Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

how many rakah we should perform in tahajjud prayer.which surah we should recite in tahajjud prayer is it obligatory to perform witr after tahajjud prayer? 

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Answer:

Tahajjud and witr

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Q-1: how many rakah we should perform in tahajjud prayer

The number of rakah for Tahajjud have not been fixed. There is an authentic narration that the Messenger of Allah (saws) used to pray 11 rakahs including witr, and there is also another narration that states that he (saws) prayed 13 rakahs including witr.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) used to pray the Tahajjud in the last third part of the night, and he would perform it in a two rakah combination and advised the believers to do the same. There is no minimum set, thus the minimum if one wants to pray the voluntary night prayers would be two rakahs. And there is no maximum set, thus one can pray any number of rakahs in a two rakah combination and end it with the witr prayers. The Tahajjud or night prayers are voluntary and the more one prays, the more reward he/she will earn from Allah Subhanah.

Q-2: which surah we should recite in tahajjud prayer

After the recitation of the obligatory ‘Surah Al-Fateha’ which must be recited in each rakah of every prayer, one has the option to recite any Surah or any number of verses from the Glorious Quran one wishes to recite. There are no particular Surahs or Verses specified by the Messenger of Allah (saws) to be recited in the voluntary tahajjud prayers.

Q-3: is it obligatory to perform witr after tahajjud prayer? 

The only prayers which the Lord has made obligatory upon the believers are the five prescribed obligatory prayers of the day and night; if one prays them he will earn a huge reward from the Lord Most Merciful, and if one does not pray them it would be a grave sin. All the other prayers are superogatory and voluntary; if one prays them he will earn a huge reward from Allah Subhanah, and if one does not pray them there is no sin.

The witr prayer is definitely not amongst the obligatory prescribed prayers, but one that the Prophet (saws) regularly practiced and encouraged the believers to perform. As such, praying witr comes as Sunnah al-mu'akkadah (something which the Prophet (saws) regularly practiced); and it is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) to make the ‘witr’ prayers the last prayer of the night.

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 2.112 Narrated by Abdullah bin Umar

The Prophet (saws) said, "Make Witr as your last prayer at night."

Hadrat Ali ibn Abi Taalib (r.a.) said: "The witr prayer is not required like your obligatory prayers, but the Prophet (saws) would perform the witr prayer and say: 'O you people [followers] of the Qur'an, perform the witr prayer, for Allah is One and He loves the witr.'"

Related by Ahmad, an-Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, at-Tirmidhi, and al-Hakim.

It is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws) that he always used to make the ‘witr’ prayers, the last and final prayer of the night. But if one has already prayed the ‘witr’ prayers, and then after that makes intention to pray the ‘tahajjud’ or voluntary night prayers, there is no harm in praying the ‘tahajjud’ prayers after ‘witr’ has already been prayed. This ruling is applicable only in exceptional cases, and one should not make it a regular habit to pray the night prayers after witr. In such cases, where one wishes to pray ‘tahajjud’ prayers after the witr has already been prayed, one should not pray the ‘witr’ prayer again.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan