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The Isha (Arabic: عشاء) prayer is the night-time daily prayer recited by practising Muslims. It is the second of the five daily prayers (salah) [islamic day begins at maghrib]. The five daily prayers collectively are one pillar of the Five Pillars of Islam, in Sunni Islam, and one of the ten Practices of the Religion (Furū al-Dīn) according to Shia Islam. It is a 4 rak'ah prayer and the first 2 rak'ah are prayed aloud. When travelling, according to some madhhabs, it may be reduced to two rak'ahs.
In Islam, the Isha'a daily prayer has four required (Fard) rak'ah. However, in Sunni Islam, the two Sunnah rak'ah following the Isha'a are highly recommended and so is the 3 rakat Wajib Witr. There are a few optional prayers that can be recited after the Isha'a prayer, including the Nafilat ul-Layl prayers (together termed tahajjud), as well as the tarawih in Ramadan.
Shia Muslims
The time period within which the Isha prayer must be recited is the following:
- Time begins: once the Maghrib prayer (sunset daily prayer) has been recited.
- Time ends: at the beginning of dawn.
However, it is very important to recite the prayer as soon as the time begins.
Sunni Muslims
The time period within which the Isha prayer must be recited is the following:
- Time begins: According to the Hanafi school, Isha begins when complete darkness has arrived and the white twilight in the sky has disappeared. According to the Maliki and Shafi'i schools, the time begins when the red thread has disappeared from the sky. These times can be approximated by using the sun as a measure. When the sun has descended 12 degrees below the horizon, it is approximately equivalent to the disappearance of the red from the sky. For approximating when complete darkness begins, some astronomers argue that it occurs when the sun has descended 15 degrees below the horizon while others use the more safe number of 18 degrees around one and a half hours after the beginning of the setting of the Sun.
- Time ends: At the beginning of dawn when the time for Fajr prayer begins. However, it is frowned upon (and sinful in the Maliki school) to delay the prayer without a legitimate excuse past the first 1/3 of the night ("night" in Islamic law means the time between the entrance of the Maghrib prayer and the entrance of the Fajr prayer). According to a minority opinion in the Maliki school, the prohibition is from delaying the prayer beyond 1/2 the night, rather than just 1/3.
See also
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