The times of the Eid prayers
The Eid prayer's window runs from shortly after sunrise until just before midday, and the two Eids are best prayed at opposite ends of it.
The Eid prayer has its own special time. It cannot be prayed too early or too late.
When to pray
- It starts a little while after the sun comes up, once the sun is bright and high enough that it is hard to look at.
- It must be finished before midday (zuhr time) begins.
- It is best to pray Eid al-Adha early, and to wait a little before praying Eid al-Fitr.
The time for the Eid prayers begins after the sun has risen the height of a spear (meaning the sun's colour has faded, or its light has become too bright to look at comfortably), and it continues until just before zuhr (midday).
The window, and how to use it
- It is recommended to offer the Eid prayer as soon as its time begins.
- It is better to pray Eid al-Adha early in this window.
- It is better to delay Eid al-Fitr a little within this window.
If the time of zawal (midday) arrives before the Eid prayer has been completed, the Eid prayer becomes invalid as an Eid prayer for that occasion, and is considered a nafl prayer instead.
1The valid time (waqt) of the ʿīd ṣalāh opens once the sun has risen the height of a spear (that is, once its disc has whitened past the point where the colour is still visible, or its light has become too intense to look at directly), and it extends until immediately before zawāl.
Within the window
- It is mustaḥabb to offer the ʿīd ṣalāh as soon as its time has begun.
- For Eid al-Adha, praying early in the window is preferable, so that the sacrifice can follow without delay.
- For Eid al-Fitr, a slight delay within the window is preferable, to allow time for Zakāt al-Fiṭr to be paid beforehand.
Completion within the window is a condition of validity: if zawāl arrives before the ṣalāh has been completed, the ṣalāh is not valid as the ʿīd ṣalāh and is instead counted as a nafl prayer.
1This is the English translation of Nisab Ahle Khidmaat Sharia, exactly as the book has it, for the passages this page was written from. About 103 words. Switch back to Guide for the rewritten version.
Rulings of Eid Prayers 5. Times for Eid Prayers
(1) The time for Eid prayers begins after the sun rises by one spear length [Meaning, the height should be such that the color of the sun fades, or the light becomes so bright that it becomes unbearable to look at.] and continues until just before the time of zuhr (midday) [If the Zawal (midday) time arrives before completing the prayer, then the Eid prayer will be invalid (and considered a Nafl prayer).].(2) It is recommended to offer the Eid prayer as soon as its time begins.(3) It is better to pray early on Eid al-Adha and delay the prayer on Eid al-Fitr.
Related
- What is Eid? The obligation of the Eid prayers What Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are, and why the two Eid prayers are necessary (wajib) on the same people as the Friday prayer.
- Missing and postponing the Eid prayer What to do about a missed Eid prayer, when it may be delayed to another day, and how it interacts with voluntary (nafl) prayers, a funeral, or the Friday prayer (Jumu'ah).
- The times of the five daily prayers When Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha begin and end, the best time to pray each one, and the disliked delays.
- Forbidden times, disliked times, and combining two prayers The three times when prayer is forbidden, the times when it is merely disliked, and why two prayers cannot usually be combined.