Praying Tarawih at Home or in Congregation?
“Praying in the houses brings about laziness, and it results in the people not being enlivened by each other.
And due to this, the establishment of taraweeh in congregation is from the signs of Ahlus-sunnah.
“Whoever prays with the imaam until he departs, he will have the reward of the night prayer”
[At-tirmithi and others, Abu thurr]
And due to this, from the purposes of the congregational prayer is aiding one another upon the establishment of this act of worship (consisting of) a imaam and those being led in prayer, a reciter, those who listen to the Qur’an being read, and those who reflect over the quraan.
The one who says – for example –
“The most virtuous prayer is the prayer of an individual in his house, except the five daily prayers.”
[Agreed upon, Zayd bin thaabit]
(He says:) “I’m going to pray taraaweeh in my house (due to this hadeeth)” he will not find comfort they way he would find it in the masjid praying with the people, nor will he find energy, and perhaps he will not be able perform that which he intended, from reading a lot of Quran they way he desired, and elongating the prayer the way he wanted, resulting in him becoming busy, and he won’t find liveliness they way he would find it in the congregation.
And every time the number of people within the prayer is more, the greater it is in reward:
“The prayer of a man with another man is more rewarding than him praying by himself, and the prayer of a man with two other men is more rewarding than him praying with one man”. [Abu daawood, ubay bin ka’ab]
The more number there is the greater it is in reward.
Benefited from: Shaykh, the Allamah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abu Abdirrahman Yahya bin Ali Al-Hajuri – may Allah preserve him.
Translated by: Abu Huthayfah Saamy Atwal Al-britaany Al-hindy