and tahajjud are very many. The Quran characterizes the righteous as praying at night, and Allah mentions the highest maqam given to any human being — Maqam Mahmud — linked directly to tahajjud. It is as if the Prophet is being told: this one deed of tahajjud will cause you to be raised to the highest ranks.
The Prophet said, as reported in the hadith: "I command you to pray the night prayer" — "command" here means "I strongly encourage you" — because: (1) it is the custom of the pious people before you, (2) it will bring you closer to Allah, (3) it will forgive your sins, and (4) it will protect you from falling into evil.
In Sunan al-Tirmidhi, the Prophet said there are palaces in Jannah that you will see the outside from the inside. When asked who would get those palaces, he said: "Whoever's speech is sweet, feeds the hungry, fasts continuously, and prays at night."
The Prophet also said: "Know that the honor (sharaf) of the believer comes by his praying at night."
How Much Night Prayer Is Needed? — 9:27
The Prophet said: "Whoever prays with ten ayat shall be lifted from being amongst the heedless. Whoever prays with one hundred ayat shall be written amongst the righteous (qanitun). And whoever prays with a thousand ayat shall be written amongst the muqantirin (those with a massive fortune)."
Ten ayat is roughly a page to a page and a half. One hundred ayat is roughly a juz'. A thousand ayat is one-sixth of the Quran — finishing the Quran in a week, which was the custom of the righteous Sahaba like Abu Bakr.
The Prophet told us: "Whoever thinks that he shall not be able to wake up at the end of the night, then let him pray at the beginning of the night. And whoever feels that he can wake up at the end of the night, then let him wake up at the end, because praying at the end of the night is witnessed by the angels, and that is better."
Tarawih: Qiyam ul-Layl During Ramadan — 12:50
Tarawih is the term that later scholars coined for qiyam ul-layl during Ramadan. The term tarawih was not coined by the Prophet, and we do not know who first began using it — it is not found in the Quran or Sunnah. It is a Muslim term from early scholars, which is fine.
Why did scholars make this a special term? Because in Ramadan, qiyam ul-layl becomes even more important. The Prophet said: "Whoever prays the nights of Ramadan with iman and seeking reward, all of his previous sins will be forgiven." Alhamdulillah, he said "qiyam of Ramadan" — not "tahajjud" — which means it can be done from Isha up until Fajr, not just after waking from sleep.
The History of Congregational Tarawih — 15:38
The Prophet would pray tahajjud sometimes in the house of Aisha and sometimes in the masjid. It so happened in Ramadan, he was praying tahajjud in the masjid, and because it was Ramadan, other people were also there praying. Without any announcement, some companions simply joined behind the Prophet's prayer. When more saw this, they joined too.
When the Prophet finished, he saw them all and didn't say anything — we call this silent approval. News spread, so the next day the masjid became almost packed to capacity. The Prophet led them again. On the third day, the masjid was packed to capacity, but this time the Prophet prayed in the house of Aisha and did not come out.
Before Salat al-Fajr, he said to them: "I knew you were outside, but the only reason I did not come was that I was worried that this action might become obligatory (fard) upon you." This occurred in the last Ramadan of his life.
During the time of Abu Bakr and the early period of Umar's caliphate, everyone prayed independently. Then one Ramadan, Umar visited the masjid and saw people praying helter-skelter all over. He said: "What if we were to make one jama'ah for all of these people? Wouldn't that be good?" He made the announcement — the first time this was officially done — and appointed Ubayy ibn Ka'b, the most proficient Quran reciter among the Sahaba.
When Umar saw them all praying together, he said his famous comment: "What a great innovation (bid'ah) this is!" — a whole different discussion. Then he said something very interesting: "Those who are sleeping now are better than those who are praying" — meaning those who would get up later for tahajjud are at a higher level.
The Number of Raka'at — 20:52
Umar began tarawih at 11 raka'at (this is authentically narrated), and then towards the end of his caliphate, he changed it to 20 raka'at. Why? Our scholars say to make it easier for those who couldn't pray the whole duration — by making more raka'at, each one becomes shorter and more manageable.
Thus it became 20 raka'at of tarawih plus 3 of witr = 23, and this became the sunnah for all other cities.
In the time of the early Umayyads, the people of Makkah began praying 23 raka'at and would rest after every four raka'at. Some of them decided: the Ka'bah is right here, let us do tawaf between every four raka'at! They began doing five tawafs a night.
When the people of Madinah heard this, they said: we're going to have to compete! Rather than doing tawaf (which they cannot do), they added four raka'at during each resting period. Hence they started praying 36 raka'at plus 3 witr = 39. This remained the practice in Madinah for around 200 years.
This is why Imam Malik and the Maliki school recommend 39 raka'at — Imam Malik saw the people of Madinah doing this growing up, and one of the pillars of his madhhab is the actions of the people of Madinah.
Where Does the Term "Tarawih" Come From? — 25:30
Two legitimate opinions: First, tarawih comes from tarwiha, meaning "to rest." They called it tarawih because they would rest after every four raka'at. This is the interpretation of Imam al-Sarakhsi, the famous Hanafi scholar, who quotes Imam Abu Hanifah. Second, some say the people of Makkah considered the tawaf itself to be a form of rest from the prayer.
A third opinion found in some modern books — that it comes from "enjoyment" or a "break from life's routine" — has no evidence and is not academic.
