Witr of Isha and Maghrib

[Ameera Belhakim]

Salam dear all. 

“Do not pray witr 3 rakahs that resemble maghrib.” (Narrated by al-Hakim, 1/403; al-Bayhaqi, 3/31; al-Daraqutni, p. 172).  This same hadeeth is also in Bukhari and Muslim but probably narrators are different.

I assume they are saying 3 rakahs witr after Isha not to resemble 3 rahahs of Maghreb.  We normally read witr salah as 3 rakahs with two sittings for tashahhud in which salam is not said until the last rakah (and same for maghrib).  Three rakahs of fard of Maghren is offered in the same way except that many of us may recite different Surahs for both these witr prayers.  The procedures are alike but what is wrong with that?  Why should that be a problem?  Is this hadeeth authentic or what?

[Ruhi_Rose]

Walaykum As-Salam.   

It is not a problem. My family and I also offer 3 witr of Isha and 3 of Maghreb in the same way as you mentioned.

Please know, 99.9% of hadith literature is unauthentic or forgery. 

If the 3 rakahs of Isha in any way resemble the procedure of 3 rakahs of Maghreb, there’s nothing wrong with that.  It’s not a spiritual crime.   Every salah is beautiful.  After all, we also pray 4 rakahs of fard for Dohr, Asr and Isha.  These procedures also resemble each other which is completely fine.  No one ever objected to that.   But the traditionalists say that according to  Bukhari and his student, Muslim, the isnad of this hadith is “correct.”  So, in the hadithist camp, the discussion stops there as they take something as faulty & flimsy as isnad to be the foolproof “science of hadith.”  To reflect on the senselessness of the contents is never their method of study.  Therefore the traditionalists offer all three rakahs of witr Isha one after another and recite tashahhud at the end of the third rakah, which means they offer tashahhud once.  The purpose of this is only to make it different from 3 rakahs of Maghreb in which tashahhud is recited twice after offering 2 rakahs and then again at the end of the third rakah.  I am not saying what they are doing is wrong as both procedures are fine.  But their reason for making it different is senseless.

Witr simply means an odd number (3, 5,7 etc).  For both Isha and Maghreb we offer 3 rahaks.  In Maghreb it’s fard, in Isha it’s nafl.   In Isha at the end of third rakah prior to Tashahud some people also recite an extra-Quranic supplication, dua qunut.  This supplication might make the procedure of Isha witr slightly different from Maghreb.  But that’s all. 

There is no plausible reason  why the 3 rakahs of Isha shouldn't "resemble" the 3 rakahs of Maghreb.   Allah Almighty never said that and thus, neither would the beloved Prophet (pbuh).


Related post:
Fallibility if Isnad.