Making up witr

[Serendipity]

I remember missing witr prayer for about two weeks because I thought that they weren't wajib and you didn't have to do them, shall I make them up?

[Masriya]

Assalamoalaikum,

Witr prayer is non-obligatory and so you do not need to make up for it, but it has a high reward and it is preferable not to leave it.

The obligatory prayers are the five prayers: Fajr - Zuhr - Asr - Maghrib - Eisha

[BlissfullyJaded]

Yes, you make it up.

Abu Dawood narrated in his Sunan that Abu Sa’eed said: The Messenger of Allaah (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) said: “Whoever sleeps and misses Witr or forgets it, let him pray it when morning comes or he remembers.”

[Serendipity]

alright jazakallah khair

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[Masriya]

Asslamoalaikum,

I was answering your question: if you should make up witr for the past two weeks you missed; you don't have to.

Witr is a sunna muakada (confirmed sunna), that is, it is preferable to pray, as we should follow the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and we should follow his directions; he pointed out that this sunnah is so important that if you miss it at night, you should make it up the next day.

Fiqh Al-Sunna by Sheikh Sayed Sabiq:

The Witr Prayer

Its excellence and justification:
The witr prayer is one that the Prophet sallallahu alehi wasallam practiced and which he encouraged others to practice. As such, praying witr comes under as-sunnah almu'akkadah.
'Ali says: "The witr prayer is not required like your obligatory prayers, but the Prophet would perform the witr prayer and say: 'O you people [followers] of the Qur'an, perform the witr prayer, for Allah is one and He loves the witr.'" This is related by Ahmad, an-Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, at-Tirmizhi who calls it hasan, and al-Hakim who grades it sahih.

Ahmad, Abu Dawud, An-Nasa'i, and Ibn Majah record that Al-Mukhdaji [a person of the Kinana tribe] heard from one of the Ansar, nicknamed Abu Muhammad, that the witr prayer is obligatory. He went to 'Ibadah ibn as-Samit and mentioned to him what Abu Muhammad had said. 'Ibadah observed: "Abu Muhammad is mistaken for I heard the Messenger of Allah say: 'Five prayers are ordained by Allah for his slaves. Whoever fulfills them properly without any shortcoming, he will have a pact with Allah that He will admit him into paradise. Whoever does not do them, he will have no pact with Allah, and if He wills He may punish him and if He wills He may forgive him.'"

Also al-Bukhari and Muslim record from Talhah ibn 'Ubaidullah that the Prophet said: "Five prayers during the day and night have been prescribed by Allah." Hearing this a bedouin asked the Prophet: "Is there anything else upon me [in the way of prayer]?" The Prophet said: "No, unless you want to do more voluntarily."

Making up a missed witr
According to al-Baihaqi and al-Hakim, the majority of the scholars maintain that it is correct to make qada' for a missed witr prayer. Al-Hakim grades the following report by Abu Hurairah as sahih according to the criterion of al-Bukhari and Muslim.
Abu Hurairah reports that the Prophet said: "If the morning approaches, and you have yet to pray witr, you should pray the witr prayer." Abu Dawud records from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri that the Prophet said: "If one of you sleeps [past the time of] the witr prayer or he forgets it, he should pray it when he remembers it." Al-'Iraqi says that the chain of this hadith is sahih.
Ahmad and at-Tabarani record with a hasan chain that the Prophet sallallahu alehi wasallam would perform the witr prayer in the morning [if, for some reason, he had missed it during the night].

In conclusion sister Stardust:
- Witr pray is a confirmed Sunnah, meaning it is non-obligatory
- It is preferable to pray so try not leave it
- You can make it up the next day if you miss it at night
- You don't have to make up for the past two weeks you missed it

May Allah reward you for striving to worship Him as He best likes and keep you on the right path.

[Serendipity]

I rather make it up just in case, but its so confusing, am I supposed to do even rakats? And when do I do the tasleem?

[Masriya]

Asalamualaikum,

As I told you before, witr prayer is non-obligatory, if you leave it you are not punished for it, it is not haram to leave it. The only prayers that you have to pray are the five prayers.
Al-Bukhari and Muslim record from Talhah ibn 'Ubaidullah that the Prophet said: "Five prayers during the day and night have been prescribed by Allah." Hearing this a bedouin asked the Prophet: "Is there anything else upon me [in the way of prayer]?" The Prophet said: "No, unless you want to do more voluntarily."

So witr is a voluntary prayer.

