What are the literal and figurative meanings of Taraweeh?
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon the Holy Prophets and Messengers. In this essay we will learn about the topic How Many Rakats in Taraweeh.“The plural of Tarweehah, which means “absolutely to sit,” is al-Taraweeh. Then it began to be applied to this sitting, and after every four rak’ah prayer in the nights of Ramadan, we sit to rest. Then every four rak’ah began to be called Tarweehah, and Taraweeh is also applied to the entire twenty rak’ah prayer that is performed in Ramadan.” Misbah Al-Lughat: The letter ‘Ruh’, p. 311
The word Taraweeh is originally derived from the word
“Taraweehah” means to pause, to recollect, and to inhale deeply. This word is singular, its antonym is “Taraweehhan.” “Just as in Surah Ar-Rahman, “Rabkama takdhaban” has been used for two groups, namely jinn and humans,” similarly, the plural of Tarweehah is Taraweeh.
Taraweeh can only be referred to as Taraweeh if we pray at least 12 rakats. If we pray 8 rak’ahs, then according to Arabic grammar, it will not be called Taraweeh but Tarweehan.
How many rakats in Taraweeh? See this explanation to understand. The famous Imam of grammar, Allama Jamaluddin Ibn Manzoor Al-Ansari (may Allah have mercy on him) (died: 711 AH) writes in his great book, Lisan Al-Arab:
“Taraweeh is the plural of tarweehah, and it means to rest once, the noun rahat is the plural of tafa’ilah, just as the noun salaam is the plural of taslimah, and the Taraweeh prayer of the month of Ramadan is also called Taraweeh because people rest after every four rak’ahs.” (Ibn Manzoor’s Lisan al-Arab: Vol. 2, Letter ‘J’ al-Ra’, Chapter ‘Ruh’, pp. 461-462)
Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) (died: 852 AH) states something like this:
The word Taraweeh is a plural noun of Tarweehah, which traces its roots to “rahat,” much like Taslimah is linked to “salaam.”The voluntary prayers offered in congregation during the nights of Ramadan were called tarweeh because they used to rest a little between every two rak’ahs in the beginning.
Allama Muhammad ibn Nasr has divided the night prayer into two chapters. One is about those who consider this rest recommended And the other refers to those who are unaware of this rest properly.And in this regard, Yahya ibn Bukair has narrated from Laith that they used to rest for a little after offering so many rak’ahs. That is why it was called Taraweeh prayer.” (Fath al-Bari narrated Sahih al-Bukhari by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani: C5, Kitab Salaat-e-Tarawieh, p. 443)
See this quote to understand, How many rakats in Taraweeh?. Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Ismail al-Tahtawi (d. 1231 AH) writes:
Tarweehah means taking a seat, specifically after every two rak’ahs.Tarweehah is to sit down once and get comfortable.” (Hashiyat al-Tahtawi, Ali Maraqee al-Falah, Sharh Noor al-Idhah: Chapter al-Taraweeh, 410)
Allama Ibn Abidin Al-Shami (d. 1252 AH) writes:“Taraweeh is the plural of tarweeha. It means sitting down and taking rest after every two rak’ahs.” (Al-Dur al-Mukhtar and Ibn Abidin’s footnotes: Vol. 2, Kitab al-Salaat, Chapter al-Witr al-Nawafil, p. 493)
The famous Ahl al-Hadith scholar Nawab Siddiq Hasan Khan Al-Kinwaji (died: 1307 AH) writes:“Taraweeh Prayer: This is the plural of tarweehah and its meaning is to take a rest once, as in greeting with a greeting. And in the original dictionary, tarweehah means to sit.
And the prayer that is offered in congregation on the nights of Ramadan is called tarweeh because the people used to take a rest after every two greetings when they first gathered for this prayer.” (Aun al-Bari, Lahla al-Adla al-Bukhari: Vol. 3, Kitab al-Salat al-Taraweeh, p. 858)
Recommended For You:
