Source: Aḥkām wa Masāʾil, Discussion on Ṣalāh, Vol. 1, p. 219
❖ Question:
هَلِ الْوِتْرُ وَاجِبٌ اَمْ اَنَّه سُنَّةٌ ؟
“Is Witr obligatory (wājib) or Sunnah?”
❖ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ʿammā baʿd!
Witr prayer is Sunnah, not wājib.
It is narrated from ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه):
«لَيْسَ الْوِتْرُ بِحَتْمٍ كَهَيْئَةِ الْمَكْتُوبَةِ وَلٰكِنْ سُنَّةٌ سَنَّهَا رَسُوْلُ اﷲِ ﷺ»
(Bulūgh al-Marām with Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām, Vol. 2, p. 193)
Translation:
ʿAlī (رضي الله عنه) said:
“Witr is not an absolute obligation like the prescribed prayers. Rather, it is a Sunnah that the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ established as Sunnah.”
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
