Can You Pray Nafl or Tahiyyat al-Masjid After Fajr Adhan?

The Ruling on Nafl Prayers and Tahiyyat al-Masjid After Fajr Adhan

There is a considerable amount of time between the Fajr Adhan and the Iqamah, so those who arrive early at the mosque, after performing the Sunnah, wish to pray Nafl and ask whether they can perform Nafl prayers after the Fajr Adhan if they have already prayed the Sunnah.

The answer to this question is that it is narrated from the Prophet ﷺ and his companions that only two rak’ahs of Sunnah are to be prayed after the Fajr Adhan and before the obligatory prayer. Therefore, after the Fajr Adhan and before the Fard prayer, it is disliked to offer any Nafl prayer, other than the two rak’ahs of Fajr Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ said:
لَا صَلَاةَ بَعْدَ الْفَجْرِ إِلَّا سَجْدَتَيْنِ وَمَعْنَى هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ إِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَا صَلَاةَ بَعْدَ طُلُوعِ الْفَجْرِ إِلَّا رَكْعَتَيْ الْفَجْرِ (Sunan al-Tirmidhi: 427)
Translation: “There is no prayer after the Fajr except for two rak’ahs (the Fajr Sunnah).” This Hadith means that after the dawn (before the obligatory prayer), there should be no prayer except for the two rak’ahs of Fajr Sunnah.
This hadith has been classified as authentic by Shaykh al-Albani, Ahmad Shakir, and Shu’ayb al-Arna’ut.

In Sahih Muslim, it is narrated by Hafsa (RA) that:
كان رسولُ اللهِ صلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّمَ ، إذا طلع الفجرُ ، لا يُصلِّي إلا ركعتَينِ خفيفتَينِ (Sahih Muslim: 723)
Translation: When the Fajr dawned, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would only pray two light rak’ahs.

These two hadiths show that after the Fajr Adhan and before the Fard prayer, only the two rak’ahs of Fajr Sunnah should be offered, and the Prophet ﷺ would prevent the companions from offering more than two rak’ahs.
Yasar Mawla Ibn Umar (RA) said:
رَآني ابنُ عمرَ وأنا أصلِّي ، بعدَ طلوعِ الفجرِ ، فقالَ : يا يَسارُ ، إنَّ رسولَ اللَّهِ صلَّى اللهُ عليْهِ وسلَّمَ خرجَ علينا ونحنُ نصلِّي هذِهِ الصَّلاةَ ، فقالَ : ليبلِّغ شاهدُكم غائبَكم ، لا تصلُّوا بعدَ الفجرِ إلَّا سجدتينِ (Sahih Abu Dawood: 1278)
Translation: Ibn Umar (RA) saw me praying after the Fajr dawn, and he said: “O Yasar! The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to us while we were praying this prayer, and he said: Let the one who is present convey to those who are absent, do not pray after Fajr except for two rak’ahs.”

Abdullah bin Buhayna (RA) narrates:
أنَّ رسولَ اللهِ صلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّمَ مرَّ برجُلٍ يصلِّي . وقد أُقيمت صلاةُ الصبحِ . فكلَّمه بشيءٍ ، لا ندري ما هو . فلما انصرفْنا أَحطْنا نقول : ماذا قال لك رسولُ اللهِ صلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّمَ ؟ قال : قال لي ” يوشِكُ أن يُصلِّيَ أحدُكم الصبحَ أربعًا “ (Sahih Muslim: 711)
Translation: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ passed by a man who was praying after the Iqamah for Fajr had been given. He spoke to him about something, but we didn’t know what it was. When we finished praying, we gathered around and asked him, “What did the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say to you?” He replied, “He said to me, ‘Soon one of you will pray four rak’ahs for Fajr.'”
This hadith shows that no prayer should be performed after the Iqamah except for the Fard, because the Prophet ﷺ forbade this companion from praying after the Iqamah, and it also confirms that there are only two rak’ahs before the Fard.

Shaykh al-Albani in Irwa al-Ghalil mentions with a reliable chain of transmission from al-Bayhaqi:
عن سعيد بن المسيب أنه رأى رجلا يصلي بعد طلوع الفجر أكثر من ركعتين يكثر فيها الركوع والسجود فنهاه فقال : يا أبا محمد ! أيعذبني الله على الصلاة ؟ ! قال : لا ولكن يعذبك على خلاف السنة (Irwa al-Ghalil: 2/236)
Translation: Sa’id bin al-Musayyib saw a man praying more than two rak’ahs after the Fajr dawn, making lengthy bowings and prostrations. He prohibited him and said: “O Abu Muhammad! Will Allah punish me for praying?” He replied: “No, but Allah will punish you for opposing the Sunnah.”

Shaykh al-Albani wrote that Ibn al-Musayyib was a strong critic of the innovators who presented innovations in prayer and fasting in a good light.

From all these proofs, it is clear that those who have already prayed the Sunnah after the Fajr Adhan should not pray any additional Nafl, but instead, they should wait for the congregation for Fajr prayer. Imam Tirmidhi mentioned that it is disliked to pray Nafl after the Fajr Adhan, and there is a consensus (Ijma’) on this issue. The author of Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi also stated that based on the clear narrations, the position of those who consider it disliked is preferable.

There is another issue regarding those who have prayed the Fajr Sunnah at home and then come to the mosque, with some time remaining before the congregation begins: Can they perform Tahiyyat al-Masjid?

It is not permissible to perform any Nafl prayer after the Fajr Adhan except for the two rak’ahs of Sunnah, but Tahiyyat al-Masjid is a prayer performed for a specific reason. Those who have already prayed the Fajr Sunnah at home, and then arrive at the mosque and find time before the congregation, should pray the Tahiyyat al-Masjid. The Prophet ﷺ said:
إذا دخَل أحدُكمُ المسجدَ، فلا يَجلِسْ حتى يصلِّيَ ركعتينِ (Sahih al-Bukhari: 1167)
Translation: When any of you enters the mosque, he should not sit until he prays two rak’ahs.

In the light of this hadith, scholars have stated that it is permissible to pray Tahiyyat al-Masjid even during the prohibited times. Therefore, the person who has prayed the Fajr Sunnah at home and arrives at the mosque should perform the two rak’ahs of Tahiyyat al-Masjid before sitting. Shaykh Ibn Baz (رحمه الله) wrote:
لو صلى الراتبة في بيته صلى سنة الفجر في بيته ثم جاء إلى المسجد قبل أن تقام الصلاة؛ فإنه يصلي تحية المسجد حينئذ قبل أن يجلس؛ لأنه حينئذ ليس عنده سنة الفجر قد صلاها في بيته، فيصلي تحية المسجد ثم يجلس.
Translation: If someone performs the Sunnah prayer at home and then comes to the mosque before the prayer is established, he should perform Tahiyyat al-Masjid before sitting. This is because he no longer has the Fajr Sunnah to perform, as he has already prayed it at home, so he will pray Tahiyyat al-Masjid and then sit.

By Maqbool Ahmad Salafi
Islamic Dawah Center, Northern Ta’if (Masrah)