❖ Introduction
This article is derived from the book Tuhfa Hanafiya by Maulana Abu Sohaib Dawood Arshad ḥafiẓahullāh. It serves as a detailed response to the book Tuhfa Ahl-e-Hadith written by the Deobandi scholar Abu Bilal Jhangvi.❖ Is the Practice of Eight Rak'ahs Tarawih Not the Way of Ahl al-Sunnah?
Jhangvi Sahib claims that Ahl al-Sunnah do not support fewer than twenty rak‘ahs of Tarawih, whereas the Ghair Muqallid (non-conformists) believe in eight rak‘ahs.(Tuhfa Ahl-e-Hadith, p. 54)
① Response - Firstly:
Eight rak‘ahs of Tarawih are established through authentic Sunnah. The Companions acted upon it. Imam Malik chose this practice. Several senior Hanafi scholars have accepted eight rak‘ahs as Sunnah (details forthcoming). Does this mean all of them are outside the fold of Ahl al-Sunnah? Please clarify.② Secondly:
Eight rak‘ahs of Tarawih are established by authentic Ahadith. Imam Abu Salamah raḥimahullāh asked ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها:(كيف كانت صلوة رسول الله له في رمضان فقالت ما كان يزيد في رمضان ولا في غيره على احدى عشرة ركعة )
She replied: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not pray more than eleven rak‘ahs in Ramadan or outside of it.
(Bukhari p. 269 v. 1 | Muslim p. 254)
Jabir رضي الله عنه states:
(صلى بناء رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في شهر رمضان ثمان ركعات و اوتر)
We prayed eight rak‘ahs of Tarawih in congregation with the Prophet ﷺ in Ramadan and also Witr.
(Sahih Ibn Hibban p. 64 v. 5, Hadith no. 2406 | Ibn Khuzaymah p. 138 v. 2, Hadith no. 1070 | Musnad Ya‘la p. 326 v. 2, Hadith no. 1796)
Jabir رضي الله عنه also narrates that Ubayy ibn Kaʿb رضي الله عنه told the Prophet ﷺ he led his household women in eight rak‘ahs of Tarawih and Witr. The Prophet ﷺ remained silent, which indicated his approval.
(Sahih Ibn Hibban p. 111 v. 5, Hadith no. 2541 | Musnad Abu Yaʿla p. 326 v. 2, Hadith no. 1795 | Musnad Ahmad p. 115 v. 5 | Al-Ṭabarānī al-Awsaṭ p. 441 v. 4, Hadith no. 3743)
Al-Haythami graded Ṭabarānī’s chain as ḥasan (Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid p. 77 v. 2). Even Jhangvi Sahib’s teacher, Sarfaraz Khan Safdar, affirms the credibility of al-Haythami. (Ahsan al-Kalam p. 290 v. 1)
This ḥadīth highlights the Sunnah of tacit approval and also affirms the number of eight rak‘ahs.
③ Thirdly:
In addition to the aforementioned Marfu‘ narrations, there is historical evidence from the Caliphate of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb رضي الله عنه. Imam al-Sāʾib ibn Yazīd states:(امر عمر بن الخطاب ابی بن كعب وتميما الدارى ان يقوم للناس باحدى عشرة ركعة )
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ordered Ubayy ibn Kaʿb and Tamim al-Dari to lead the people in eleven rak‘ahs of Qiyām in Ramadan.
(Muwaṭṭa Imam Mālik p. 98 | Bayhaqi p. 496 v. 2 | Sharḥ Maʿāni al-Āthār p. 202)
Deobandi Hanafi scholar ʿAllāmah Nawawi confirms the authenticity of this narration (Āthār al-Sunan p. 250).
❖ Hanafi Scholars Supporting the Sunnah of Eight Rak‘ahs Tarawih
✔ Imam Ibn Hammam Hanafi (d. 681H):Eleven rak‘ahs in congregation including Witr are Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ offered this amount and left it due to concern of it being made obligatory.
(Fath al-Qadir p. 407 v. 1)
✔ Allāmah Taḥṭāwī:
The Prophet ﷺ did not pray twenty rak‘ahs; rather, he prayed eight.
