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Hanafi method, with sources

How to Pray Witr: 3 Rak‘at with Dua-e-Qunoot (Hanafi)

Learn how to pray witr the Hanafi way: three rak‘at with one salam, the takbir before qunoot and Dua-e-Qunoot in Arabic with transliteration and meaning, with book references.

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A boy on a prayer mat making dua qunut, with three badges showing the three rakat of witr
3 rak‘atOne salam
Dua-e-QunootBefore ruku
After IshaUntil dawn
WajibIn the Hanafi school
SourcesBook and page

What is witr?

Witr is the wajib prayer of three rak‘at offered after Isha. The first sitting is wajib, it ends with one salam, and in the third rak‘ah Dua-e-Qunoot is recited before ruku (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, pp. 6–9).

This guide follows the Hanafi method as taught in Dawat-e-Islami’s books, such as Method of Salah and Bahar-e-Shariat.

How to pray witr

  1. First rak‘ahAl-Fatihah and a surah, then ruku and two sujood. Recitation is fard in all three rak‘at of witr (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, p. 7).
  2. Second rak‘ah and sittingPray the same, then sit for the tashahhud only and stand up.
  3. Third rak‘ah: recitationRecite Al-Fatihah and a surah.
  4. Takbir for qunootBefore ruku, raise your hands to your ears saying Allahu Akbar, then fold them again (Islam ki Bunyadi Baatein, part 3, p. 54).
  5. Recite Dua-e-QunootRecite it quietly, then go into ruku and finish the prayer with tashahhud, durood, dua and salam (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, p. 9).

Dua-e-Qunoot

Dua-e-Qunootاَللّٰهُمَّ اِنَّا نَسْتَعِيْنُكَ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَنُؤْمِنُ بِكَ وَنَتَوَكَّلُ عَلَيْكَ وَنُثْنِيْ عَلَيْكَ الْخَيْرَ وَنَشْكُرُكَ وَلَا نَكْفُرُكَ وَنَخْلَعُ وَنَتْرُكُ مَنْ يَّفْجُرُكَ، اَللّٰهُمَّ اِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَلَكَ نُصَلِّيْ وَنَسْجُدُ وَاِلَيْكَ نَسْعٰى وَنَحْفِدُ وَنَرْجُوْ رَحْمَتَكَ وَنَخْشٰى عَذَابَكَ اِنَّ عَذَابَكَ بِالْكُفَّارِ مُلْحِقٌAllahumma inna nasta‘inuka wa nastaghfiruka wa nu’minu bika wa natawakkalu ‘alaika wa nuthni ‘alaikal-khair, wa nashkuruka wa la nakfuruk, wa nakhla‘u wa natruku man yafjuruk. Allahumma iyyaka na‘budu wa laka nusalli wa nasjud, wa ilaika nas‘a wa nahfid, wa narju rahmataka wa nakhsha ‘adhabak, inna ‘adhabaka bil-kuffari mulhiq.O Allah, we seek Your help and Your forgiveness, we believe in You and rely on You, and we praise You with all good. We thank You and are not ungrateful to You, and we leave and turn away from whoever disobeys You. O Allah, You alone we worship, to You we pray and prostrate, and towards You we strive and hasten. We hope for Your mercy and fear Your punishment; Your punishment will surely reach the disbelievers.Dua-e-Qunoot. Islam ki Bunyadi Baatein, part 3 (Dawat-e-Islami), p. 55

Frequently asked questions

Is witr wajib?

Yes. In the Hanafi school witr is wajib, and a missed witr must be made up (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, p. 6, citing al-Durr al-Mukhtar).

What if I do not know Dua-e-Qunoot yet?

Recite “Allahumma rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanatan wa fil-akhirati hasanatan wa qina ‘adhaban-nar” (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, p. 9, citing Fatawa ‘Alamgiri), or “Allahummaghfir li” (Islam ki Bunyadi Baatein, part 3, p. 55), and keep learning the qunoot.

What if I forget the qunoot?

If you remember once you are in ruku, do not go back; complete the prayer and make sajdah-e-sahw (Bahar-e-Shariat, part 4, p. 9, citing Fatawa ‘Alamgiri).

Should I recite durood after the qunoot?

It is better to recite durood after Dua-e-Qunoot (Bahar-e-Shariat, vol. 1, p. 655).

Sources

  1. Bahar-e-Shariat, Mufti Amjad Ali A‘zami, part 4 (English translation by M. Afthab Cassim): witr, pp. 6–12 (citing al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Radd al-Muhtar and Fatawa ‘Alamgiri).
  2. Islam ki Bunyadi Baatein, part 3, Dawat-e-Islami (Maktaba-tul-Madinah): witr and Dua-e-Qunoot, pp. 54–55.
  3. Bahar-e-Shariat, Mufti Amjad Ali A‘zami, vol. 1 (as quoted on the Dawat-e-Islami Islamic Portal): durood after qunoot, p. 655.

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Last updated: October 2026

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