Answered by Shaykh Abu Usamah
Recently, a salafi forwarded this to me, can you please comment…apparently he’s trying to imply that Imam Abu Hanifa rahmatullah alaihe was of the opinion that tarawih is only 8 rak’at. Here’s his comment:
<“This is what has been stated in the Hanafi books of fiqh (jurisprudence), for we do not find any book that can be authentically ascribed to Abu Hanifa (d.150H) (rahimahullaah). Rather, what is apparent from looking into al-Muwatta of Imam Muhammad (one of the main students of the Abu Hanifa) is that Abu Hanifa’s madhhab (school of thought) was to pray eleven rakats. Imam Muhammad includes a chapter in al Muwatta (p.110), stating: “Chapter: Establishing the Night Prayer in the month of Ramadhan, and the virtues contained in it.” Under this chapter he relates four ahadith. The first, third and fourth narrations do not make mention of any specified number of rakats for the Tarawih Prayer, rather they just mention the excellence of establishing Prayer in congregation and the excellence of the night Prayer in Ramadhan. However, in the second narration eleven rakâts is mentioned. Then Imam Muhammad said (p.111): “And we take all of this.” … Thus, he has shown that his madhhab is eleven rakâts, and this can only be the madhhab of Imam Abu Hanifa<
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Al-Salam alaykum
All the relied upon books of Fiqh in the Hanafi school – like Al-Mabsut of Sarakhsi, Mukhtasar al-Quduri, Al-Wiqaya, Kanz al-Daqa’iq, Al-Durr al-Mukhtar etc. state that Tarawih is 20 raka`at.
This is the clearly transmitted opinion of Imam Abu Hanifa r.a.
The quotation from the Muwatta of Imam Muhammad regarding the 11 raka`at refers to the Tahajjud Salah of Rasululullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam).
Furthermore Imam Muhammad’s narrating this hadith does not indicate that this was the position of Imam Abu Hanifa (i.e. Tarawih being 8 raka`at)
In fact in the fourth hadith of the same chapter Imam Muhammad narrates the incident of Hadrat Umar’s gathering the people together for the tarawih salah.
He thereafter states that: We accept all of this because the Muslims have agreed on this. He then quotes the hadith: “What the Muslims approve of is approved of by Allah” indicating clearly that the practice of Hadrat Umar r.a. is the accepted position in the Hanafi school. It is ludicrous to claim that the Hanafi view is that of 8 raka`at.
It is reported in many Ahadith that the practice of the Muslims in the time of Hadrat Umar r.a and subsequent to him was to offer 20 raka`at of tarawih.
And Allah Ta`ala Knows Best.
Abu Usamah