The five daily prayers
Muslims are commanded to perform salah five times a day. These prayers are obligatory on every Muslim aged 10 for boys and 9 for girls and over, with the exception being those who are mentally ill, too physically ill for it to be possible, menstruating, or experiencing post-partum bleeding. Those who are ill or otherwise physically unable to offer their prayers in the traditional form are permitted to offer their prayers while sitting or laying, as they are able. The five prayers are all given certain prescribed times (al waqt) in which they must be performed, unless there is a compelling reason for not being able to perform them on time.
Some Muslims offer voluntary prayers (sunna rawatib) immediately before and after the prescribed fard prayers. Sunni Muslims classify these prayers as sunnah, while Shi'a Muslims consider them nafil. The number of raka'ah for each of the five obligatory prayers as well as the voluntary prayers (before and after) are listed below:
| Name | Prescribed time period (waqt) | Voluntary before fard1 | Fard | Voluntary after fard1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunni | Shi'a | Sunni | Shi'a | |||
| Fajr (فجر) | Dawn to sunrise | 2 Raka'ah2 | 2 Raka'ah2 | 2 Raka'ah | - | - |
| Dhuhr (ظهر) | After true noon until Asr | 4 Raka'ah2 | 2-4 Raka'ah | 4 Raka'ah4 | 2 Raka'ah2 | - |
| Asr (عصر) | Afternoon. See footnote5 and6 | 4 Raka'ah | 2-4 Raka'ah | 4 Raka'ah | - | - |
| Maghrib (مغرب) | After sunset until dusk | 3 Raka'ah | 2-4 Raka'ah | 3 Raka'ah | 2 Raka'ah2 | 2 Raka'ah3 |
| Isha'a (عشاء) | Dusk until dawn6 | 4 Raka'ah | 4 Raka'ah | 4 Raka'ah | 2 Raka'ah 2 + 3 Raka'ah Witr | 2 Raka'ah 3 and 7, 8 raka'ah (4 x 2 Raka'ah) Salat al-Layl3 |
- Sunni often pray 2 Raka'ah Nafl after Dhuhr, Maghrib and Isha'a.
1According to Shia Muslims, these are to be performed in sets of two raka'ah each.
²Prayed daily by Prophet Muhammad (Sunnis)
³Mustahab (praiseworthy) to do everyday. (Shias)
4Replaced by Jumu'ah on Fridays, which consists of two raka'ah.
5According to Imam Abu Hanifa, "Asr starts when the shadow of an object becomes twice its height (plus the length of its shadow at the start time of Dhuhr)." For the rest of Imams, "Asr starts when the shadow of an object becomes equal to its length (plus the length of its shadow at the start time of Dhuhr)." Asr ends as the sun begins to set.
6According to Shia Muslims, 'Asr prayer and 'Ishaa prayer have no set times but are performed from mid-day. Zuhr and 'Asr prayers must be performed before sunset, and the time for 'Asr prayer starts after Zuhr has been performed. Maghrib and 'Ishaa prayers must be performed before midnight, and the time for 'Ishaa prayer can start after Maghrib has been performed, as long as no more light remains in the western sky signifying the arrival of the true night.
7According to Shia Muslims, this prayer is termed nawafil.
source: www.wikipedia.com
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