The Controversy Over 8 vs. 20 Raka'at — 27:45
The three schools (Hanafi, Hanbali, and Shafi'i) say 20 is best, based on Umar's practice. The Maliki school says 36 (plus 3 witr). These numbers are mustahabb (recommended), not mandatory. All four schools agree: since the prayer itself is nafl (voluntary), how can a specific number be mandatory? If you pray 2, 4, 8, 12, 16, or 50 — all of it is valid.
Now there's a modern controversy — literally one generation old — claiming that 8 is mandatory (not just recommended). Nobody in the history of the Ummah before our great scholar of the last generation said that it is mandatory to make it only 8. May Allah reward that scholar for his ijtihad and love of the Sunnah, but this opinion has no basis in the history of Islam. It's a nafl prayer — to make a controversy that only 8 versus 20 is mandatory shows — and I'm trying to be respectful here — that anyone who says this hasn't studied the books of fiqh deeply enough.
The Hanbali position, which makes a lot of sense: if you're praying at home alone, you should do 8 plus 3 (following the Prophet's personal practice of long raka'at). But when you're in a congregation, you must take into account the weak, the elderly, mothers with children — you make things easier by having more raka'at that are shorter. That is why Umar changed it to 20.
Praying at Home vs. at the Masjid — 31:15
Imam Malik and the Maliki school say it is better to pray at home. Why? You can pray for a long time without interfering with others, there is more concentration, it brings barakah to the household, and there is less potential for showing off. The Prophet himself said: "The best prayer of the person after the fard is the prayer in his house."
The Shafi'i school says no, the masjid is better — because of the multiplied reward of the jama'ah, hearing the Quran beautifully recited, the motivation of community, and the barakah of walking to the masjid.
Both are right. If you are able to pray two to four hours on your own reading the Quran with khushu', then pray at home. But if you're like most of us and need the motivation, there is a great barakah in praying at the masjid as well. Interestingly, Umar himself would not pray at the masjid — he appointed Ubayy and walked back home to pray.
Finishing the Entire Quran in Tarawih — 34:10
The notion of finishing the entire Quran during tarawih is not found in early Islam. The Prophet didn't do it, and even in the time of the Sahaba it didn't happen. Imam Malik (writing around 150 AH) was actually not happy with this practice, saying: "Finishing the entire Quran during the qiyam of Ramadan is not Sunnah."
In the early period, they would recite 20-30 verses per raka'ah. After the Battle of Harrah (when Yazid attacked Madinah), the long recitation became difficult, so they cut back on the length and increased the number of raka'at to 36. In the time of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, they would pray around 10 ayat per raka'ah — short and sweet.
In the later Hanafi school, they encouraged finishing the whole Quran during tarawih, and this is permissible. But to be clear, the Prophet did not institute tarawih in that manner, so it cannot be called Sunnah.
The Witr Prayer — 37:00
The term witr is in the hadith but not in the Quran. Generally in the hadith, witr is synonymous with qiyam ul-layl — because witr means the "odd number" that concludes your night prayer. The technical definition of witr (as used in fiqh books) refers to the last one or three raka'at.
The Prophet sometimes prayed 5, 7, or 9 raka'at of witr — meaning the entire tahajjud in different chunks. Sometimes he'd pray two by two, sometimes four by four. The Hanbali school (following Ibn Taymiyyah) says tahajjud can be prayed in sets of two or four. The Hanafi school says it must be two by two, which is the standard position.
The Prophet told us in Bukhari and Muslim: "Make your last salah of the night be odd (witr)." So it is Sunnah to make witr the last prayer of the night.
Practical advice: If you pray 8 raka'at and 3 witr with the imam, but you know you'll pray more at home, you should pray the 3 raka'at with the imam — but when the imam says salam, do not say salam. Stand up and add an extra raka'ah to make his 3 into your 4 (shaf'). Now you have prayed 12 raka'at without witr, and you can go home and pray your tahajjud and conclude with witr.
If you prayed witr but later wake up wanting to pray more, do not repeat the witr. Imam al-Nawawi says in his Majmu': "Whoever prays the witr, then he decides to pray nafilah later in the night — it is allowed without any karahah, because that was not his original intention." What would be makruh is intentionally placing the witr in the middle of the night. But if it happens that you prayed witr and later unexpectedly wake up, pray extra nafl without repeating witr. Only one witr per night.
Reading From a Mushaf or Phone in Salah — 42:40
Aisha commanded her servant to lead the women in qiyam during Ramadan, and since he was not a hafiz, he would recite from the mushaf. Imam al-Zuhri (d. 124 AH) was asked if this is allowed and said: "I found the best of us of the previous generation would recite with the mushaf." Imam Malik said: "There is no harm in carrying the mushaf for the imam during Ramadan for the nafilah." Imam Ahmad also said there is no problem.
Imam al-Nawawi confirmed there is no karahah in this practice. So we have the Maliki, Hanbali, and Shafi'i schools all explicitly permitting it.
The Hanafi school differs: Imam Abu Hanifah said if the imam carries the mushaf, the salah becomes batil (void). His students Abu Yusuf and Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Shaybani softened this to makruh — it doesn't nullify the prayer but should be avoided. Some modern Hanafi scholars say that given the circumstances of our time, it should be allowed for people praying at home.
My position: it is very clear from the narration of Aisha and many of the tabi'in that they would carry a page or scroll and recite during nafl prayer. Especially these days with phones — there's no extra movement, you just put it in your pocket.
Conclusion — 46:40
Ramadan is coming up, and we strongly encourage — I encourage myself and all of you — to make it a point to pray qiyam every single night. Whoever prays every single night of Ramadan, all of his sins will be forgiven. And whoever prays on Laylat al-Qadr, all of his sins will be forgiven. May Allah make us of those who catch it.