Source: Ghair Masnoon Nafli Namazain by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Ameenpuri
Regarding the virtues of offering prayer between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, the narrations commonly presented in this regard are all weak and unauthentic. Details are as follows:
Arabic:
من صلى بين المغرب والعشاء، عشرين ركعة بنى الله له بيتا فى الجنة.
Translation:
“Whoever prays twenty rakʿāt between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, Allah will build for him a house in Paradise.”
[Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1373]
Ruling: Fabricated (مـن گھڑت روایت)
➤ Yaʿqūb bin Walīd al-Madanī
– Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal رحمه الله said:
"كَانَ مِنَ الْكذابين الكبار، وَكَانَ يَضعُ الحَدِيثَ"
“He was among the great liars, and he fabricated aḥādīth.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 9/216]
➤ Imām Abū Ḥātim al-Rāzī رحمه الله said:
"منكر الحديث ضعيف الحديث، كان يكذب، والحديث الذى رواه موضوع، وهو متروك الحديث"
“His ḥadīth are rejected and weak; he used to lie. The narration he reported is fabricated, and he is discarded.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 9/216]
There is also a weak supporting chain in al-Kāmil of Ibn ʿAdī (5/149), in which ʿAmr bin Jarīr al-Kūfī is a known liar.
– Imām Abū Ḥātim رحمه الله said: "كَانَ يَكْذِبُ"
“He used to lie.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 6/224]
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ست ركعات لم يتكلم فيما بينهن بسوء عدلن له بعبادة ثنتي عشرة سنة
Translation:
“Whoever performs six rakʿāt after Maghrib without speaking ill between them, it will be as if he worshiped for twelve years.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 435, Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1374, Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah: 1195]
Ruling: Chain is severely weak.
➊ ʿUmar bin Abī Shatham is munkar al-ḥadīth (narrates rejected reports).
– Imām al-Tirmidhī رحمه الله said he heard Imām al-Bukhārī declare him munkar al-ḥadīth and very weak.
➋ The narration has ʿanʿanah from Yaḥyā bin Abī Kathīr, a known mudallis.
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ست ركعات غفرت له ذنوبه وان كانت مثل زبد البحر
Translation:
“Whoever prays six rakʿāt after Maghrib, his sins will be forgiven, even if they are as much as the foam of the sea.”
[al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ by al-Ṭabarānī: 7245]
Ruling: Chain is severely weak.
Contains three unknown narrators:
➊ Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār bin Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār
➋ ʿAmmār bin Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār
➌ Ṣāliḥ bin Qaṭan al-Bukhārī
– Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Jawzī رحمه الله said:
"فيها مجاهيل"
“There are unknown narrators in it.”
[al-ʿIlal al-Mutanāhiyah: 776]
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ستا غفر له بها
Translation:
“Whoever prays six rakʿāt after Maghrib, he will be forgiven thereby.”
[ʿIlal al-Ḥadīth by Ibn Abī Ḥātim: 2/51]
Ruling: Fabricated (من گھڑت روایت)
➊ Muḥammad bin Ghazwān – munkar al-ḥadīth
➋ Waḍīn bin ʿAṭā’ – weak and reports munkar narrations
– Imām Abū Zurʿah al-Rāzī رحمه الله said:
"اضربوا على هذا الحديث فإنه شبه موضوع"
“Strike out this ḥadīth; it is fabricated.”
[ʿIlal Ibn Abī Ḥātim: 2/51]
Arabic:
صلاة الأوابين ما بين أن يلتفت أهل المغرب إلى أن ينوب إلى العشاء
Translation:
“The Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn is between when people finish Maghrib until ʿIshāʾ.”
[Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 2/196]
Ruling: Chain is weak.
➊ Mūsā bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī – weak narrator
– Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله said:
"ضعيف عند الأكثرين"
“Weak according to most scholars.”
[Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr under Sūrat al-Isrāʾ: 44]
➋ The hearing of ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī from Ibn ʿUmar is not established.
Arabic:
من صلى أربعا بعد المغرب كان كالمُعقّب غزوة بعد غزوة
Translation:
“Whoever prays four rakʿāt after Maghrib is like one who follows up battle after battle.”
[Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 2/196]
Ruling: Chain is weak.
➊ Mūsā bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī – weak
➋ Ayyūb bin Khālid – subject to criticism
➌ No proof of Ayyūb's direct hearing from Ibn ʿUmar
Ibn al-Munkadir and Abū Ḥāzim said in its tafsīr:
هي ما بين المغرب وصلاة العشاء صلاة الأوابين
Translation:
“This refers to Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn, offered between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ.”
[al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī: 3/19]
Ruling: Chain is weak.
– ʿAbdullāh bin Lahīʿah is weak, confused (mukhtaṭil), and mudallis.
– The narration attributed to Ibn ʿAbbās is without chain.
– Some people refer to this prayer as Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn, which is incorrect.
Non-specific voluntary prayers between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ are proven from the Prophet ﷺ, as mentioned under authentic voluntary prayers. However, specifying certain rakʿāt or attributing specific rewards to them is not established from the Prophet ﷺ through authentic chains.
❖ Virtue of Praying Between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ
Regarding the virtues of offering prayer between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, the narrations commonly presented in this regard are all weak and unauthentic. Details are as follows:
✿ ① Ḥadīth of ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها:
Arabic:
من صلى بين المغرب والعشاء، عشرين ركعة بنى الله له بيتا فى الجنة.
