Reference: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 489
In al-Iʿtiṣām regarding the issue of Tarawih, an article argued on the basis of the narration of ʿĀ’ishah (رضي الله عنها) that Sunnah Tarawih is eight rak‘ahs, since the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would perform eleven rak‘ahs (eight nafl + three witr) in both Ramadan and outside of it.
So the questions are:
◄ What was the name of this prayer outside of Ramadan?
◄ Why is that same name not used in Ramadan?
◄ Who named this prayer “Tarawih” in Ramadan — Allah, the Messenger ﷺ, the Four Caliphs, or the scholars?
◄ Since the same prayer is called “Tahajjud” all year round, who invented the name “Tarawih”?
◄ If the name is not mentioned in Qur’an and Hadith, is it then a bid‘ah?
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd:
◄ Ṣalāt at-Tarawih, Qiyām Ramadan, Ṣalāt al-Layl, Qiyām al-Layl, and Tahajjud are in essence one and the same prayer, known by five different names.
◄ There is no authentic proof that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ever performed another distinct Tahajjud besides Tarawih in Ramadan.
◄ The very prayer performed in the nights of non-Ramadan as Tahajjud is the same that is called Tarawih in Ramadan.
◄ The Hadith of Abū Dharr (رضي الله عنه) is a clear evidence of this.
Imām Mubārakpūrī (رحمه الله) writes in Mirʿāt al-Mafātīḥ:
“Know that Tarawih, Qiyām Ramadan, Ṣalāt al-Layl, and Tahajjud in Ramadan all refer to the same thing. It is not established from any authentic or weak narration that the Prophet ﷺ performed two separate prayers in Ramadan — one as Tarawih and the other as Tahajjud. Rather, the Tahajjud outside of Ramadan is the Tarawih in Ramadan, as indicated by the Hadith of Abū Dharr and others.”
(Mirʿāt al-Mafātīḥ, Vol. 2, p. 225)
Mawlānā Anwar Shāh Kashmīrī (رحمه الله) said:
“What I hold as correct is that Tarawih and Ṣalāt al-Layl are one prayer, though their characteristics appear different. Tarawih is performed in Ramadan, often in congregation, sometimes in the early night, sometimes near dawn. Tahajjud outside Ramadan was performed in the last part of the night, and without congregation. To call them two different prayers on the basis of such differing attributes is not correct; in reality, they are one and the same prayer.”
(Fayḍ al-Bārī, quoted in Mirʿāt, Vol. 2, p. 225)
◄ In Ramadan, the Prophet ﷺ performed eleven rak‘ahs:
➊ Eight rak‘ahs (Tahajjud/Tarawih)
➋ Three rak‘ahs (Witr)
This prayer is termed Qiyām al-Ramadan in authentic sources, such as:
◄ By the time of Imām al-Bukhārī (رحمه الله), scholars had begun using the term “Tarawih” for Qiyām Ramadan.
◄ This is why in some manuscripts of Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī the chapter heading “Bāb at-Tarawih” appears.
◄ However, there is no Hadith in which the name Tarawih was used by Allah, the Messenger ﷺ, or the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
◄ It is a later descriptive term coined by the scholars and people.
◈ The act of Qiyām Ramadan is authentically established from the Prophet ﷺ.
◈ The name Tarawih is an ʿurfī (customary) term adopted later by the scholars and people.
◈ Using this customary name does not make the prayer an innovation (bidʿah), since the actual act itself (Qiyām in Ramadan) is firmly established from the Sunnah.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
❖ Question
In al-Iʿtiṣām regarding the issue of Tarawih, an article argued on the basis of the narration of ʿĀ’ishah (رضي الله عنها) that Sunnah Tarawih is eight rak‘ahs, since the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would perform eleven rak‘ahs (eight nafl + three witr) in both Ramadan and outside of it.
So the questions are:
◄ What was the name of this prayer outside of Ramadan?
◄ Why is that same name not used in Ramadan?
◄ Who named this prayer “Tarawih” in Ramadan — Allah, the Messenger ﷺ, the Four Caliphs, or the scholars?
◄ Since the same prayer is called “Tahajjud” all year round, who invented the name “Tarawih”?
◄ If the name is not mentioned in Qur’an and Hadith, is it then a bid‘ah?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd:
◄ Ṣalāt at-Tarawih, Qiyām Ramadan, Ṣalāt al-Layl, Qiyām al-Layl, and Tahajjud are in essence one and the same prayer, known by five different names.
◄ There is no authentic proof that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ever performed another distinct Tahajjud besides Tarawih in Ramadan.
◄ The very prayer performed in the nights of non-Ramadan as Tahajjud is the same that is called Tarawih in Ramadan.
◄ The Hadith of Abū Dharr (رضي الله عنه) is a clear evidence of this.
✦ Commentary of the Scholars
Imām Mubārakpūrī (رحمه الله) writes in Mirʿāt al-Mafātīḥ:
“Know that Tarawih, Qiyām Ramadan, Ṣalāt al-Layl, and Tahajjud in Ramadan all refer to the same thing. It is not established from any authentic or weak narration that the Prophet ﷺ performed two separate prayers in Ramadan — one as Tarawih and the other as Tahajjud. Rather, the Tahajjud outside of Ramadan is the Tarawih in Ramadan, as indicated by the Hadith of Abū Dharr and others.”
(Mirʿāt al-Mafātīḥ, Vol. 2, p. 225)
Mawlānā Anwar Shāh Kashmīrī (رحمه الله) said:
“What I hold as correct is that Tarawih and Ṣalāt al-Layl are one prayer, though their characteristics appear different. Tarawih is performed in Ramadan, often in congregation, sometimes in the early night, sometimes near dawn. Tahajjud outside Ramadan was performed in the last part of the night, and without congregation. To call them two different prayers on the basis of such differing attributes is not correct; in reality, they are one and the same prayer.”
(Fayḍ al-Bārī, quoted in Mirʿāt, Vol. 2, p. 225)
✦ The Practice of the Prophet ﷺ
◄ In Ramadan, the Prophet ﷺ performed eleven rak‘ahs:
➊ Eight rak‘ahs (Tahajjud/Tarawih)
➋ Three rak‘ahs (Witr)
This prayer is termed Qiyām al-Ramadan in authentic sources, such as:
- Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim
- Jāmiʿ at-Tirmidhī
- Sunan Abī Dāwūd
- Muwaṭṭa’ of Imām Mālik
- Muwaṭṭa’ of Imām Muḥammad
✦ Origin of the Name “Tarawih”
◄ By the time of Imām al-Bukhārī (رحمه الله), scholars had begun using the term “Tarawih” for Qiyām Ramadan.
◄ This is why in some manuscripts of Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī the chapter heading “Bāb at-Tarawih” appears.
◄ However, there is no Hadith in which the name Tarawih was used by Allah, the Messenger ﷺ, or the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
◄ It is a later descriptive term coined by the scholars and people.
✦ Conclusion
◈ The act of Qiyām Ramadan is authentically established from the Prophet ﷺ.
◈ The name Tarawih is an ʿurfī (customary) term adopted later by the scholars and people.
◈ Using this customary name does not make the prayer an innovation (bidʿah), since the actual act itself (Qiyām in Ramadan) is firmly established from the Sunnah.
ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
