Reference: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 494
What do the scholars, muhaddithīn, and researchers say about offering Nawāfil in congregation after Tarawih? Is it permissible in the light of Sharī‘ah? If a scholar arranges for congregational Nawāfil during the nights of Ramadan with regularity, does this contradict the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ? Would such an act be considered Bid‘ah?
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd:
This issue has two important aspects:
➊ Performing Nawāfil in congregation.
➋ Making it a regular, organized, and insisted-upon practice in a particular time or month.
◈ This practice is established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
◈ In Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Vol. 1, p. 87), ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهما) narrates that he joined the Prophet ﷺ in Tahajjud when he was praying at the house of Maymūnah (رضي الله عنها).
◈ Similarly, in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb Ṣalāt an-Nawāfil Jamāʿah (Vol. 1, p. 581), the incident of ʿItbān ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه) is reported.
These narrations show that congregational Nawāfil are permissible.
➝ However, this refers to occasional and coincidental congregations, not organized ones.
◈ If Nawāfil are arranged with regularity, advertisement, and gathering of men and women, then this is not permissible but rather Bid‘ah.
◈ Even the two Rak‘ahs after Witr are reported from the Prophet ﷺ, but as Imām al-Nawawī (رحمه الله) clarified, he ﷺ did not perform them with consistency (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Bāb Ṣalāt al-Layl wa ʿAdad ar-Rakʿāt, Vol. 1, p. 254).
◈ If a permissible Nawāfil is bound by specific time, fixed arrangement, or continuous insistence, it becomes Bid‘ah.
◈ Example: Ṣalāt al-Ḍuḥā is authentically proven in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Vol. 1, p. 157) and the Prophet ﷺ recommended it to Abū Hurayrah (رضي الله عنه). Yet ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) called its congregation a Bid‘ah (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Vol. 1, p. 238; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim with Nawawī, Vol. 1, p. 409).
Imām al-Nawawī explained:
“What Ibn ʿUmar meant was that gathering and showing it publicly is Bid‘ah, not the prayer itself.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Vol. 1, p. 409)
◈ Dhikr such as Subḥān Allāh, Alḥamdu lillāh, and Lā ilāha illa Allāh are highly virtuous.
◈ Yet when done with special forms and organized circles, it turns into misguidance.
As in Musnad Dārimī (Vol. 1, p. 6), when people made Dhikr with pebbles, ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه) rebuked them:
“How quickly you are heading to destruction, O Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ… You are opening the door of misguidance.”
◈ Acts of worship should only be performed in the manner transmitted from Sharī‘ah.
◈ If a non-fixed worship is tied to a specific time or form not legislated, it becomes Bid‘ah.
◈ Hence Ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) declared congregational Duḥā as Bid‘ah, and Ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه) condemned organized Dhikr circles.
In al-Iʿtiṣām (Vol. 1, pp. 200, 220, 254), he explained:
◈ Assigning special form or time to an act of worship not proven from Sharī‘ah is Bid‘ah.
◈ Regular organized Nawāfil are an unwarranted addition to the Dīn.
◈ Since Nawāfil are recommended to be kept hidden, arranging them with collective insistence in Ramadan is Bid‘ah even more so.
◈ Occasional congregational Nawāfil are permissible.
◈ Two Rak‘ahs after Witr are also permissible, but not as a fixed practice.
◈ Organized, continuous, and collective Nawāfil after Tarawih are Bid‘ah.
◈ This practice is not transmitted from the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions (رضي الله عنهم), or the Tābiʿīn.
◈ Therefore, in the light of Sharī‘ah, it is clear that such practice is an innovation.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
❖ Question
What do the scholars, muhaddithīn, and researchers say about offering Nawāfil in congregation after Tarawih? Is it permissible in the light of Sharī‘ah? If a scholar arranges for congregational Nawāfil during the nights of Ramadan with regularity, does this contradict the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ? Would such an act be considered Bid‘ah?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd:
This issue has two important aspects:
➊ Performing Nawāfil in congregation.
➋ Making it a regular, organized, and insisted-upon practice in a particular time or month.
✦ 1. Evidence for Congregational Nawāfil
◈ This practice is established from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
◈ In Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Vol. 1, p. 87), ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنهما) narrates that he joined the Prophet ﷺ in Tahajjud when he was praying at the house of Maymūnah (رضي الله عنها).
◈ Similarly, in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Kitāb Ṣalāt an-Nawāfil Jamāʿah (Vol. 1, p. 581), the incident of ʿItbān ibn Mālik (رضي الله عنه) is reported.
These narrations show that congregational Nawāfil are permissible.
➝ However, this refers to occasional and coincidental congregations, not organized ones.
✦ 2. Making Nawāfil Congregation a Regular Practice
◈ If Nawāfil are arranged with regularity, advertisement, and gathering of men and women, then this is not permissible but rather Bid‘ah.
◈ Even the two Rak‘ahs after Witr are reported from the Prophet ﷺ, but as Imām al-Nawawī (رحمه الله) clarified, he ﷺ did not perform them with consistency (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Bāb Ṣalāt al-Layl wa ʿAdad ar-Rakʿāt, Vol. 1, p. 254).
✦ 3. How Permissible Acts Turn into Bid‘ah
◈ If a permissible Nawāfil is bound by specific time, fixed arrangement, or continuous insistence, it becomes Bid‘ah.
◈ Example: Ṣalāt al-Ḍuḥā is authentically proven in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī (Vol. 1, p. 157) and the Prophet ﷺ recommended it to Abū Hurayrah (رضي الله عنه). Yet ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) called its congregation a Bid‘ah (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Vol. 1, p. 238; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim with Nawawī, Vol. 1, p. 409).
Imām al-Nawawī explained:
“What Ibn ʿUmar meant was that gathering and showing it publicly is Bid‘ah, not the prayer itself.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Vol. 1, p. 409)
✦ 4. Example from Dhikr Gatherings
◈ Dhikr such as Subḥān Allāh, Alḥamdu lillāh, and Lā ilāha illa Allāh are highly virtuous.
◈ Yet when done with special forms and organized circles, it turns into misguidance.
As in Musnad Dārimī (Vol. 1, p. 6), when people made Dhikr with pebbles, ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه) rebuked them:
“How quickly you are heading to destruction, O Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ… You are opening the door of misguidance.”
✦ 5. Principle in Sharī‘ah
◈ Acts of worship should only be performed in the manner transmitted from Sharī‘ah.
◈ If a non-fixed worship is tied to a specific time or form not legislated, it becomes Bid‘ah.
◈ Hence Ibn ʿUmar (رضي الله عنهما) declared congregational Duḥā as Bid‘ah, and Ibn Masʿūd (رضي الله عنه) condemned organized Dhikr circles.
✦ 6. Clarification of Imām al-Shāṭibī (رحمه الله)
In al-Iʿtiṣām (Vol. 1, pp. 200, 220, 254), he explained:
◈ Assigning special form or time to an act of worship not proven from Sharī‘ah is Bid‘ah.
◈ Regular organized Nawāfil are an unwarranted addition to the Dīn.
◈ Since Nawāfil are recommended to be kept hidden, arranging them with collective insistence in Ramadan is Bid‘ah even more so.
✦ Conclusion
◈ Occasional congregational Nawāfil are permissible.
◈ Two Rak‘ahs after Witr are also permissible, but not as a fixed practice.
◈ Organized, continuous, and collective Nawāfil after Tarawih are Bid‘ah.
◈ This practice is not transmitted from the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions (رضي الله عنهم), or the Tābiʿīn.
◈ Therefore, in the light of Sharī‘ah, it is clear that such practice is an innovation.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
