Know about Salaat Istikhara, Awwabeen and Tahajjud prayers
Memorize Dua of Salaatul Istikhara
Know how to pray Salaat Tasbeeh
Istikhara, Awwabeen, Tahajjud and Tasbeeh prayers
Salaat Istikhara (صَلاة الاستِخَارَة)
Before doing any good thing (خَيْر), it is Sunnah to pray Salaat Istikhara. That is to pray two Rak’a Sunnah prayer. After the prayer, the following Dua is recited:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْتَخِيرُكَ بِعِلْمِكَ وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ وَأَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ فَضْلِكَ الْعَظِيمِ فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلَا أَقْدِرُ وَتَعْلَمُ وَلَا أَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتَ عَلَّامُ الْغُيُوبِ اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الْأَمْرَ خَيْرٌ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي فَاقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الْأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ وَاقْدُرْ لِي الْخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي
O Allah, I consult You through Your Knowledge, and I seek strength through Your Power, and ask of Your Great Bounty; for You are Capable whereas I am not and, You know and I do not, and You are the Knower of hidden things. O Allah, if You know that this matter (and name it) is good for me in respect of my Deen, my livelihood and the consequences of my affairs, then ordain it for me, make it easy for me, and bless it for me. But if You know this matter (and name it) to be bad for my Deen, my livelihood or the consequences of my affairs, then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it, and grant me power to do good whatever it may be, and cause me to be contented with it.
Dua should be begun and ended with Hamd, Salaat and Salaam upon the Prophet ﷺ. After Salaat Istikhara, he may choose whatever comes to his mind as better.
Salaat Al Awwabeen (صلاة الأوابين)
This prayer is performed between Maghrib and Isha. It is twenty Rak’as. The Minimum is two Rak’as.
Tahajjud (صلاة التهجد)
Tahajjud prayer is a Sunnah prayer done in the night after Isha and sleeping. There is no specific number of Rak’a for this prayer. Not performing Tahajjud is Makrooh for one who accustomed to pray it.
Salaat Tasbeeh (صلاة التسبيح)
It is four Rak’a Sunnah prayer. Performing it in one Tasleem is better in day time while two Tasleem is better in the night. Four Surahs; Al Takaathur (ألهاكم التكاثر), Al Asr (سورة والعصر), Al Kafiroon (سورة الكافرون) and Ikhlas (سورة قل هو الله) are read in it after reading فاتحَة. In each Rak’a, the following Tasbeeh should be recited seventy-five times.
سُبْحَانَ اللهِ والحَمْدُ لِلهِ وَلاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللهُ وَاللهُ أَكْبَر وَلاَ حَوْلَ وَلاَ قُوَّةَ إِلاَّ بِاللهِ العَلِيِّ العَظِيم.
That is as follows: 15 after reading Surah; 10 in Rukū, 10 in I’tidal, 10 in two Sujoods 10 in Juloos(sitting) in-between two Sujoods after Adhkaar and 10 before Tashahhud (التحيَّات) or Jalsa Istiraaha (جَلْسَة اسْتِرَاحة/ sitting for a small time while going to Qiyaam after Sujood of first and third Rak’a).
Order of Sunnah prayers
Order of Sunnah prayers with regard to their reward and goodness is as follows:
- Eid Al Ad’ha (صلاة الضحى).
- Eid Al Fitr (صَلاة الوتْر).
- Kusoof (صلاة الكُسُوف).
- Khusoof (صلاة الخُسُوف).
- Istisqa (صلاة الاستقاء).
- Witr (صَلاَة الوتر).
- Two Rak’a before Fajr (ركَعَتَا الفَجْر).
- Other Rawatib prayers.
- Taraweeh (صَلاَة التراوِيح).
- Dhuha (صَلاة الضحى).
- Prayer related to an action such as Tawaf and Tahiyyat.
- Two Rak’a after Wudu.
- Nafl Mutlaq (نفْل مطلق).
It is Sunnah to make up (قَضَاء) any lapsed Sunnah prayers that are related to a specific time (المُؤّقَّت). Those prayers that are related to a reason are not recommended to make up such as Kusoof and Tahiyyat.
This is excerpts from the book Salaat (Brief rulings of Prayer in Shafi Madh’hab) by Abdu Shaheed Azhary. To download the full chapter click the below link. To support us, please consider acquiring the digital copy of the book from Amazon