The Virtue of Tahajjud Prayer
Important Points Mentioned:
- Meaning of Tahajjud.
- Rak‘ahs (Units) of Tahajjud.
- Tahajjud and the Routine of the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم ۔
- Tahajjud During Ramadan.
- Virtue of Tahajjud Prayer.
- Minimum Rak‘ahs of Tahajjud.
- What is the time for Tahajjud prayer?
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| What is the virtue of Tahajjud prayer |
In the Holy Qur'an, Allah Almighty instructed His beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ about the Tahajjud prayer:
وَمِنَ الَّيْلِ فَتَهَجَّدْ بِهِ نَافِلَهُ لَكَ (الاسراء)
"And during a portion of the night, pray
Tahajjud as an additional prayer for you."
(Surah Al-Isra)
1-Meaning of Tahajjud:
Ibn Qutaybah said that tahajjadt means: “I woke up,” and tahajjud
means: “to sleep,” and the specialty of the “taf'ul” form is to negate
the root, thus tahajjud means: “to remove sleep.” If a person remains
awake all night and then prays, that is not considered Tahajjud. Tahajjud is
when a person sleeps and then wakes up to pray. Because Allah says:
“And during a portion of the night, pray Tahajjud.”
This means that if someone stays awake all night and offers voluntary prayers,
it is not Tahajjud. It becomes Tahajjud only when one sleeps after Isha prayer,
then wakes up and performs prayer.
(Tafsir Tibyan al-Qur’an by Saeedi)
2-Rak‘ahs (Units) of Tahajjud:
Various rak‘ahs of Tahajjud including Witr have been narrated from the Prophet ﷺ. For example:
- Imam Bukhari narrated from Aisha (RA) that the Prophet ﷺ prayed 7 or 9 rak‘ahs.
- Khalid bin Zayd narrated 11 rak‘ahs.
- Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim narrated from Ibn Abbas (RA) that the
Prophet ﷺ prayed 13
rak‘ahs for Tahajjud, and after dawn, he prayed 2 rak‘ahs of Fajr Sunnah.
(i.e., 13 rak‘ahs of Tahajjud including Witr, and 2 rak‘ahs of Sunnah
after dawn, totaling 15 rak‘ahs).
The reconciliation among these narrations is that the Prophet ﷺ in his youth prayed more rak‘ahs, and as Aisha (RA) narrates,
in his later years he would pray 7 rak‘ahs. The wisdom behind this is to
provide ease and flexibility for the Ummah. Whoever prays according to his
strength and capacity among these rak‘ahs will still be following the Sunnah.
In summary, the Prophet ﷺ prayed at least 7 and
at most 13 rak‘ahs for Tahajjud, including Witr.
(Tafsir Tibyan al-Qur’an, Surah Al-Isra 17:79)
3-Tahajjud and the Routine of the Prophet ﷺ:
أَبُو حَنِيفَةَ : عَنْ زِيَادٍ، عَنِ الْمُغِيرَةِ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ، قَالَ:
كَانَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَیْهِ وسلم عَامَّةَ اللَّيْلِ حَتَّى تَوَرَّمَتْ
قَدَمَاهُ، فَقَالَ لَهُ أَصْحَابُهُ: أَلَيْسَ قَدْ غُفِرَ لَكَ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ
ذنبک وما تأخر؟ قَالَ: أَفَلَا أَكُونُ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا۔
Translation:
From Abu Hanifah, from Ziyad, from Al-Mughirah (RA), he said:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ would spend most of
the night in prayer until his feet would swell. His companions asked, ‘Has not
Allah forgiven your past and future sins?’ He ﷺ
replied, ‘Should I not be a grateful servant?’”
(Musnad Imam Azam)
According to Ummul Momineen Aisha (RA), in the
beginning verses of Surah Al-Muzzammil, Allah ordered the Prophet ﷺ to offer Tahajjud regularly. The Prophet ﷺ and his companions continued to perform
Tahajjud prayer regularly for a year, just like obligatory prayers. Later, the
last verse of the Surah brought ease (relaxation in obligation).
4-Tahajjud During Ramadan:
In the month of Ramadan, additional practices like recitation of the Qur'an,
fasting, and Tarawih prayers are added. In the last ten nights, the Prophet ﷺ would also perform I'tikaf. Every
moment of day and night in this holy month was spent in worship and devotion.
During these blessed nights, the Prophet ﷺ
would also involve his family in worship.
He ﷺ was so fond of worship, especially during
the last part of the night, that laziness had no place around him. He would
prolong standing, recitation, bowing, prostration, and sitting in such a manner
that his blessed feet would swell. Yet he never reduced his routine.
Once, seeing this unbearable hardship, the
Companions asked:
“O Messenger of Allah! You are the leader of all the Prophets and are sinless,
so why do you undergo such hardship in worship?”
The Prophet ﷺ replied beautifully:
“O my Companions! You are right, but should I not be a thankful servant to
Allah?”
(Sharh Musnad Imam Azam)
5-The Virtue of Tahajjud Prayer:
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“After the obligatory prayers, the most virtuous prayer is that of the
night.”
Hence, Allah mentions in the Qur’an the state of those who wake up during the
night to prostrate before their Lord.
تَتَجَافٰی جُنُوْبُہُمْ عَنِ الْمَضَاجِعِ یَدْعُوْنَ رَبَّہُمْ خَوْفاً وَّطَمَعاً۔۔۔
(الم سجدہ)
Translation:
“Their sides forsake their beds, they call upon
their Lord in fear and hope…”
(Surah As-Sajdah)
Allah Almighty also says:
کَانُوْا قَلِیْلاً مِّنَ اللَّیْلِ مَا یَھجَعُوْنَ وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ ھمْ
یَسْتَغْفِرُوْنَ۔ (الذاریات)
Translation:
“They used to sleep but little by night, and in the hours before dawn, they
would seek forgiveness.”
(Surah Adh-Dhariyat)
And in Surah Az-Zumar:
أَمَّنْ ھُوَ قَانِتٌ آنَائَ اللَّیْلِ سَاجِداً وَّقَائِماً یَّحْذَرُ الْأٰخِرَۃَ
وَیَرْجُواْ رَحْمَۃَ رَبِّہٖ، (الزمر)
Translation:
“Is one who is devoutly obedient during periods of the night, prostrating
and standing [in prayer], fearing the Hereafter and hoping for the mercy of his
Lord [like one who does not]?”
Ahadith About Tahajjud:
Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated that the Prophet ﷺ
said:
“Every night, when the last third of the night begins, Allah descends to the
lowest heaven and says: Is there anyone to make dua so that I may answer him?
Is there anyone to ask so that I may give him? Is there anyone to seek
forgiveness so that I may forgive him?”
(Sharh Musnad Imam Azam)
6-Minimum Rak‘ahs of Tahajjud:
As discussed above, the minimum number of rak‘ahs for Tahajjud is 2, and
the maximum is 12.
7-What is the time for Tahajjud prayer?
"The time for Salat
al-Tahajjud is not strictly fixed. After performing Salat al-Isha and sleeping,
a person may offer Tahajjud whenever they wake up before the time of Salat
al-Fajr begins. Sleeping is a condition for Tahajjud. However, the most
virtuous time for this prayer is during the last third of the night, which is
known as the time of Suhoor."
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