A person asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as I stood between him (the Holy Prophet) and the inquirer and he said: Messenger of Allah, how is the night prayer? He (the Holy Prophet) said: It consists of pairs of rak'ahs, but if you apprehend morning, you should pray one rak'ah and make the end of your prayer as Witr. Then a person asked him (the Holy Prophet) at the end of the year and I was at that place near the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ; but I do not know whether he was the same person or another person, but he (the Holy Prophet) gave him the same reply.

" Then a person asked him at the end of the year," and what follows subsequently.

Hasten to pray Witr before morning.

He who prayed at night should make Witr the end of his prayer, for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered this.

Make Witr the end of your night prayer.

He who observed the night prayer should make Witr the end of his prayer before dawn. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to order them thus.

Witr is a rak'ah at the end of the prayer.

Witr is a rak'ah at the end of the night prayer.

I asked Ibn 'Abbas about the Witr prayer. He said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: It is a rak'ah at the end of the night prayer.

A person called (the attention) of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as he was in the mosque, and said: Messenger of Allah, how should I make the rak'ahs of the night prayer an odd number? Upon this the Messenger of Allah (may peace he upon him) said: He who prays (night prayer) he should observe it in pairs, but if he apprehends the rise of morning, he should observe one rak'ah; that would make the number odd (for the rak'ahs) observed by him. This was narrated by Abu Kuraib 'Ubaidullah b. 'Abdullah and Ibn 'Umar did not make mention of it.

I asked Ibn 'Umar to tell me about the practice of the Prophet (ﷺ) in regard to two rak'ahs before the dawn prayer: Should I make lengthy recitation in them? He said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to observe, the night prayer in pairs and then made the number odd by observing one rak'ah. I said: I am not asking you about it. He said: You are a bulky man, will you not show me the patience to narrate to you the hadith completely? The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to observe the night prayer in pairs and then made the number odd by observing one rak'ah, and then he observed two rak'ahs before dawn quite close to the call for prayer (Khalaf said:" Did you see [yourself the Prophet observing] the two rak'ahs before the dawn?" and he made no mention of prayer.)

I asked Ibn 'Umar like this (as recorded in the previous hadith) and he made this addition:" And he (the Holy Prophet) made the end of the night prayer as odd number by one rak'ah." And there is also (this addition):" Stop, stop, you are bulky."

The night prayer consists of pairs and when you see the approach of dawn, make this number odd by one rak'ah. It was said to Ibn 'Umar: What does the (word) pair imply? He said: (It means) that salutation is uttered after every two rak'ahs.

Observe Witr prayer before it is morning. Abu Sa'id reported that they (the Prophet's Companions) asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) about Witr (prayer). (In reply to their inquiry) he said: Observe Witr prayer before it is morning.

Observe Witr before morning.

If anyone is afraid that he may not get up in the latter part of the night, he should observe Witr in the first part of it; and if anyone is eager to get up in the last part of it, he should observe Witr at the end of the night, for prayer at the end of the night is witnessed (by the angels) and that is preferable.

He who amongst you is afraid that he may not be able to get up at the end of the night should observe Witr (in the first part) and then sleep, and he who is confident of getting up and praying at night (i. e. Tahajjud prayer) should observe it at the end of it, for the recitation at the end of the night is witnessed*, and that is better.*: meaning, "by angels" (Sharh an-Nawawi)

The most excellent prayer is that in which the duration of standing is longer.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked about the prayer which was most excellent. He said: That in which the standing is longer. (This hadith is narrated by another chain of transmitters too.)

There is an hour during the night in which no Muslim individual will ask Allah for good in this world and the next without His giving it to him; and that applies to every night.