Witr means praying an odd number of rakaat.
After the Eisha prayer (obligatory prayer) there are several sunnah (non-obligatory):
- two rakaat sunnah of Eisha
- pray night prayer or qiyam: with a minimum of two rakaat
- pray witr which is a minimum of one rakaa

So basically, witr is prayed after praying qiyam, you may:
- pray witr as three rakaat with two tashahud (like Maghrib) and read verses of the Quran after Fatiha in each rakka
or
- at the end of the qiyam pray (which is prayed two rakaat by two rakaat) after tasleem of the last two rakaat you pray one rakaa (witr).

The above are the most common ways for praying witr, but other ways have been reported of the prophet (peace be upon him), it is according to each person and how much they can pray as witr is voluntary.

Fiqh As - Sunnah by Sheikh Sayed Sabiq:

It is permissible to perform the witr by praying two rak'at [and concluding them] and then praying one
rak'ah with a tashahud and taslim. Likewise, it is allowed to pray all the rak'at with two tashahuds and
one taslim. One may pray a number of rak'at, one after another, without making any tashahud, save in
the one before the last rak'ah in which case one makes the tashahud and then stands to perform the
last rak'ah wherein one will make another tashahud and end the prayer with the taslim. One may also
make only one tashahud and the taslim, in the last rak'ah of witr. All of that is permissible and can be
traced to the Prophet.
Talking about the thirteen rak'at in witr, at-Tirmizhi says: "It has been related from the Prophet that he
would perform the witr prayer with thirteen, nine, seven, five, three rak'at or one rak'ah."

- You may read "Fiqh As-Sunnah by Sheikh Sayed Sabiq" , Chapter on Sunnah prayers and it will describe all the different ways you may pray sunnah. You may google it and download the book for free.

- If you are still confused I suggest you ask a scholar in your local mosque, or through the internet. This is the site for official fatwa in Egypt:
www (dot) dar-alifta (dot) org/FatwaRequest (dot) aspx

Salaam

[~Zaria~]

Assalamu-alaikum,

JazakAllah khayrun sister Masriya for taking the time to explain the above^.

Just to emphasise:

As you have rightly mentioned, the witr salaah is regarded as sunnah muakada (confirmed sunnah) (although there are some schools of thought who consider it obligatory).

This is not the equivalent of a 'voluntary' prayer.

There are ahadith that confirm it was enjoined by the prophet (sallahu alaihi wasalam), e.g (amongst others):

Abu Dawood (1416) narrated that ‘Ali (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “O people of the Qur’aan, pray Witr, for Allaah is One and loves that which is odd-numbered.”

We should not consider any sunnah of our beloved nabi (sallahu alaihi wasalam) as voluntary, but should strive to follow his blessed way in all regards, including that of the witr, insha Allah.

Unfortunately, as soon as we insert the word 'voluntary' to any aspect of deen, then it is treated as such by the ummah - and in most cases, goes neglected, losing enormous rewards as a result.
e.g. the same can be said with regards to the beard.

However, we should remember:

Allah Ta’ala has mentioned in the noble Qur’aan:
‘Those who disobey him (Rasulullah – sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) should beware of a trial or painful punishment that will afflict them.’ (Surah Noor 63)

Also, those who consider the witr as waajib (obligatory) - is based on the fact that any explicit command of Rasulullah (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) is regarded as such - if there is no clear reason/proof which states that that particular command is for preference.


So, we should strive and encourage others to perform all these acts of ibaadat that emulate the most beloved to Allah (subhanawataála), with the desire that we too, can be from amongst those most dear to Allah.


:wa:

[Muslim Woman]

:sl:


When I was in school , sadly I missed witr for 1 yr :(

how to offer it now ?

[~Zaria~]

:sl:


When I was in school , sadly I missed witr for 1 yr :(

how to offer it now ?

Wa-alikumsalam sister,

If you follow the Hanafi madhab, then yes, you will need to make up the missed witr salaah as well:

Question

Assalāmualaikum. What shall a person do if he missed Salātul Witr? If one prays Qiyāmul Layl every night and he usually prays Witr also in Qiyām but misses it one day what should he do? Is it necessary to do Qadhā of Witr if a person misses it?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

The performance of Salāt al-Witr is Wājib (necessary). Hence it is necessary to do Qadhā of Salāt al-Witr.

If one is not confident that he/she will wake up in the latter part of the night to offer Salāt al-Witr, then it should be performed before sleeping. Since it is such an emphasized prayer, one should not risk its performance by sleeping before offering Salāt al-Witr if one is unsure or doubtful of waking up to perform Qiyām al-Layl. [1]

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Mawlana Abdul Azīm bin Abdur Rahman,
Student Darul Iftaa
US

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
www.daruliftaa.net

[~Zaria~]

The thought of having to make up our missed salaah, perhaps even years in worth, may appear very daunting.

