Tarawih Prayer Enlivens the Night of Ramadan According to the Sunnah of the Propher
Tarawih Prayer Enlivens the Night of Ramadan According to the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ
Author, Drs. Rohiman Head of DPC Aswin, Cirebon City
Tarawih prayer is a sunnah worship performed on the night of the month of Ramadan after the Isha prayer. This prayer is one of the recommended practices to get closer to Allah SWT and get multiple rewards. However, there are many differences in the number of rakaat performed by Muslims. How exactly is the Tarawih prayer in accordance with the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ?
Evidence from the Hadith
From Aisyah radhiyallahu ‘anha, she said:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ never added (rakaat) in the night prayer in the month of Ramadan or outside Ramadan more than 11 rakaat. He prayed four rakaat, do not ask about its goodness and length. Then he prayed four more rakaat, do not ask about its goodness and length. Then he prayed three rakaat.” (HR. Bukhari No. 1147, Muslim No. 738)
This hadith shows that the night prayer of the Prophet ﷺ, including the Tarawih prayer in the month of Ramadan, was performed with no more than 11 rakaat.
Procedures for Tarawih Prayer According to the Sunnah
Here are the procedures for Tarawih prayer according to the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ:
1. Performed with 2 rakaat greetings until reaching 8 rakaat.
2. Performed with tuma’ninah (calm and not in a hurry).
3. Reading a long letter (such as Al-Baqarah, An-Nisa’, or Ali Imran), according to ability.
4. Ending with 3 rakaat Witr prayer.
How to pray the Witr prayer of Rasulullah ﷺ
Rasulullah ﷺ carried out Witr in several ways:
1. 3 rak’ahs straight away with one greeting without the initial tahiyat sitting.
2. 2 rak’ahs of greetings, then 1 rak’ah of greetings.
3. 1 Witr rak’ah only after evening prayer.
Can there be more than 11 rak’ahs?
The majority of ulama are of the opinion that the number of rakats of Tarawih prayers is not limited. If you want to add up to 20 rak’ahs, as was usually done during the time of Caliph Umar bin Khattab, then it is still allowed. The most important thing is solemnity and istiqamah in worship.
Conclusion
The Tarawih prayer according to Rasulullah ﷺ is 8 rak’ahs with 2 rak’ahs of greetings, then closed with 3 rak’ahs of Witr. However, Islam provides flexibility in the number of rakaat, as long as it is done solemnly and follows the etiquette of prayer taught by the Prophet ﷺ. Hopefully we can all enliven the night of Ramadan with worship that is full of blessings.