Should One Repeat the Prayer If an Extra Rak‘a Has Been Performed?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

I was praying Isha, and my wife joined and caught the first ruku‘ but after finishing my prayer, she did an extra rak‘a, assuming that she missed the first rak‘a. I informed her that reaching the ruku‘ means we get that rak‘a, but she didn’t know. Should she repeat her prayer?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I pray you are in good faith and health.

If your wife joined the ‘Isha prayer during the bowing position (ruku‘), then she caught the first unit of the prayer. She assumed she had missed the unit and repeated the raka‘. However, she did an extra rakat and now will have to repeat the four fard of ‘Isha again.

If one joined during the bowing position (ruku‘), then one has caught the unit (rak‘a) of the prayer. One does not need to make up anything when the Imam gives the final salam. [Tahtawi, Hashiyat al-Tahtawi ‘ala Maraqi al-Falah]

Related:
Prayer Reader: The Ultimate Guide To Prayer in Islam
A Latecomer’s Prayer: When is One Considered to Have Missed A Cycle (rak‘a)?

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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.