I found the following very useful, and insha Allah for those who may find themselves in this situation:

Assalāmu `alaikum Warahmatullāhi Wabrakatuh,

To perform five daily salah is fardh.

The obligation of performing salah is emphasized in Quran. In many places of the Quran Allah Ta’ala says “And establish Salah”. Establishing salah also means to perform salah on time. In another verse of the Quran Allah Ta’ala says :


حَافِظُوا عَلَى الصَّلَوَاتِ وَالصَّلَاةِ الْوُسْطَى
…Preserve Salah and (in particular) the middle Salah(Asr)… (Qur’ān 2:283)


Salāh is a mark of distinction between Iman and Kufr. The first thing a person will be questioned about on the day of Judgment will be about Salāh

One should ensure all his Salāh are on time. An adult muslim should never miss a single Salāh.

If for some reason a person missed Salāh he should repent sincerely and resort never to miss any Fardh Salāh in future. It is hoped that Allah Ta’āla will forgive one for making his Salāh Qadhā. Seeking forgiveness for a missed Salāh is not an alternative for the missed Salāh. One has to make Qadhā for a missed fardh and wājib Salāh



It also does not matter whether the missed Salāh were deliberate or unintentional.[i]

Qadhā Salāh can be offered anytime of the day except in the following 3 times:
a.) Sunrise.

b.) Midday (when the Sun is directly over it's central meridian, approximately 10 minutes before the time of Dhuhr begins.)

c.) As the Sun is setting (with the exception of the 'Asr Salāh of that same day, which may be offered even as the Sun is about to set.)


2.) You should try your best to calculate the number of Salāh that have been missed.

If you are not sure how many Salāh were missed, then it is better to use precaution and estimate a higher number than your best estimate.

The procedure of offering many missed Salāh, where one is not aware how many Salāh he missed is to make the following intention: “I'm making up my 1st missed Salāh of Fajr.”

Every time one makes up a missed Fajr he will make the same intention “I'm making up my 1st missed Salāh of Fajr Salāh,” and likewise for all the other missed Salāh: “I'm making up my 1st missed Salāh of Dhuhr Salāh,” and so on. [ii] [iii]

This is because since the exact dates are not known, every time a Qadhā Salāh is made up the next missed Salāh moves into the 1st position hence the repetition of the intention always being for the “1st missed Salāh of....”



3.) Qadhā Salāh will only be offered for the Fardh and the Witr as indicated below: [iv]

Name of Salāh: Fajr Dhuhr, 'Asr, & 'Ishā Maghrib & Witr Number of Rakāhs: 2 Rakāhs 4 Rakāhs* 3 Rakāhs

*If a person missed a Salāh while travelling then he will make up 2 rakāhs for the Salāh of Dhuhr, 'Asr and 'Ishā which he missed while traveling. The rakāhs of Fajr, Maghrib and Witr do not change.



There is no Qadhā for the Sunnah Salāh.

Example: A person missed the 4 Sunnah rakāhs prayed before the Dhuhr Salāh and prayed the Fardh first instead. He should still make up the Sunnah as long as the time of Dhuhr remains. After the time of that Dhuhr expires, there is no Qadhā for those Sunnah. [v]


Exception: The only exception to the rule is the Sunnah of the Fajr of the same day. If it is missed, you have from the time of Ishrāq (approximately 15 minutes after the Sunrise) to midday (approximately 10 minutes before the time of Dhuhr begins) to make up the Sunnah of the Fajr of the same day. After midday, there is no Qadhā of the Sunnah of the Fajr. [vi] [vii]



And Allāh knows best.
Ml. Sohail Bengali

Student, Darul Iftaa

Checked and Approved by:

Muftī Ebrahim Desai

http://www.askimam.org/public/question_detail/19177

This is a reminder to myself first and foremost.

May Allah (subhanawataa'la) grant us all steadfastness in making qadha of our missed salaah.

The first thing which will be judged among a man's deeds on the Day of Resurrection is the Prayer.
If this is in good order then he will succeed and prosper but if it is defective then he will fail and will be a loser. [Nasaa'ee, Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]


:wa:

[Masriya]

:sl:
Sorry for taking so long to post again (I was very busy and we're having many power-cuts lately so didn't get the time to post anything ); I don't want to re-open the subject again; Sister Zaria completed what I missed in my answers, but I want to clarify some points; I also for some reason couldn't PM sister StarDust.

