Can I Pray Sunnah Prayers Before Making up Obligatory Prayers? (Shafi’i)
Shafi'i Fiqh
Answered by Shaykh Shuaib Ally
Question: Assalam alaykum,
Is it permissible to pray tarawih, tahajjud, and the other sunnah prayers and then proceed to make up missed obligatory prayers?
What are the sunnah prayers according to the Shafi’i school?
Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
Making up Missed Prayers
In the Shafi’i school, one must immediately make up missed obligatory prayers to the extent of one’s ability. This means that it is not permissible for a person to spend their available time on non-obligatory prayers in its stead.
It is permissible to perform the Witr prayer as one rak’at, although continuously doing so is disliked.
Please see: How to Make up Years of Missed Prayers? (Shafi’i)
The Number of Sunnah Prayers
There are ten emphasized rak’ahs of Sunnah prayers:
-2 before Fajr
-2 before Dhuhr/Jumu’ah
-2 after Dhuhr/Jumu’ah
-2 after Maghrib
-2 after ‘Isha
In addition, the following are non-emphasized Sunnah prayers:
-2 before Dhuhr/Jumu’ah
-2 after Dhuhr/Jumu’ah
-4 before ‘Asr
-2 before Maghrib
-2 before ‘Isha
Shuaib Ally