It is said that it is sunnah to abandon the sunnah of the afternoon prayer deliberately; is it true?

The Answer

Dear Brother / Sister,

The Prophet (pbuh) sometimes abandoned the sunnah of the afternoon prayer.

The life of the Prophet (pbuh) is a model for us. The Companions followed him and tried to do whatever he did. However, the Prophet (pbuh) sometimes abandoned something that he did so that it would not be thought as fard.

As a matter of fact, he addressed the people who waited in the mosque until the morning in order to perform tarawih prayer with him as follows:  

“I did not lead tarawih prayer so that it would not be thought as fard.” (Bukhari, Salatut-Tarawih  2; Muslim, Salatul-Musafirin 178) 

He sometimes abandoned the deeds of worship that were not fard since all of his deeds were regarded as a model. Thus, the Companions understood that it was not fard, that they would get a lot of rewards if they did it and that it would not be haram if they did not do it.

Since we do not have the quality of serving as a model, why should we abandon that prayer? However, those who do not perform it are deprived of its thawab only.

If we want to imitate his deeds, we should imitate him by crying in prostration and wetting the prayer mat with tears and by performing prayers so much as to swell our feet.

If we imitate all of his deeds and serve as a model for all of his sunnahs, we can sometimes abandon the sunnah of the afternoon prayer. Otherwise, we think it is necessary to perform all sunnah prayers in this age, when hundreds of sunnahs are abandoned, with the understanding and intention that they will serve as atonement for the sunnahs that are abandoned.

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