Tahajjud (Night Prayer)
The voluntary night prayer performed in the last third of the night.
Tahajjud (Arabic: تهجد) is a voluntary night prayer performed after one has slept and awakened again in the last third of the night, before Fajr. Tahajjud is considered the most meritorious voluntary prayer after the obligatory ones.
The Quran encourages Tahajjud: "And during a part of the night, keep vigil for prayer as an extra devotion for you. It may be that your Lord will raise you to a praised station" (Surah Al-Isra 17:79).
Tahajjud can be prayed with any number of rak'ah, typically 2-12, preferably concluded with the Witr prayer. The last third of the night is considered a particularly blessed time, when Allah is closest to His servants. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Our Lord descends to the lowest heaven in the last third of the night and says: Is there anyone calling upon Me, so that I may answer?"
Related terms
Dhuhr (Noon Prayer)
The second daily prayer, performed when the sun passes its zenith.
Qiyas (Analogical Reasoning)
Legal analogy used to derive Islamic rules for new situations based on established rules.
Tartib (Order in Prayer)
The correct sequence of the prayer's actions and the daily prayers.
Tawhid (God's Oneness)
Islamic monotheism — belief in Allah's absolute oneness, the core of prayer.
Sunan Ibn Majah (Ibn Majah's Hadith Collection)
The sixth of the canonical hadith collections in Sunni Islam with unique narrations.
Salat al-Jama'ah (Congregational Prayer)
The congregational prayer, where Muslims pray together in rows behind an imam.