What is the virtue of the Duha prayer?

Duha prayer is one of the good deeds that every Muslim seeks to do for its many virtues and benefits, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:

“In the morning a charity is due from every joint of one of you. Every tasbeehah is a charity, every tahmeedah is a charity, every tahleelah is a charity, every takbeerah is a charity, enjoining what is good is a charity, forbidding what is evil is a charity, and two rak‘ahs offered in the forenoon (Duha) will suffice for that.” [Narrated by Muslim (1181).]

Before we get into the benefits of Duha prayer let’s first understand its meaning, the best time to pray it, and more. So, let’s get started.

What is Duha prayer?

Duha prayer is also called Ishraq prayer, it is a prayer that is offered when the sunrise.

Shaykh Ibn Baz said: “Ishraq prayer is Duha prayer done at the beginning of its time.” [Majmu’ Fatawa al-Shaykh Ibn Baz, 11/401]

Ishraq prayer is a sunnah prayer, which means that our beloved prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to pray it every day and advised his companions to do the same.

A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to pray Duha with four Rakas, and he would add whatever Allah willed.”

Shaykh Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Duha prayer is a confirmed sunnah which the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did and told his companions to do it.” [Majmu‘ al-Fatawa (11/389)]

What is the Duha prayer time?

You must be wondering when to pray the Duha prayer. Duha prayer is prayed 15 minutes after sunrise, until 10 to 20 minutes before the Duhr prayer.

 The time of Duha prayer is from the time when the sun has risen to a certain height, until just before the time for the Zhuhr prayer.

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymin said regarding its time: ”a quarter of an hour after the sun has risen until ten minutes before Duhr prayer.” (Al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 4/122)

Therefore, you can pray at any time, get up, perform Wudu, and pray, don’t let anyone or anything distract you.

What is the best time for Duha prayer?

Muslim narrated: “It is better to pray Duha prayer after the sun’s heat has become intense because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: ‘It is preferable to offer Duha prayer when the sun’s heat has become so intense that even the young of the camels feel it.’” [Narrated by Muslim, 748 (Ibn Baz: Majmu’ Fatawa, 11/395)]

We understand from this hadith that the best time is when the heat becomes intense. The scholars defined this as when one-quarter of the day has passed, i.e., halfway between sunrise and Duhr prayer.

How to pray the Duha prayer?

Duha prayer is prayed two by two, meaning that after praying two rakat say the Salam, then pray another two Rakat.

The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The (Sunnah) prayers of the night and day are two (rak‘ahs) by two.”

How many rakats in Duha?

There is no specific number of Rakat in duh prayer, you can offer as many as you want. However, the minimum number of Rakat is two Rakat, meaning that you can’t offer less than two Rakat.

Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “…and two rak’ahs offered in the forenoon (Duha) will suffice for that.” [Muslim (720)]

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “My close friend (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) advised me to do three things: to fast three days of every month, to pray two rak‘ahs of Duha, and to pray Witr before going to sleep.” [Al-Bukhari (1981) and Muslim (721)]

There are no hadiths regarding the maximum number of Raka in the Duha prayer.

Mu‘adhah (may Allah have mercy on her) asked ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her): “How many Raka did the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) pray in Duha? She said: Four rak‘ahs, and however many more he wanted.” [Muslim (719)]

Umm Hani (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) got up to do ghusl, and Fatimah screened him. Then he took his garment and wrapped it around himself, then he prayed eight rak’ahs of Duha prayer.” [Muslim (336)]

You can pray any number of Rakat you want, what is most important is to pray it two rak‘ahs by two.

Shaykh Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“The minimum – for Duha – is two rak‘ahs, and there is no maximum number. But the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) prayed two and four rak‘ahs, and on the day of the conquest of Makkah, he prayed Duha with eight rak‘ahs, on the day on which Allah granted him the conquest of Makkah. So this matter is broad in scope. Whether a person prays eight or ten or twelve rak‘ahs, or more than that, or less, there is nothing wrong with it, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The (Sunnah) prayers of the night and day are two (rak‘ahs) by two.” The Sunnah is to pray two by two, saying the salam after every two rak‘ahs.” [Majmu‘ Fatawa Ibn Baz, 11/389]

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

“The correct view is that there is no maximum limit, because ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to pray Duha with four rak‘ahs, and however many more he wanted. Narrated by Muslim. And she did not mention any limit. If a person prayed forty rak‘ahs, for example, between the time when the sun reaches the height of a spear and just before the sun reaches its zenith, all of that would be included under the heading of Duha prayer.” (Ash-Sharh al-Mumti‘, 4/85)

What are the benefits of Duha prayer?

What is the virtue of the Duha prayer? The virtues of the Duha prayer are more than we can count, therefore we will mention some of them which were mentioned in sahih hadiths.

• It was narrated from Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “In the morning a charity is due from every joint of one of you. Every tasbeehah is a charity, every tahmeedah is a charity, every tahleelah is a charity, every takbeerah is a charity, enjoining what is good is a charity, forbidding what is evil is a charity, and two rak‘ahs offered in the forenoon (Duha) will suffice for that.” [Narrated by Muslim (1181).]
• An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said regarding this hadith: The words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) “and two rak‘ahs offered in the forenoon (Duha) will suffice for that” is indicative of the great virtue of Duha and how important it is, and that it may be offered with two rak‘ahs.” [Sharh Muslim by an-Nawawi].
• Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: My close friend (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) advised me to do three things which I will never give up until I die: to fast three days of every month, to pray Duha, and to pray Witr before going to sleep.” [Al-Bukhari (1178) and Muslim (721)]
• Abu’d-Darda’ (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “My beloved (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) advised me to do three things, which I will not give up so long as I live: to fast three days of each month, to pray Duha, and not to sleep until I pray Witr.” [Narrated by Muslim (1183)].
• Al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “The Prophet’s advice to Abu’d-Darda’ and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with them) is indicative of the virtue of Duha, and that it will definitely be greatly rewarded. Hence they persisted in doing it and never omitted it.” [Al-Mufhim lima ashkala min Talkhis Muslim].
•  Abu’d-Darda’ and Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated that the prophet of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “O son of Adam, pray four rak‘ahs to Me at the beginning of the day, and I shall suffice you at the end of the day.” [Narrated by at-Tirmidhi (437); classed as sahih by Shaykh al-Albani.]
•  Al-Mubarakfuri (may Allah have mercy on him) said regarding the above hadith: “At the beginning of the day”– it was said that what is meant is Duha prayer, or salat al-ishraq [when the sun has risen to the height of a spear], or the Sunnah and obligatory prayer of Fajr because it is the first obligatory prayer of the day. I say: the author and also Abu Dawud interpreted these rak‘ahs as referring to the Duha prayer. Hence they included this hadith in the Chapter on Duha Prayer. “I shall suffice you” with regard to your concerns “at the end of the day.” At-Tibi said: That is, I shall suffice you with regard to your needs, and I shall ward off from you what you dislike, after your prayer and until the end of the day. What is meant is: focus on worshipping Me at the beginning of the day and I will grant you peace of mind at the end of the day, by helping you to meet your needs.”(Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi  2/478).
• It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “No one persists in offering Duha prayer except one who often turns to Allah, for it is the prayer of those who often turn to Allah (salat al-awwabin).” [Narrated by Ibn Khuzaymah; classed as hasan by al-Albani in Sahih at-Targhib wa’t-Tarhib (1/164).]
• Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever prays Fajr in a congregation, then sits and remembers Allah until the sun rises, then prays two rak‘ahs, he will have a reward like that of Hajj and ‘umrah, complete, complete, complete.” [Narrated by at-Tirmidhi (586); classed as hasan by Shaykh al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) in Sahih Sunan at-Tirmidhi.]

From the above hadiths, we can clearly see the importance of praying the Duha prayer due to its many virtues. If you are in a hurry just pray two Rakat, it will be more than enough.  Try your best to pray Duha prayer every day, after one week it will become a habit.

Is Ishraq and Duha prayer the same?

Is Ishraq and Duha prayer the same? Yes, Ishraq and Duha’s prayers are the same. Duha is sometimes called Ishraq because it is offered when the sun rises.

Can I pray Duha if I missed praying Fajr on time?

Many people wonder if they can still offer Duha prayer if they missed praying Fajr at the time. The answer is yes, you can pray the Duha prayer after you make up for the missed Fajr prayer. Can I pray Duha if I missed praying Fajr on time? yes, you can, pray the Fajr prayer then offer the Duha prayer. Ishraq prayer is a sunnah and it has no connection to Fajr prayer.

Rabee‘ah ibn Ka‘b al-Aslami (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “I used to stay overnight with the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and bring him water for wudu and whatever he needed. He said to me: “Ask.” I said: I ask to be with you in Paradise. He said: “Is there anything else?” I said: That is all, He said: “Help me to do that for you by prostrating a great deal.” [Narrated by Muslim in his Sahih, 489]

An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “This indicates that it is encouraged to prostrate a great deal; what is meant is prostration in prayer.”

Ma‘daan ibn Abi Talhah said: “I met Thawbaan, the freed slave of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and said: Tell me of a deed that I may do, by which Allah may admit me to Paradise – or he said: Tell me of the most beloved of deeds to Allah. He remained silent. I asked him (again) and he remained silent. I asked him a third time and he said: I asked the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) about that and he said: “You should prostrate to Allah a great deal, for you will not perform one prostration to Allah but Allah will raise you one degree in status thereby and erase one sin for you.” [Narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh, 488]

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