Did Imām Mālik Hold the View that Tarāwīḥ Consists of 11 Rak‘āt?
Taken from: Fatāwā ‘Ilmiyyah, Vol. 1 – Uṣūl, Takhrīj, and Ḥadīth Analysis, p. 670
❖ The Question
It has been claimed by A‘zamī Deobandī:
“The conclusion is that Imām Mālik (رحمه الله) held two opinions: one of eleven rak‘āt (if proven), and the second of twenty. Among his followers, only one person — Abū Bakr ibn al-‘Arabī — held the view of eleven rak‘āt.”
(Raka‘āt al-Tarāwīḥ, p. 14)
Is this claim correct?
❖ The Answer
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger. To proceed:
Al-‘Allāmah Abū al-‘Abbās Aḥmad ibn ‘Umar ibn Ibrāhīm al-Qurṭubī al-Mālikī (d. 656H) wrote:
"وقال الشافعي عشرون ركعة وقال كثير من اهل العلم احدي عشرة ركعة اخذا بحديث عائشه المتقدم"
Translation:
“Imām al-Shāfi‘ī said twenty rak‘āt, and many of the people of knowledge said eleven rak‘āt, basing their ruling on the earlier ḥadīth of Umm al-Mu’minīn ‘Ā’ishah (رضي الله عنها).”
(al-Mu‘jam limā Ashkala min Talkhīṣ Kitāb Muslim, vol. 2, pp. 389–390, under ḥadīth 639)
Statement Regarding Abū al-‘Abbās al-Qurṭubī
Ibn al-‘Imād said about him:
"المالكي المحدث الشاهد نزيل الأسكندرية كان من كبار الأئمة"
Translation:
“He was a Mālikī, a muḥaddith, a witness, a resident of Alexandria, and among the great imams.”
(Shadharāt al-Dhahab, vol. 5, p. 274)
❖ Conclusion
The claim that only Ibn al-‘Arabī among the Mālikīs held the view of eleven rak‘āt is incorrect.
Reliable Mālikī authorities such as Abū al-‘Abbās al-Qurṭubī clearly reported that many scholars — including Mālikīs — held the opinion of eleven rak‘āt, based on the ḥadīth of ‘Ā’ishah (رضي الله عنها).
ھذا ما عندي، والله أعلم بالصواب
