Isha: Quran and Hadith

References from the Quran and hadith, with the Sunni view (Hanafi, Shafi‘i, Maliki, Hanbali) and the Shia view (Jafari) side by side.

Timing of Isha

Sahih Muslim 612 The time of Isha lasts until the middle of the night.
Sahih Muslim 638, Tirmidhi 167 Were it not hard on my community, I would have them delay Isha to a third of the night.
Sahih Muslim 681 Negligence is delaying a prayer until the next one is due. Most scholars hold that Isha stays valid until Fajr, though it is best before midnight.
Most scholars start Isha when the red twilight has gone; Abu Hanifa held it starts when the white twilight has gone, which is later.

Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, vol. 1, chapter on prayer times, hadith 13 One narration gives the time of Isha until a third of the night.
Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, vol. 1, chapter on prayer times, hadith 18 The time of Isha lasts until midnight.
Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, vol. 1, chapter on prayer times, hadith 14 Whoever sleeps past midnight without praying Isha makes it up, and fasts the next day.

Sahih Muslim 656 Whoever prays Isha in congregation, it is as if he prayed half the night.
Sahih al-Bukhari 657, Sahih Muslim 651 The heaviest prayers on the hypocrites are Isha and Fajr; if they knew their reward, they would come even crawling.
Sahih al-Bukhari 568 The Prophet ﷺ disliked sleeping before Isha and talking after it.

Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, vol. 1, chapter on prayer times, hadith 19 Imam al-Baqir warned that an angel curses whoever leaves Isha until after midnight.

4 fard rak‘ahs, with 2 sunnah rak‘ahs after, then Witr.
Abu Dawud 1422 Witr is a duty. The Hanafi school holds Witr wajib, 3 rak‘ahs.
Sahih Muslim 752 Witr is one rak‘ah at the end of the night. The Shafi‘i, Maliki and Hanbali schools hold it sunnah, at least 1 rak‘ah.
Sahih al-Bukhari 998, Sahih Muslim 751 Make Witr the last of your prayers at night.

4 obligatory rak‘ahs, with 2 nafilah rak‘ahs after, prayed sitting.
Wasa’il al-Shi‘a, vol. 4, p. 46 Imam al-Sadiq: the 2 nafilah rak‘ahs prayed sitting after Isha count as one.

Hadith numbers follow sunnah.com. Jafari sources are named by book, volume and chapter.

Last updated: Tuesday, 6 October 2026