Translation:
“Whoever prays twenty rakʿāt between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ, Allah will build for him a house in Paradise.”
[Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1373]Ruling: Fabricated (مـن گھڑت روایت)
➤ Yaʿqūb bin Walīd al-Madanī
– Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal رحمه الله said:
"كَانَ مِنَ الْكذابين الكبار، وَكَانَ يَضعُ الحَدِيثَ"
“He was among the great liars, and he fabricated aḥādīth.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 9/216]➤ Imām Abū Ḥātim al-Rāzī رحمه الله said:
"منكر الحديث ضعيف الحديث، كان يكذب، والحديث الذى رواه موضوع، وهو متروك الحديث"
“His ḥadīth are rejected and weak; he used to lie. The narration he reported is fabricated, and he is discarded.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 9/216]There is also a weak supporting chain in al-Kāmil of Ibn ʿAdī (5/149), in which ʿAmr bin Jarīr al-Kūfī is a known liar.
– Imām Abū Ḥātim رحمه الله said: "كَانَ يَكْذِبُ"
“He used to lie.”
[Al-Jarḥ wa al-Taʿdīl: 6/224]✿ ② Ḥadīth of Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه:
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ست ركعات لم يتكلم فيما بينهن بسوء عدلن له بعبادة ثنتي عشرة سنة
Translation:
“Whoever performs six rakʿāt after Maghrib without speaking ill between them, it will be as if he worshiped for twelve years.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 435, Sunan Ibn Mājah: 1374, Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah: 1195]Ruling: Chain is severely weak.
➊ ʿUmar bin Abī Shatham is munkar al-ḥadīth (narrates rejected reports).
– Imām al-Tirmidhī رحمه الله said he heard Imām al-Bukhārī declare him munkar al-ḥadīth and very weak.
➋ The narration has ʿanʿanah from Yaḥyā bin Abī Kathīr, a known mudallis.
✿ ③ Ḥadīth of ʿAmmār bin Yāsir رضي الله عنه:
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ست ركعات غفرت له ذنوبه وان كانت مثل زبد البحر
Translation:
“Whoever prays six rakʿāt after Maghrib, his sins will be forgiven, even if they are as much as the foam of the sea.”
[al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ by al-Ṭabarānī: 7245]Ruling: Chain is severely weak.
Contains three unknown narrators:
➊ Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār bin Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār
➋ ʿAmmār bin Muḥammad bin ʿAmmār
➌ Ṣāliḥ bin Qaṭan al-Bukhārī
– Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Jawzī رحمه الله said:
"فيها مجاهيل"
“There are unknown narrators in it.”
[al-ʿIlal al-Mutanāhiyah: 776]✿ ④ Ḥadīth of ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنه:
Arabic:
من صلى بعد المغرب ستا غفر له بها
Translation:
“Whoever prays six rakʿāt after Maghrib, he will be forgiven thereby.”
[ʿIlal al-Ḥadīth by Ibn Abī Ḥātim: 2/51]Ruling: Fabricated (من گھڑت روایت)
➊ Muḥammad bin Ghazwān – munkar al-ḥadīth
➋ Waḍīn bin ʿAṭā’ – weak and reports munkar narrations
– Imām Abū Zurʿah al-Rāzī رحمه الله said:
"اضربوا على هذا الحديث فإنه شبه موضوع"
“Strike out this ḥadīth; it is fabricated.”
[ʿIlal Ibn Abī Ḥātim: 2/51]✿ ⑤ Another Report from ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنه:
Arabic:
صلاة الأوابين ما بين أن يلتفت أهل المغرب إلى أن ينوب إلى العشاء
Translation:
“The Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn is between when people finish Maghrib until ʿIshāʾ.”
[Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 2/196]Ruling: Chain is weak.
➊ Mūsā bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī – weak narrator
– Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله said:
"ضعيف عند الأكثرين"
“Weak according to most scholars.”
[Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr under Sūrat al-Isrāʾ: 44]➋ The hearing of ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī from Ibn ʿUmar is not established.
✿ ⑥ Another Ḥadīth from ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar رضي الله عنه:
Arabic:
من صلى أربعا بعد المغرب كان كالمُعقّب غزوة بعد غزوة
Translation:
“Whoever prays four rakʿāt after Maghrib is like one who follows up battle after battle.”
[Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 2/196]Ruling: Chain is weak.
➊ Mūsā bin ʿUbaydah al-Rabzī – weak
➋ Ayyūb bin Khālid – subject to criticism
➌ No proof of Ayyūb's direct hearing from Ibn ʿUmar
✿ ⑦ Interpretation of the Verse ﴿تَتَجَافَى جُنُوبُهُمْ﴾ [Sūrat al-Sajdah: 16]
Ibn al-Munkadir and Abū Ḥāzim said in its tafsīr:
هي ما بين المغرب وصلاة العشاء صلاة الأوابين
Translation:
“This refers to Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn, offered between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ.”
[al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī: 3/19]Ruling: Chain is weak.
– ʿAbdullāh bin Lahīʿah is weak, confused (mukhtaṭil), and mudallis.
– The narration attributed to Ibn ʿAbbās is without chain.
– Some people refer to this prayer as Ṣalāt al-Awwābīn, which is incorrect.
❖ Final Note:
Non-specific voluntary prayers between Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ are proven from the Prophet ﷺ, as mentioned under authentic voluntary prayers. However, specifying certain rakʿāt or attributing specific rewards to them is not established from the Prophet ﷺ through authentic chains.
