Islamic Manual

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.

Allah has fixed a time window for each of the five daily prayers. You must pray each one inside its own window, not too early, and not too late.

The sun's positions that open and close the five prayer windowsA day's timeline from before dawn to the next dawn, with the sun's position marked at true dawn, sunrise, the zenith, the mid-afternoon shadow point, sunset and the end of the white twilight. Five coloured bands above the timeline mark the windows of Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha, each beginning and ending exactly at those markers. A small sun icon sits low near the dawn and dusk ends of an arc and highest above the boundary between Dhuhr and Asr.Fajrtrue dawn to sunriseDhuhrzenith to a shadow twice the objectAsrthat shadow to sunsetMaghribsunset to the white twilightIshatwilight gone to the next true dawntrue dawnsunrisezenithʿasr shadowsunsetwhite twilight endsthe sun sits highest above the Dhuhr–Asr boundary, lowest near dawn and dusk
The five prayer windows across one day.
When each prayer starts and ends
Prayer StartsEnds
Fajr When the sky first shows light (dawn)When the sun rises
Dhuhr A little after the sun is at its highest pointWhen a shadow grows to twice as long as the thing making it
Asr When that shadow reaches twice as longWhen the sun sets
Maghrib Right after the sun setsWhen the evening glow in the sky is gone
Isha When the evening glow is goneThe next dawn

Witr is prayed in the same window as Isha, but it is best to pray it straight after Isha.

The best time to pray each one

  1. Fajr: pray once daylight has spread a bit, but leave enough time to finish the prayer: about 40 to 50 verses' worth, including Surah al-Fatiha.
  2. Dhuhr: pray it early in winter and later in summer, but always before the shadow doubles.
  3. Asr: it is best to pray it a little later, but not so late that the sun turns yellow.
  4. Maghrib: pray it as soon as you can.
  5. Isha: it is best to wait until about a third of the night has passed. Witr can be delayed to the last part of the night, but only if you are sure you will wake up. If you are not sure, pray Witr before you sleep.

Each of the five obligatory (fard) prayers has its own fixed window. Praying before the window opens or after it closes does not count; within the window, some parts of the time are preferable (mustahabb) to others.

The sun's positions that open and close the five prayer windowsA day's timeline from before dawn to the next dawn, with the sun's position marked at true dawn, sunrise, the zenith, the mid-afternoon shadow point, sunset and the end of the white twilight. Five coloured bands above the timeline mark the windows of Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha, each beginning and ending exactly at those markers. A small sun icon sits low near the dawn and dusk ends of an arc and highest above the boundary between Dhuhr and Asr.Fajrtrue dawn to sunriseDhuhrzenith to a shadow twice the objectAsrthat shadow to sunsetMaghribsunset to the white twilightIshatwilight gone to the next true dawntrue dawnsunrisezenithʿasr shadowsunsetwhite twilight endsthe sun sits highest above the Dhuhr–Asr boundary, lowest near dawn and dusk
The five prayer windows
Prayer BeginsEnds
Fajr True dawnSunrise
Dhuhr The sun passing its zenithThe shadow of an object (beyond its zenith shadow) becoming twice its own height
Asr The shadow of an object becoming twice its own heightSunset
Maghrib Immediately after sunsetThe disappearance of the white twilight
Isha The disappearance of the white twilightThe next dawn

Witr's time is the same as Isha's, though it is preferable to pray it after Isha rather than combine it in a single sitting.

The preferred time within each window
Prayer Preferred timing
Fajr After the light of dawn has spread, but with enough time left to complete the prayer, reciting around 40–50 verses including Surah al-Fatiha, if needed
Dhuhr Early in winter; delayed in summer, always inside the window before the shadow doubles
Asr Delayed somewhat, but not so long that the sun turns yellow
Maghrib As soon as possible after its start
Isha Delayed until roughly a third of the night has passed; Witr may be delayed further, to the last part of the night, if one is confident of waking; otherwise Witr is prayed before sleeping
Makrūhbetter not to

It is disliked, without a valid excuse, to delay Asr until the sun turns yellow, to delay Maghrib until the stars are clearly visible, or to delay Isha until after midnight.

Each of the five fard prayers occupies a fixed waqt (time window); the prayer is invalid outside it. Within the waqt, the fuqaha further distinguish the mustahabb time, the part of the window in which it is best to pray, from the remainder, which is valid but less preferred.

The sun's positions that open and close the five prayer windowsA day's timeline from before dawn to the next dawn, with the sun's position marked at true dawn, sunrise, the zenith, the mid-afternoon shadow point, sunset and the end of the white twilight. Five coloured bands above the timeline mark the windows of Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib and Isha, each beginning and ending exactly at those markers. A small sun icon sits low near the dawn and dusk ends of an arc and highest above the boundary between Dhuhr and Asr.Fajrtrue dawn to sunriseDhuhrzenith to a shadow twice the objectAsrthat shadow to sunsetMaghribsunset to the white twilightIshatwilight gone to the next true dawntrue dawnsunrisezenithʿasr shadowsunsetwhite twilight endsthe sun sits highest above the Dhuhr–Asr boundary, lowest near dawn and dusk
The five prayer windows
Prayer BeginsEnds
Fajr Ṭulūʿ al-fajr aṣ-ṣādiq (true dawn)Sunrise
Dhuhr Zawāl (the sun's passing its zenith)The shadow of an object, beyond its shadow at zawāl, reaching twice the object's own height
Asr The shadow of an object reaching twice its own height (beyond the zawāl shadow)Sunset
Maghrib Immediately on sunsetThe disappearance of ash-shafaq al-abyaḍ (the white twilight)
Isha The disappearance of the white twilightThe following true dawn

Witr shares Isha's window exactly; it is nonetheless preferable to offer it after, rather than combined with, the Isha prayer.

Farḍmust do

The doubling of the shadow that closes Dhuhr's time and opens Asr's is measured from the shadow already present at zawāl, not from zero; an object may cast a residual shadow at the moment of zawāl depending on latitude and season. Asr's time begins only once the shadow beyond that residual equals twice the object's own height.

The mustahabb time within each window
Prayer Preferred timingQualification
Fajr After isfār (the spreading of dawn's light)Only if enough of the window remains to complete the prayer: reciting some 40–50 verses, including al-Fatiha, if the imam judges it needed
Dhuhr Early (taʿjīl) in winter, delayed (ibrād) in summerAlways within the window, before the shadow doubles
Asr Delayed (taʾkhīr)Provided the delay does not run on until the sun visibly yellows
Maghrib As soon as the window opensNot applicable
Isha Delayed until roughly a third of the night has passedWitr may be delayed further, to the night's last part, for one confident of waking; otherwise Witr is prayed before sleep, since a missed Witr is not made up in the same way
Makrūhbetter not to

Absent a valid excuse, it is makrūh to delay Asr until the sun has visibly yellowed, to delay Maghrib until the stars are clearly out, or to delay Isha beyond midnight.

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witr

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