What these prayers are

Besides the five daily prayers and the regular sunnahs, there are prayers for special days and special moments. Some come once a year, like Eid. Some come when you need them, like Istikhara when you face a choice, or the prayer of repentance after a sin.

This chapter explains each one: what it is, when to pray it, and how.

The Eid prayer

Muslims have two Eids: Eid al-Fitr, the day after Ramadan ends, and Eid al-Adha, on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah. When Nabi ﷺ came to Madinah, people had two days of games from before Islam. He said: Allah has given you two better days instead: the day of Adha and the day of Fitr¹.

Is it required?

• Hanafi: wajib (a must, just below fard) for every man who must attend Jumuah.
• Maliki and Shafi'i: a sunnah mu'akkadah (strongly stressed sunnah).
• Hanbali: fard kifayah, a duty on the community. If enough people pray it, the rest are not sinful.

Whatever the ruling, everyone agrees: do not miss it without a good reason.

When

• The time starts about 15 to 20 minutes after sunrise and ends just before Dhuhr time.
• Pray it early. A Companion complained when an imam was late, and said: we used to be finished by this time, meaning mid-morning².
• There is no adhan and no iqamah for Eid³.
• There is no sunnah prayer before or after it at the prayer ground. Nabi ﷺ prayed the two rakat and nothing before or after⁴.

How to pray Eid

Eid is two rakat, prayed with the imam, with recitation out loud. What makes it different is the extra takbirs (saying Allahu akbar) at the start of each rakah. After each extra takbir, you raise your hands, and then let them drop or fold them, as your school says.

Both ways have a source:

• Nabi ﷺ said seven takbirs in the first rakah and five in the second, before the recitation⁵⁶. The Shafi'is count the seven without the opening takbir. The Malikis and Hanbalis count the opening takbir as one of the seven.
• Abu Musa said Nabi ﷺ made four takbirs, like at a funeral prayer⁷. Hanafis follow this: the opening takbir and three extra in the first rakah, and three extra plus the ruku takbir in the second.

The khutbah comes after

On Friday, the khutbah (talk) comes before the prayer. On Eid it is the other way round: first the prayer, then the khutbah⁸. Nabi ﷺ would stand and face the people as they sat in rows, and advise them⁹.

Staying for the Eid khutbah is a sunnah, not a must. Nabi ﷺ said: we will now give the khutbah. Whoever wants to sit and listen may sit, and whoever wants to go may go¹⁰. But staying is better.

The sunnahs of Eid day

• Eat before Eid al-Fitr. Nabi ﷺ did not go out on Eid al-Fitr until he had eaten some dates, and he ate an odd number¹¹.
• Wait to eat on Eid al-Adha. He did not eat on Eid al-Adha until after he had prayed¹².
• Take a different way home. Nabi ﷺ went to the Eid prayer by one road and came back by another¹³. Scholars say this lets you greet more people and spread the joy.
• Say the takbirs on your way: Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar, la ilaha illallah, wallahu akbar, Allahu akbar, wa lillahil-hamd.
• Wash, wear your best clothes, and wear perfume (men). Scholars recommend all of these.
• On Eid al-Fitr, pay your zakat al-fitr before the prayer.

Women and children at Eid

Nabi ﷺ told the women to come out for Eid, even the young girls who usually stayed at home, and even women on their period¹⁴.

• Women on their period come to share in the good and the dua, but they stay away from the prayer area itself¹⁵.
• A woman asked: what if one of us has no outer cover to wear? Nabi ﷺ said: let her sister lend her one, so she can still come¹⁶.

So bring the whole family. Eid is for everyone.

Missed the Eid prayer, and Eid on a Friday

If you missed it

• Hanafi: the Eid prayer is only prayed with the congregation. If you missed it, you do not make it up alone. You may pray some voluntary rakat of Duha instead.
• Shafi'i, Hanbali and Maliki: you may pray it alone or with your family, as two rakat with the extra takbirs.

If the whole town missed it because news of the moon came late: once, riders came in the afternoon and said they had seen the new moon the night before. Nabi ﷺ told people to stop fasting and to go out for the Eid prayer the next morning¹⁷.

When Eid falls on a Friday

Nabi ﷺ prayed Eid, then gave people an easing: whoever wants to pray Jumuah may pray it¹⁸.

• Hanbali: if you prayed Eid, Jumuah is no longer a must that day. You still pray Dhuhr. The imam should still hold Jumuah.
• Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i: Jumuah is still a must for people living in the town.

Follow your local masjid on this.

Istikhara: asking Allah to choose for you

Istikhara means asking Allah for what is best. When you face a choice, like a job, a marriage, a move or a big purchase, you pray two rakat and then say a special dua. Jabir said Nabi ﷺ taught it to them for every matter, the way he taught them a surah of the Quran¹⁹.

How to pray it

• Make wudu.
• Pray two rakat of voluntary prayer, not one of the fard²⁰. Any surah is fine.
• After the salam, say the dua below. When you reach the words "this matter", name your matter, or think of it.
• Then go ahead with what seems right to you.

The dua²¹

Allahumma inni astakhiruka bi-'ilmika, wa astaqdiruka bi-qudratika, wa as'aluka min fadlikal-'azim. Fa innaka taqdiru wa la aqdir, wa ta'lamu wa la a'lam, wa anta 'allamul-ghuyub. Allahumma in kunta ta'lamu anna hadhal-amra (name it) khayrun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati amri, faqdurhu li wa yassirhu li, thumma barik li fih. Wa in kunta ta'lamu anna hadhal-amra (name it) sharrun li fi dini wa ma'ashi wa 'aqibati amri, fasrifhu 'anni wasrifni 'anhu, waqdur liyal-khayra haythu kana, thumma ardini bih.

