Authored by: Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amaanpuri (حفظه الله)
مَنْ قَرَأَ فِي إِثْرِ وُضُوئِہ : ﴿إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ﴾ ، مَرَّةً وَّاحِدَةً، كَانَ مِنَ الصِّدِّيقِينَ، وَمَنْ قَرَأَهَا مَرَّتَيْنِ، كُتِبَ فِي دِيوَانِ الشُّهَدَاءِ، وَمَنْ قَرَأَهَا ثَلَاثًا، حَشَرَهُ اللهُ مَحْشَرَ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ .
“Whoever recites Surah Al-Qadr once after performing Wudu will be counted among the truthful (Ṣiddiqīn); whoever recites it twice, his name will be registered among the martyrs; and whoever recites it thrice, Allah will raise him on the Day of Judgment with the Prophets.”
[Musnad al-Daylami, quoted in Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā by Al-Suyūṭī: 1/339]
وَأَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ مَجْهُولٌ .
“Abū ‘Ubaydah is unknown (Majhūl).”
[ibid.]
◈ Ibn Ḥajar Al-Haytamī رحمه الله (909–974 AH) also stated:
وفي سنده مجهول .
“There is an unknown narrator in the chain.”
[Al-Fatāwā Al-Fiqhiyyah Al-Kubrā: 1/59]
Furthermore, the chain includes tadlīs (concealment) from Imām Ḥasan al-Baṣrī رحمه الله, and the narration below Abū ‘Ubaydah is also missing.
◈ Ḥāfiẓ Al-Sakhāwī رحمه الله (831–902 AH) commented:
وكذا قرائة سورة ﴿إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَاهُ﴾ عقب الوضوء، لا اصل له
“Similarly, reciting Surah Al-Qadr after Wudu has no basis (i.e., it is an innovation).”
[Al-Maqāṣid al-Ḥasanah, p. 664]
The recitation of Surah Al-Qadr after Wudu or while washing the feet during it is baseless and considered a Bid‘ah. The narration that supports this practice is unreliable due to the presence of unknown narrators and disconnected chains, and it lacks any foundation in authentic Sunnah.
❖ Question:
What is the ruling on reciting Surah Al-Qadr after Wudu or while washing the feet during Wudu?❖ Answer:
This practice is a Bid‘ah (innovation). There exists an unauthenticated narration on this matter, reported from Sayyiduna Anas رضي الله عنه in which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is purported to have said:مَنْ قَرَأَ فِي إِثْرِ وُضُوئِہ : ﴿إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ﴾ ، مَرَّةً وَّاحِدَةً، كَانَ مِنَ الصِّدِّيقِينَ، وَمَنْ قَرَأَهَا مَرَّتَيْنِ، كُتِبَ فِي دِيوَانِ الشُّهَدَاءِ، وَمَنْ قَرَأَهَا ثَلَاثًا، حَشَرَهُ اللهُ مَحْشَرَ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ .
“Whoever recites Surah Al-Qadr once after performing Wudu will be counted among the truthful (Ṣiddiqīn); whoever recites it twice, his name will be registered among the martyrs; and whoever recites it thrice, Allah will raise him on the Day of Judgment with the Prophets.”
[Musnad al-Daylami, quoted in Al-Ḥāwī lil-Fatāwā by Al-Suyūṭī: 1/339]
❖ Scholarly Analysis:
◈ Imam Al-Suyūṭī رحمه الله (d. 911 AH) wrote regarding one of the narrators:وَأَبُو عُبَيْدَةَ مَجْهُولٌ .
“Abū ‘Ubaydah is unknown (Majhūl).”
[ibid.]
◈ Ibn Ḥajar Al-Haytamī رحمه الله (909–974 AH) also stated:
وفي سنده مجهول .
“There is an unknown narrator in the chain.”
[Al-Fatāwā Al-Fiqhiyyah Al-Kubrā: 1/59]
Furthermore, the chain includes tadlīs (concealment) from Imām Ḥasan al-Baṣrī رحمه الله, and the narration below Abū ‘Ubaydah is also missing.
◈ Ḥāfiẓ Al-Sakhāwī رحمه الله (831–902 AH) commented:
وكذا قرائة سورة ﴿إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَاهُ﴾ عقب الوضوء، لا اصل له
“Similarly, reciting Surah Al-Qadr after Wudu has no basis (i.e., it is an innovation).”
[Al-Maqāṣid al-Ḥasanah, p. 664]
Conclusion:
