Dought & clear, - The length of du‘aa’ al-Qunoot and reciting it.

What is the ruling on reciting du'aa' al-qunoot and making it last for
more than twenty minutes, which includes du'aa' that resembles how
people ordinarily talk?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Qunoot in Witr prayer is Sunnah and mustahabb; it was narrated from
the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and there are
some hadeeths which give the wording for du'aa' al-qunoot.
It was narrated that al-Hasan ibn 'Ali may Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
taught me some words to say in Qunoot of Witr:
"Allaahumma ihdini feeman hadayta wa 'aafini feeman 'aafayta wa
tawallani feeman tawallayta wa baarik li feema a'tayta, wa qini sharra
ma qadayta , fa innaka taqdi wa la yuqda 'alayk, wa innahu laa
yadhillu man waalayta wa laa ya'izzu man 'aadayta, tabaarakta Rabbana
wa ta'aalayta(O Allaah, guide me among those whom You have guided,
pardon me among those whom You have pardoned, turn to me in friendship
among those on whom You have turned in friendship, and bless me in
what You have bestowed, and save me from the evil of what You have
decreed. For verily You decree and none can influence You; and he is
not humiliated whom You have befriended, nor is he honoured who is
Your enemy. Blessed are You, O Lord, and Exalted.)."
Narrated by Abu Dawood, 1425; at-Tirmidhi, 464. Classed as hasan by
at-Tirmidhi and as saheeh by Ibn 'Abd al-Barr inal-Istidhkaar, 2/285
and an-Nawawi inal-Adhkaar, 86
See question no. 14093.
InSaheeh Ibn Khuzaymah(1100) it is narrated that the people, at the
time of 'Umar, used to pray against the disbelievers in the middle of
Ramadan, (saying): "O Allah, destroy the disbelievers who seek to
prevent people from following Your path and who disbelieve in Your
Messengers and do not believe in the Day of Resurrection. Create
disunity among them and instil fear in their hearts, and send Your
wrath and punishment upon them, O God of truth."
Then he would send blessings on the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) and pray for the Muslims for whatever he could of
good, then he would pray for forgiveness for the believers. He said:
And he used to say when he had finished praying against the
disbelievers, sending blessings upon the Prophet, praying for
forgiveness for the believing men and women and asking for good: "O
Allah, You (alone) we worship and to You (alone) we pray and
prostrate; for Your sake we strive and worship. We hope for Your
mercy, our Lord, and we fear Your inevitable punishment, for Your
punishment will surely befall the one whom You oppose." Then he would
say takbeer and fall down in prostration.
Al-Albaani said: Its isnaad is saheeh
Secondly:
Paying attention to the du'aa' that was narrated from the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), then from his Companions
after him, is better and is preferable and brings more blessings than
making up flowery supplications and invented awraad, for which there
is no guarantee that they will be free from mistakes in meaning or
that they will not be contrary to proper etiquette when calling upon
Allah, may He be exalted, and it will be more likely to keep one safe
from showing off.
Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Allah, may He be
exalted, has given us permission to call upon Him and has taught
du'aa' in His Book to His creation, and the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) has taught his ummah how to offer du'aa'.
The du'aa' of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
is based on three things: proper knowledge of Tawheed (the Oneness of
Allah), proper knowledge of the (Arabic) language and sincerity to the
ummah. So no one should turn away from his du'aa' (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him).
Al-Maawardi (may Allah have mercy on him) said inal-Haawi
al-Kabeer(2/200): What is narrated from the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) is what is more liked by us than anything
else, but whatever a person says in Qunoot of 'du'aa's narrated from
the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and otherwise
is good for that purpose.
Both texts were quoted by Shaykh Muhammad Ismaa'eel al-Muqaddim in his
essay:'Oodu ila khayr al-Huda, p. 45-46]
Ibn 'Uqayl al-Hanbali (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated that
'du'aa's narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) should be what is recited as regular wird, and anything
added to it is by way of a concession. He said: What is mustahabb in
our view is that which was narrated by al-Hasan ibn 'Ali from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): "Allahumma
ihdini…" – the well-known hadeeth. He said: If one adds to that the
words narrated from 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), "Allahumma
inna nasta'eenuka…(O Allah, we seek Your help)…", there is nothing
wrong with that. End quote.
This was quoted by Ibn Muflih in his comment onal-Muharrar, 1/89
Indeed, some of the scholars spoke sternly about the issue of adding
to the 'du'aa's narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him, to the extent that al-'Izz ibn 'Abd as-Salaam (may
Allah have mercy on him) said – as it says in hisFataawa, 87 –: It is
not appropriate to add anything to or subtract anything from what the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said in
Qunoot.
Quoted from'Oodu ila Khayr al-Huda, p. 45
Thirdly:
There is nothing wrong with adding to the wording narrated from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) in Qunoot words
that may be appropriate to the situation, because this is the issue of
du'aa' (supplication), and the issue of du aa' is broad in scope, and
adding to it is something that is allowed in Islam. Concerning the
du'aa' narrated from 'Umar, it says: … and he would pray for whatever
he could of good for the Muslims, then he would pray for forgiveness
for the believers.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said inal-Majmoo'(3/477-478):
Shaykh Abu 'Amr ibn as-Salaah said: The view of those who say that one
should limit du'aa' in Qunoot to that which is narrated from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is odd (shaadhdh)
and is not acceptable; it is contrary to the opinion of the majority
of our companions and in fact is contrary to the opinion of the
majority of scholars. Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad narrated that the scholars were
unanimously agreed that there is no specific du'aa' for Qunoot… The
author ofal-Haawisaid: It may be done reciting the du'aa' narrated
from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) or by
saying other du'aa's. End quote.
It says inal-Mawsoo'ah al-Fiqhiyyah, 34/63:
He may add whatever he wants of du'aa's that are permissible to say
during prayer. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said inash-Sharh
al-Mumti', 4/52:
If he adds to that, there is nothing wrong with that, because it is
the matter of du'aa' (supplication). End quote.
Fourthly:
It is important to note that although adding (phrases not narrated in
the Sunnah) to a du'aa' narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) is permissible according to the majority of
scholars, it is not permissible to take that as a regular practice,
thus neglecting the Sunnah and missing out on the blessing (barakah)
of following the Sunnah as a result of that. Indeed, one should not
always combine the two and regard them as being the same in status.
Rather the worshipper should do that sometimes and not do it
sometimes, according to the situation.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Undoubtedly dhikr and du'aa's are among the best kinds of worship.
Acts of worship are based on tawqeef and following, not on whims and
desires and innovation. The du'aa's and dhikrs narrated from the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) are the best that
anyone can find of dhikr and du'aa', and the one who limits himself to
them will be safe and sound. The beneficial results that they bring
cannot be put into words or fully comprehended by man. Any other
dhikrs may be haraam or they may be makrooh. They may involve shirk
which most people may not realize and which would take too long to
explain in detail.
No one has the right to prescribe for people any kind of dhikr or
du'aa' that is not narrated in the Sunnah and make it an act of
worship that people should perform regularly as they perform the five
daily prayers regularly. Rather this is a kind of innovation in
religion for which Allaah has not given permission… As for adopting a
wird that is not prescribed in sharee'ah and dhikr that is not
prescribed in sharee'ah, this is something that is forbidden. Moreover
the du'aa's and adhkaar that are prescribed in sharee'ah are the best
and lead to achieving all aims and goals; no one turns away from them
and adopts innovated and invented adhkaar except one who is ignorant,
negligent or a wrong doer.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 22/510- 511
Fifthly:
How long should Qunoot be? Is it prescribed to make it lengthy or not?
If we study the hadeeth of al-Hasan ibn 'Ali quoted above, we will
find that the du'aa' that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) taught him is a brief and concise du'aa' that only takes a
few minutes. This indicates that what is appropriate in du'aa'
al-Qunoot is to make it brief and to stick to concise phrases.
It says inMughni al-Muhtaaj, 1/369:
It says inal-Majmoo', narrating from al-Baghawi: It is makrooh to make
Qunoot lengthy, like the first tashahhud. Al-Qaadi Husayn said: If he
makes Qunoot longer than is usual, that is makrooh. End quote.
In fact an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) indicated that
combining the du'aa' of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and the du'aa' of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) in
Qunoot comes under the heading of making it lengthy, and one should
pay attention to the people's circumstances and find out whether they
approve of that.
He said: Our companions said: It is mustahabb to combine the Qunoot of
'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and that which is mentioned in
the hadeeth quoted above. If they are combined, then the more correct
way is to recite the Qunoot of 'Umar second. And if he wants to keep
it short, he should limit it to what is narrated in the hadeeth.
Rather it is mustahabb to combine the two if he is praying on his own
or if he is an imam of people who approve of making it lengthy. And
Allah knows best.
Al-Majmoo', 3/478
If combining the two du'aa's mentioned, even though they are brief, is
regarded as a kind of making it lengthy, then how about what is
mentioned in your question of making it last for twenty minutes or
thereabouts? What about those who offer du'aa' for double that time or
more, which many imams do who do not care about anything except giving
a performance in front of people, Allah forbid? People have seen
strange things of that nature nowadays.
The best approach in all of that – and Allah knows best – is to be
moderate, for the best of affairs are those that are moderate; and
Islam forbids making things difficult for people, especially if there
is a custom of doing that every night.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen was asked the following question inFataawa
'Ulama' al-Balad al-Haraam(152):
In Ramadan, some of the imams in the mosques make the du'aa' long, and
some make it short. Which is the correct way?
He (may Allah have mercy on him) replied:
The correct way is not to exaggerate or to fall short. Making it so
long that it causes hardship for the people is forbidden. When the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) heard that Mu'aadh
ibn Jabal was making the prayer very lengthy when he led his people in
prayer, he got angry in exhortation in an unprecedented manner, and he
said to Mu'aadh ibn Jabal: "O Mu'aadh, do you want to put people off
their religion?" Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 6106; Muslim, 465.
So what should be done is adhering to the words narrated (in hadeeth)
or one may add more to that.
Undoubtedly making it very lengthy causes hardship to people and
exhausts them, especially the weak ones among them. Among the people
are those who have work ahead of them but they do not like to leave
before the imam, although it is difficult for them to stay with the
imam. So my advice to my brother imams is to adopt a moderate
approach. By the same token, they should refrain from offering du'aa'
on occasion, so that the common folk do not think that du'aa' is
obligatory. End quote.
See also the answer to question no. 93051
Sixthly:
With regard to what you asked about reciting du'aa' al-Qunoot (in a
manner like reciting Qur'an) and beautifying the voice in it, if he
exaggerates about that and is preoccupied with it and makes it his
main concern, and he uses it as a means of attracting people's
attention to him, or he crosses the boundary between du'aa' and
exhortation or speaks as people ordinarily do, as in the case of the
person referred to in your question, and as is done by many imams who
toy with the people's worship and emotions – if the situation is as
described, then it is objectionable and is disapproved by everyone who
knows the teachings of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and is rejected by everyone who has a sound nature.
Al-Kamaal ibn al-Humaam al-Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) said,
when discussing the mu'adhdhins who used to repeat the takbeers behind
the imam – in his time –
With regard to what you are accustomed to in this city, it is not
unlikely that it is wrong, because it usually involves elongating the
first syllable in the words "Allah" and "akbar", or the second
syllable in the word "akbar", and that is wrong. Even if it does not
involve that, they still raise their voices too much, more than is
needed to convey the words, and they focus too much on their
performance of tunes to show their proficiency in doing so, which has
nothing to do with carrying out the act of worship properly.
It is obvious that the purpose behind this is to impress the people.
It is as if he is saying: Look at my beautiful voice and how I come up
with nice tunes, and that is wrong. I do not think that this would
come from one who really understands the meaning of prayer and
worship!
If this is what he said concerning the mu'adhdhins, then what about
the imams who do that in the prayer itself?! It is no wonder that he
commented further and said:
Similarly, I think that coming up with nice tunes in du'aa', as some
reciters do in our times, is not done by one who understands the real
meaning of du'aa' and asking of Allah. That is no more than a kind of
playing about. If you saw someone making a request of a king and he
put on this kind of performance, with his voice rising and falling as
if singing, he would be accused of mockery and fooling about, because
the appropriate way to ask is with beseeching and humility, not
singing! End quote.
Fath al-Qadeerby Kamaal ibn al-Humaam, a Hanafi faqeeh, 2/225-226
With regard to paying attention to making the voice beautiful, without
exaggerating or pronouncing the letters differently from the correct
Arabic pronunciation, it seems that this does not come under the
heading of blameworthy singing referred to above.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about
this and he replied in detail.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked the following question, as
it says inFataawa al-Balad al-Haraam, 153:
Some imams of mosques try to soften people's hearts and move them by
changing the tone of voice sometimes during taraweeh prayer and in
du'aa' al-Qunoot, and I heard that some scholars disapprove of that.
What is your opinion of that?
His reply was:
What I think is that if this is done within shar'i limits, without
exaggerating, then there is nothing wrong with it. Hence Abu Moosa
al-Ash'ari said to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him): If I had known that you were listening to my recitation, I would
have beautified it for you." If someone has a beautiful voice or
recites in a way that softens people's hearts, I do not think there is
anything wrong with that. But exaggerating with regard to that so that
he does this with every single word of the Qur'an, as mentioned in the
question – I think that this is excessive and should not be done. And
Allah knows best. End quote.
And Allah knows best.
See [in Arabic] the essaysDu'aa' al-Qunootby Shaykh Bakr ibn 'Abdullah
Abu Zayd;'Oodu ila Khayr al-Hudaby Shaykh Muhammad Ismaa'eel
al-Muqaddim.