It means:

O Allah, I ask You to choose for me by Your knowledge. I ask You for strength by Your power. I ask You from Your great generosity. You have power, and I do not. You know, and I do not. You know all that is hidden.

O Allah, if You know that this matter is good for me in my religion, my life and how my affairs end, then decide it for me, make it easy for me, and bless it for me.

And if You know that this matter is bad for me in my religion, my life and how my affairs end, then turn it away from me, and turn me away from it. Decide for me what is good, wherever it is, and make me happy with it.

What happens after

• You do not need a dream. You do not need a special feeling or a sign. None of this is in the hadith.
• Go ahead with your plan. If it is good for you, Allah will make it easy. If it is not, Allah will turn it away, maybe by closing a door.
• Be happy with what happens. That is part of the dua: "make me happy with it".
• You may repeat istikhara if you are still unsure.
• Also ask wise people for advice. Istikhara is asking Allah. Advice is asking people. Do both.

The eclipse prayer

When the sun or the moon goes dark in an eclipse, Muslims pray a special prayer called salat al-kusuf. It is a sunnah mu'akkadah (strongly stressed sunnah).

The sun went dark on the day Nabi's ﷺ young son Ibrahim died. People said: the sun is dark because Ibrahim died. Nabi ﷺ said: the sun and the moon do not go dark for anyone's death or birth. When you see it, pray and call on Allah²².

How it is prayed

People are called with the words as-salatu jami'ah (come to the prayer together), not the normal adhan²⁷. It is two rakat. The schools differ on the shape:

• Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali: each rakah has two standings and two ruku (bowings). Stand and recite a long time, bow a long time, stand up and recite again (a bit shorter), bow again (a bit shorter), then do two long sujud (prostrations). Do the same in the second rakah²⁸²⁹.
• Hanafi: two rakat like a normal prayer, one ruku each, but with long recitation.

After the prayer, the imam gives a short talk, and everyone makes dua and gives charity until the eclipse is over³⁰.

For a lunar eclipse (the moon), Shafi'is and Hanbalis pray it the same way in congregation. Hanafis and Malikis pray it alone, at home.

The prayer for rain (istisqa)

When rain stops and there is drought, Muslims ask Allah for rain. This is called istisqa.

Nabi ﷺ went out to the prayer ground, faced the qiblah, made dua for rain, turned his cloak inside out, and prayed two rakat³¹.

• Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali, and Abu Hanifa's two main students: it is a sunnah to pray two rakat in congregation, with a khutbah and much dua and asking forgiveness.
• Abu Hanifa: istisqa is mainly dua and asking forgiveness. A prayer is allowed but not a set sunnah.

Asking for rain can also be done in the Friday khutbah. A man once came in while Nabi ﷺ was giving the khutbah and said: our animals are dying. Nabi ﷺ raised his hands and asked for rain. A cloud came up from behind the mountain and it rained for a whole week. The next Friday, the man asked him to make it stop, and it stopped³².

Prayer of repentance (salat at-tawbah)

If you commit a sin, you can make a fresh start. Nabi ﷺ said: when someone commits a sin, then makes wudu well, stands and prays two rakat, and asks Allah to forgive them, Allah forgives them³³³⁴.

Then he recited the ayah about believers who, when they do something wrong, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins³⁵.

• Make wudu carefully.
• Pray two rakat, at any time when prayer is allowed.
• Ask Allah sincerely to forgive you. Feel sorry, stop the sin, and plan not to go back to it.
• If the sin hurt another person, also put it right with them.

Praying for a need

Many people have heard of a salat al-hajah (prayer for a need) with a fixed dua. The well-known hadith for it is very weak, so we do not teach a fixed method.

But turning to prayer when you need something is always good. Allah says: seek help through patience and prayer³⁶. So when you have a need, you can make wudu, pray two voluntary rakat, and then ask Allah in your own words.

The funeral prayer

The janazah (funeral) prayer is a short prayer for a Muslim who has died. It is prayed standing, with four takbirs and no ruku or sujud. It is a fard kifayah: a duty on the community.

The full steps, what to say after each takbir, and the duas are in our lesson The Janazah prayer.

Common questions

I reached the Eid prayer late and missed the extra takbirs.

Join the imam where he is. If he is still standing and reciting, many scholars say you can quickly say the extra takbirs yourself. If you only caught the ruku, your rakah still counts. Do not worry about the takbirs you missed.

Can I pray istikhara for something I already know is right, like praying or being kind to my parents?

No need. Istikhara is for choices between things that are allowed, like which job, which house, or whether to marry a certain person.

I am on my period. Can I do istikhara?

You cannot pray the two rakat. Many scholars say you can still say the dua on its own, and Allah will guide you.

I prayed istikhara and things went wrong. Was it a bad choice?

Not always. You asked Allah to choose what is good for your religion and your end. Sometimes good comes in a hard shape. Be patient, and trust that Allah answered.

My job does not let me go to the Eid prayer.

Ask for the morning off well in advance. Many employers agree when asked early. Many masjids also hold more than one Eid prayer, some very early. If you still miss it, see "If you missed it" above.

There is an eclipse while I am at work. What do I do?

If the masjid near you holds the prayer, go if you can. If not, you can pray two rakat on your own, make dua and give some charity.

Can kids come to Eid even if they are noisy?

Yes. Nabi ﷺ asked even the young girls to come out³⁷. Keep small children close and quiet during the prayer, and let them enjoy the day.