Procedure of Taraweeh prayers

[Raha Zaki]

Salam Alaikum.   

Re.  Origin of Taraweh prayer
http://muslimvilla.smfforfree.com/index.php?topic=3442.msg19342;topicseen#msg19342

I want to know the method of Taraweeh prayers.   Taraweeh can be prayed at home and in the mosque, and have different procedures at home and in the mosque.   Right?    Kindly give some details on this.

[Heba E. Husseyn]

Walaikum As-Salam. 

Yeah sure .....

There isn't much difference between tarawih prayer at home and in the mosque, except for the arrangement of the number of rakahs, and of course the recitations of the Surahs in the mosque are much lenghtier as they recite 1 juz in every tarawih prayer in order to finish 30 juz (the entire Quran) by the end of Ramadan.

Tarawih prayers in congregation at the mosque is offered in sets of 2 rakats recited audibly.   While some attend tarawih after doing Isha at home, many do Isha and tarawih in the mosque.  In this case, when one gets into the mosque, first they offer Isha in congregation .. the 4 obligatory rakahs and some may take time to offer sunnah rakahs and dhikr.  Witr is not offered with Isha at this point.  It's offered at the end of tarawih.  After Isha is finished and tarawih begins, it is in sets of 2 rakahs.   Some mosques pray 8 rakahs in total, that would be 2 + 2 + 2 + 2  and then finally 3 rakahs of witr prayer, that is 11 in total.  While others pray 20 rakahs with witr prayer to conclude.   When the Imam is reciting for Taraweeh, they are reciting the Surahs in serial order starting with Surah Baqarah.  But they don't go by counting the Surah, they go by counting the juz.  As mentioned, one juz to be recited fully during each night of tarawih.  Altogether the Noble Quran is marked into 30 juz.  Thus by the end of Ramadan, they complete reciting the entire Quran.

For our readers who may not know, the 30 juz (or sections) are parts that are deliberately marked in the Quran to help the reader complete reading the Quran in 30 days by reading approximately the same amount every day during tarawih.  Each juz contains several Surahs and therefore several Verses.   And every juz comprises of approximately 20 pages, some maybe more than 20 pages.   Within the total of 114 Surahs (Chapters) of the Quran there are over 6,000 Verses.  The standard count of Verses brings the total to 6,236.  But some sources prefer grouping the Verses a bit differently;  hence they may show the total Verses a bit more.  But that's just the method of assembling the Ayats of every Surah, mainly for the convenience of recitation.  The contents of all 114 Surahs remain identical in every copy of the Noble Quran. 

[Raha Zaki]

Is witr obligatory (fard)?  and what's the difference between sunnah and wajib?

[Heba E. Husseyn]

No, witr is not obligatory.   Witr comes entirely from the hadith.  Nonetheless, offering prayers to The Almighty is always a very positive step, no matter what title you give to any particular prayer.   Sunnah / nafl rakahs are of even numbers.  Witr consists of odd numbers of rakahs .. 3 rakahs as I've observed.  Literal meaning of 'witr' is "chord of a circle."  it alludes to an odd number.   Otherwise there is no difference except for the different titles.   Moreover, these are traditional issues not mentioned in the Noble Quran.


"Indeed!   Your Rab knows how you keep vigil sometimes nearly two-thirds of the night, or (sometimes) half or a third thereof, as do a party of those with you.   Allah measures the night and the day.  He knows that you count it not, and turns unto you in mercy.  Recite, then, of the Qur'an that which is easy for you.  He knows that there are sick folk among you, while others travel in the land in search of Allah's bounty, and others (still) are fighting for the cause of Allah. So recite of it that which is easy (for you), and establish worship and pay the poor-due, and (so) lend unto Allah a goodly loan. Whatsoever good you send before you for your souls, you will find it with Allah, better and greater in the recompense. And seek forgiveness of Allah.   Indeed! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful."  73:20  Al-Muzamil.

The above Verse 73:20 speaks of salat al-leil (optional night prayers which can include tarawih and tahajjud) and you can perceive how flexibly Allah Almighty has enacted the aspect of optional night prayers.  Allah has clearly considered the tough situations of all people from different walks of life.  This Verse may indicate that a certain number of people probably did join the Prophet (pbuh) to offer salat al-leil.  But Allah also clearly instructs to keep the prayer simple and short by reciting whichever portions of the Noble Quran one may remember by memory.  It's also obvious that this gathering isn't obligatory.  Whoever is able to come and join is welcomed otherwise they can stay home or pray salat al-leil at home. 

 

[Raha Zaki]

JazekAllah khair.   Very nice.

[Raha Zaki]

So it is ok to offer taraweeh prayers in Ramadan from home?   want to confirm on that.

[Ruhi_Rose]

Of course it's okay to offer Tarawi prayers in Ramadan at home, either alone or with the rest of your family.  It's usually a bit shorter when offered at home because most people don't recite an entire juz while offering at home.  So Tarawi at home might be closer to salat-al-leil.  But it doesn't matter what title you give to your salat.  Ibahah is ibadah.  As long as it's sincere, that's what Allah Almighty takes into account.   

[Raha Zaki]

JazekAllah khairan.

[Umar Rizvi]

“It's usually a bit shorter when offered at home because most people don't recite an entire juz while offering at home.  So Tarawi at home might be closer to salat-al-leil. “

Re the comment of Ruhi Rose, my question is that if you cannot finish a juz at home then how will you finish the Quran at the end of Ramadan?

[N. Truth Seeker]

The point here is that it isn't obligatory to finish the Quran in Ramadan.  What's important is that one must read the Quran every day in this blessed month and thoroughly understand what they are reading.  And since Ramadan is the month of the Noble Quran, most people would like to read a little more of it during this month than they do in other months.  Therefore even if you read 5 or 6 pages of a juz during your Tarawi prayer at home and then at the end of the salah, discuss the tafsir of what you read, it will be far better and more useful than hurriedly finishing an entire juz in the Masjid without understanding much or anything and then rushing back home. 

After the month of Ramadan is over, one can proceed reading the Quran the standard way.  Noble Quran is something we need to read everyday, not just in Ramadan, though in Ramadan we need to read more than we do in other days.  From that perspective, there is no hard and fast rule to finish all 30 juz in Ramadan.