the beginning of it. Recorded by al-Bukhari (10).
Section: The preferred position according to Abu Abd Allah, may Allah have mercy on him, regarding it (Tarawih) is twenty rak'ahs. This is the opinion of al-Thawri, Abu Hanifah, and al-Shafi'i. Malik said: Thirty-six. He claimed that this was the ancient practice and relied upon the action of the people of Medina, for Salih, the mawla of al-Taw'amah, said: "I reached the people performing forty-one rak'ahs, observing witr with five of them." Our argument is that Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, when he gathered the people under Ubayy ibn Ka'b, he would pray twenty rak'ahs with them (11). It has been narrated by al-Hasan that Umar gathered the people under Ubayy ibn Ka'b, and he would pray twenty nights for them, and he would not perform qunut with them except in the latter half (12). When the last ten nights came, Ubayy would stay behind and pray in his house, and the people would say: "Ubayy has fled." Recorded by Abu Dawud, and it was recorded by al-Sa'ib ibn Yazid, and it has been narrated from him through various chains. Malik narrated from Yazid ibn Ruman, saying: The people used to stand in prayer during the time of Umar in Ramadan with twenty-three rak'ahs. And from Ali, that he commanded a man to pray twenty rak'ahs with them in Ramadan. This is like a consensus. As for what Salih narrated, Salih is weak, and furthermore, we do not know who the people were that he reported about. Perhaps he encountered a group of people doing that, and it is not an argument. Then, even if it were proven that all the people of Medina did it, what Umar did, and upon which the Companions reached consensus during his era, is more worthy of following. Some scholars said: The people of Medina only did this because they wanted to equal the people of Mecca, for the people of Mecca perform a tawaf of seven rounds between every two tarwihat (sessions of rest). So the people of Medina made four rak'ahs in place of every seven rounds, and what the Companions of the Messenger of Allah -peace and blessings of Allah be upon him- were upon is more worthy and more deserving to be followed.
(10) In: The Chapter on the Virtue of Standing in Prayer during Ramadan, from the Book of Tarawih Prayer. Sahih al-Bukhari 3/58. And Malik, in: The Chapter on What Has Been Said Regarding Standing in Prayer during Ramadan, from the Book of Prayer in Ramadan. Al-Muwatta 1/114, 115. (11) In A and M: "for them". (12) In A and M: "the second". And it preceded on page 580.
أَوَّلَهُ. أخْرَجَهُ البُخَارِىُّ (١٠).
فصل: والمُخْتَارُ عند أبى عبدِ اللهِ، رَحِمَهُ اللهُ، فيها عِشْرُونَ رَكْعَةً. وبهذا قال الثَّوْرِىُّ، وأبو حنيفة، والشَّافِعِىُّ. وقال مالِكٌ: سِتَّةٌ وثَلَاثُونَ. وزَعَم أنَّه الأمْرُ القَدِيمُ، وتَعَلَّقَ بِفِعْلِ أهْلِ المَدِينَةِ، فإنَّ صالِحًا مَوْلَى التَّوْأَمَةِ، قال: أدْرَكْتُ الناسَ يَقُومُونَ بإحْدَى وأرْبَعِينَ رَكْعَة، يُوتِرُونَ منها بِخَمْسٍ. ولَنا، أنَّ عُمَرَ، رَضِيَ اللهُ عنه، لمَّا جَمَعَ النَّاسَ على أُبَىِّ بنِ كَعْبٍ، وكان يُصَلِّى بهم (١١) عِشْرِينَ رَكْعَةً، وقد رَوَى الحسنُ أن عُمَرَ جَمَعَ النَّاسَ على أُبَىِّ بنِ كَعْبٍ، فكان يُصَلِّى لهم عِشْرِينَ لَيْلَةً، ولا يَقْنُتُ بهم إلا في النِّصْفِ الباقِى (١٢). فإذا كانت العَشْرُ الأَوَاخِرُ تَخَلَّفَ أُبَىٌّ، فصَلَّى في بَيْتِه، فكانُوا يَقُولُونَ: أبَقَ أُبَىٌّ. رَوَاه أبو دَاوُدَ، ورَوَاهُ السَّائِبُ بن يَزِيدَ، ورُوِىَ عنه من طُرُقٍ. ورَوَى مالِكٌ، عن يَزِيدَ بن رُومَان، قال: كان النّاسُ يَقُومُونَ في زَمَنِ عمرَ في رمضانَ بِثَلَاثٍ وعِشْرِينَ رَكْعَةً. وعن عليٍّ، أنَّه أمَرَ رَجُلًا يُصَلِّى بهم في رمضانَ عِشْرِينَ رَكْعَةً. وهذا كالإِجْماعِ، فأمَّا ما رَوَاهُ صَالِحٌ، فإنَّ صَالِحًا ضَعِيفٌ، ثم لا نَدْرِى مَن النَّاسُ الَّذِينَ أخْبَرَ عنهم؟ فَلَعَلَّه قد أدْرَكَ جَمَاعَةً من النَّاسِ يَفْعَلُونَ ذلك، وليس ذلك بِحُجَّةٍ، ثم لو ثَبَتَ أنَّ أهْلَ المَدِينَةِ كُلَّهم فَعَلُوه لَكانَ ما فَعَلَهُ عمرُ، وأجْمَعَ عليه الصَّحَابَةُ في عَصْرِهِ، أوْلَى بالاتِّبَاعِ، قال بعضُ أهْلِ العِلْمِ: إنَّما فعلَ هذا أهْلُ المَدِينَةِ لأنَّهم أرَادُوا مُسَاوَاةَ أهْلِ مَكَّة، فإنَّ أهْلَ مَكَّةَ يَطُوفُونَ سَبْعًا بين كل تَرْوِيحَتَيْنِ، فَجَعَلَ أهْلُ المَدِينَةِ مكانَ كلِّ سَبْعٍ أرْبَعَ رَكَعَاتٍ، وما كان عليه أصْحَابُ رَسُولِ اللهِ -صلى اللَّه عليه وسلم- أَوْلَى وأحَقُّ أنْ يُتَّبَعَ.
(١٠) في: باب فضل من قام رمضان، من كتاب صلاة التراويح. صحيح البخاري ٣/ ٥٨. ومالك، في: باب ما جاء في قيام رمضان، من كتاب الصلاة في رمضان. الموطأ ١/ ١١٤، ١١٥.(١١) في أ، م: "لهم".(١٢) في أ، م: "الثاني". وتقدم في صفحة ٥٨٠.