Sister StarDust‎:
I just wanted to make sure how you're doing. You didn't reply to my last post concerning witr prayer so I thought you might be unhappy about something I said. I did not mean to force my opinion on you, but as it seemed you did not follow any opinion on the matter of witr prayer, so I gave you the opinion which most of the scholars / schools follow and that is, it is a 'confirmed sunnah'.

I told you to ask a scholar because I never met the question of making up witr for missed past weeks if you follow Hanafi opinion, as I don't follow the Hanafi school concerning that matter. And it's better to ask a scholar instead of being confused by the opinions of different schools.

The other thing I want to say is that the Prophet (pbuh) directed us to follow the easiest path if we are faced with a choice (unless it is a sin then we should completely leave it). Islam is 'deen yosr' i.e. a religion of ease. I also wasn't discouraging you to pray witr, but was trying to explain that you shouldn't be uneasy about the weeks you missed it.
I only meant well and in the end, whichever opinion you follow, you will be right.

Sister ~Zaria~
Jazaki Allah Khair for explaining the matter further.

May Allah guide us all to the correct path.

:wa:

[Serendipity]

@ Masriya

I am not angry with your post, I know you're just trying to help. I'm just going to ask a scholor about this as it is confusing me. :wa:

[Abz2000]

there was a difference of opinion on this even among the companions (may Allah be pleased with them).
so i'll keep my understanding of it to myself.

Book 8, Number 1414:

Narrated Buraydah ibn al-Hasib:
I heard the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: The witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us; the witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us; the witr is a duty, so he who does not observe it does not belong to us.

---

Book 8, Number 1415:

Narrated Ubadah ibn as-Samit:
Ibn Muhayriz said: A man from Banu Kinanah, named al-Makhdaji, heard a person called AbuMuhammad in Syria, saying: The witr is a duty (wajib).
Al-Makhdaji said: So I went to Ubadah ibn as-Samit and informed him.
Ubadah said: AbuMuhammad told a lie. I heard the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: There are five prayers which Allah has prescribed on His servants. If anyone offers them, not losing any of them, and not treating them lightly, Allah guarantees that He will admit him to Paradise. If anyone does not offer them, Allah does not take any responsibility for such a person. He may either punish him or admit him to Paradise.

---

Book 8, Number 1417:

Narrated AbuAyyub al-Ansari:
The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The witr is a duty for every Muslim so if anyone wishes to observe it with five rak'ahs, he may do so; if anyone wishes to observe it with three, he may do so, and if anyone wishes to observe it with one, he may do so.


i do however remember laughing when an obama spokesperson was pitching for compulsory military duty for all americans under the age of 25,
and the reporter asked him if it would be compulsory,
he replied,
well you have to say in a sense "required".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwCljzF9cfI



Allah A'lam, i don't feel comfortable voicing my opinion amidst all those hadiths, but i do believe "required" and "compulsory" mean the same thing, and no 'Alim has ever told me that witr is compulsory (fard).

[Hamza Asadullah]

I remember missing witr prayer for about two weeks because I thought that they weren't wajib and you didn't have to do them, shall I make them up?

:sl:

In short this will depend on which madhab you follow. How do you pray Witr?

[Serendipity]

:sl:

In short this will depend on which madhab you follow. How do you pray Witr?

I pray witr as 3 rakats. I don't follow any madhab, I know I should but I don't have much knowledge on it.

[Hamza Asadullah]

I pray witr as 3 rakats. I don't follow any madhab, I know I should but I don't have much knowledge on it.

If you read 3 witr in one go with Dua qunoot in the third rakat after Surah Faatiha and a Surah then you follow the Hanafi madhab. Then Witr is Waajib (compulsory) upon you and you will have to make up what you missed.

If you ever have any queries regarding fiqh matters pertaining to worship then you can refer to the following websites for information in accordance with the Hanafi madhab:

http://spa.qibla.com/browse.asp?id=1

http://seekersguidance.org/ans-blog/

http://www.central-mosque.com/index.php/Table/Fiqh/

http://www.daruliftaa.com/

http://www.askimam.org/


Or alternatively you can ask here andwe will be more than happy to help in anyway that we can.

[Serendipity]

Okay in the hanafi madhab it says to make it up as 3 rakats.

[Hamza Asadullah]

Okay in the hanafi madhab it says to make it up as 3 rakats.

Asalaamu Alaikum, you just pray the witr qadha like you normally pray witr.

[Serendipity]

Shall I make it up in the daytime, seeing as we can't do two witrs in the night?

[Hamza Asadullah]

Shall I make it up in the daytime, seeing as we can't do two witrs in the night?

]

Asalaamu Alaikum, you can make up as many as you want at anytime apart from the forbidden times of prayer.

And Allah knows best in all matters