Those who said: witr is a sunnah

Sa'id bin al-Musayyib said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made witr a sunnah, just like the prayers of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Witr is not binding like the obligatory prayer.

Mujahid said: Witr is a sunnah.

Muslim, the freed slave of Abd al-Qays, said: A man said to Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both): "In your view, is witr a sunnah or something else?" He said: "What is a sunnah? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed witr, and the Muslims prayed witr!" The man said: "No, is it a sunnah or not?" Sayyiduna Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: "Stop! Do you not understand? The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed witr, and the people of Islam prayed witr."

Asim said: Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked: "Is praying witr obligatory?" He said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed witr, and the Muslims have held firmly to it."

A man of Banu Kinanah named al-Mukhdaji reports that an Ansari Companion in Syria, Abu Muhammad (may Allah be pleased with him), used to say that witr is obligatory (wajib). Al-Mukhdaji said: This was mentioned before Sayyiduna Ubadah bin al-Samit (may Allah be pleased with him), and Sayyiduna Ubadah said: "Abu Muhammad is mistaken. I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: 'There are five prayers which Allah Almighty has made obligatory upon His servants. Whoever performs these prayers without falling short in their due, it is binding upon Allah Almighty to admit him into Paradise. Whoever falls short in the due of these prayers, Allah Almighty bears no responsibility for him: if He wills, He will punish him, and if He wills, He will admit him into Paradise.'"

Mutarrif said: Amir (al-Sha'bi) was asked about a person who forgets to pray witr. He said: "It does not harm him; it is not as though it were an obligatory prayer."

Al-Hasan did not regard witr as obligatory.

Ata and Muhammad bin Ali said: Eid al-Adha and witr are sunnah.

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Witr is not obligatory; rather, it is a sunnah which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) established as a sunnah.