(Taḥṭāwī ʿala al-Durr al-Mukhtār p. 495 v. 1)
✔ Ibn ʿĀbidīn:
According to evidence, eight rak‘ahs are Sunnah; the rest are mustaḥabb.
(Fatāwā Shāmī p. 45 v. 2)
✔ Mulla ʿAli al-Qārī:
Originally, Tarawih including Witr was eleven rak‘ahs; twenty is mustaḥabb.
(Sharḥ al-Mishkāt p. 115 | Mirqāt al-Mafātīḥ p. 194 v. 3)
✔ Nawab Qutb al-Dīn Hanafi:
Sometimes ʿUmar رضي الله عنه had eleven rak‘ahs led to imitate the Prophet ﷺ.
(Maẓāhir al-Ḥaqq p. 421 v. 1)
✔ Shaykh ʿAbd al-Ḥaqq al-Dihlawī:
During the era of ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz, some prayed eleven rak‘ahs to imitate the Prophet ﷺ.
(Mā Thabata bi al-Sunnah p. 220)
✔ Allāmah ʿAynī:
Some say Tarawih is eleven rak‘ahs, which was preferred by Imam Mālik and Ibn al-ʿArabī.
(ʿUmdat al-Qārī p. 357 v. 5)
✔ Mufti Kifāyatullāh's Deputy, Maulana Ḥabīb al-Mursalīn:
The ḥadīth of Jabir about Tarawih is ṣaḥīḥ; hence, eight rak‘ahs is the authentic Sunnah.
(Kifāyat al-Muftī p. 352 v. 3)
Note: Maulana later retracted this fatwa for strategic reasons.
✔ Mufti Kifāyatullāh:
Most narrations confirm the Prophet ﷺ prayed eight rak‘ahs in Tarawih.
(Kifāyat al-Muftī p. 363 v. 3)
Also notes that ʿUmar رضي الله عنه instructed Ubayy and Tamim to lead eleven rak‘ahs.
(ibid p. 351 v. 3)
Jhangvi Sahib must clarify: were these individuals part of Ahl al-Sunnah or not, especially ʿUmar رضي الله عنه, who ordered eight rak‘ahs? The often-cited narration of twenty rak‘ahs during ʿUmar’s reign is disconnected (munqatiʿ). For details, refer to Dīn al-Ḥaqq p. 531 v. 1.
❖ Are Tarawih and Tahajjud Different Prayers?
Jhangvi Sahib claims that Ahl al-Sunnah consider Tahajjud and Tarawih as separate prayers, whereas Ahl al-Ḥadīth see them as the same.(Tuhfa Ahl-e-Hadith p. 56)
Previously quoted ḥadīth shows ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها said the Prophet ﷺ never exceeded eleven rak‘ahs in Ramadan or outside.
(Bukhari p. 269 v. 1 | Muslim p. 254 v. 1)
This implies ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها considered Tahajjud and Tarawih the same. Otherwise, her answer would be incorrect, which is unacceptable. Additionally, several scholars listed this narration under Tarawih:
– Imam Bukhari
– Imam Bayhaqi (al-Sunan al-Kubra p. 495 v. 2)
– ʿAllāmah Zaylaʿi (Naṣb al-Rāyah p. 153 v. 2)
– Ibn Hammam (Fath al-Qadir p. 407 v. 1)
– Sharṇbalālī (Marāqī al-Falāḥ p. 224)
– Ibn Najīm (al-Baḥr al-Rāʾiq p. 66-67 v. 2)
✔ Maulana Anwar Shah Kashmiri (Deobandi Hanafi):
There is no choice but to accept that the Prophet’s ﷺ Tarawih was eight rak‘ahs, and no narration shows he prayed Tahajjud and Tarawih separately in Ramadan. The difference was in timing and style, not in rak‘ahs.
(Muṭarjam al-ʿArf al-Shadhī p. 282 v. 1)
Further elaborated in Fayḍ al-Bārī p. 240 v. 2. For full explanation, see Dīn al-Ḥaqq p. 520 v. 19. Even Maulana ʿAbd al-Ḥayy Lakhnawī affirms this view in Majmūʿat al-Fatāwā p. 1329.
Let Jhangvi Sahib now publicly declare these senior Deobandi scholars outside Ahl al-Sunnah, if he dares.
