A Primer of Religious Knowledge — Page 27
M AU L M AU L A A N N A A H AK E E M NO OR-U D -DE E N H AK E E M NO OR-U D -DE E N R A R A 27 Time of Maghrib Evening S al a t is after the setting of the sun. In this S al a t there are three rak‘ a t of Far d and two rak‘ a t of Sunnah. The last time of Maghrib is till the end of shafaq —evening twilight. Shafaq also refers to the redness that appears from the west after the setting of the sun,1 and it is also understood from the lexicons of the Arabic language that shafaq refers to the whiteness that can be seen from the west long after sunset. Time of ‘Ish a ’ Night S al a t starts from the end of evening twilight. Muhaddith i n [Hadith scholars] believe that the time for ‘ Ish a Prayer lasts till midnight and according to some Fuqah a [scholars of in Islamic jurisprudence] it is till dawn. It comprises of four rak‘ a t of Far d and after this there are either two rak‘ a t of Sunnah or four Sunnah that can be offered as a set of two rak‘ a t of Sunnah twice. And after these Witr 2 are performed that most probably are three rak‘ a t ; 1. This meaning is proved to be from Hadrat ibn Umar ra. 2. Witr literally means odd. One of the types or categories of Prayer; less compulsory than a Far d (Obligatory) Prayer, but more so than Sunnah and Nafl. There are three rak‘ a t in this Prayer. It is offered after the ‘Ish a Prayer. [Publisher]