- His knowledge of this is not certain; it may fail to materialize for one reason or another. The stronger the likelihood, the more appropriate it is to delay.
What is meant by his statement, “the end of the prayer time,” is the preferred time.
The only prayer that has a preferred time and a time of necessity is the afternoon prayer. Its preferred time lasts until the sun turns yellow, while its time of necessity lasts until sunset.
As for the night prayer, the correct view is that it has only a virtuous time and a permissible time. Its permissible time begins when the twilight has disappeared, and its virtuous time lasts until midnight.
As for the time after midnight, it is not a time for it, because the hadiths reported from the Prophet ﷺ have defined the time of the night prayer as lasting until midnight (1).
A consequence of this is that if a woman becomes pure from her menstruation after midnight, then, according to this view, she is not required to perform either the night prayer or the sunset prayer.
According to those who hold that the time of necessity extends until dawn, she is required, in their view, to perform the night prayer.
Others hold that she must perform both the night prayer and the sunset prayer (2).
If one must choose between catching the congregational prayer at the beginning of its time with dry ablution, or purifying himself with water at the end of the time and missing the congregation, then he must