Every year, as the blessed days of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha arrive, the same question resurfaces in communities across the world — and occasionally across arguing WhatsApp groups: How many extra takbeers are in the Eid prayer?
For many Salafi brothers, the answer is clear: 7 in the first rak’ah, 5 in the second — both before the recitation of al-Fatihah.
For Ḥanafī brothers, the answer is equally clear: 3 in the first rak’ah before the recitation, and 3 in the second rak’ah after the recitation, immediately before going into rukū’.
Each group tends to assume that the other’s method is either weak, fabricated, or a later innovation. The reality, as we shall demonstrate with chains and gradings in hand, is that both methods are established from the Companions of the Prophet (Salallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) — the very Salaf that everyone claims to follow.
This article is not a call to abandon either method. Rather, it is an invitation for both sides to drop the rhetoric of bidʿah and daleel-lessness against one another, and to recognise that the blessed generation of the Ṣaḥābah — radiyallāhu ʿanhum ajmaʿīn — themselves differed on this matter, and the scholars of the past regarded both positions as valid ways of the Eid prayer.
As Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal said regarding the Eid takbeers:
“Everything that was narrated from the Companions concerning the additional takbeers in the Eid prayer is acceptable.”
—al-Furoo‘ (3/201). Cited in Islam Q&A, answer no. 224032
Part One: The First Method — 7 Takbeers Then 5 (This is what we will call the Salafi Position)
The Method Explained: In the first rak’ah, after the opening Takbīrat al-Ihrām and the opening supplication (du’ā’ al-istiftāḥ), the imam says seven additional takbeers before reciting al-Fātiḥah. In the second rak’ah, after standing up from rukū’, he says five additional takbeers before reciting al-Fātiḥah. These additional takbeers are all before the Quranic recitation in both rak’ahs.
This is the position of the majority of scholars, including the Mālikīs, Shāfiʿīs, and Ḥanbalīs in the most well-known reports, as well as the modern Salafi scholars.
References of the ‘Salafi’ method of the Eid prayer:
The Ḥadīth of ‘Amr ibn Shu’ayb, from his Father, from his Grandfather, “The Messenger of Allāh (Salallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) said the takbīr in the ‘Eid prayer: seven times in the first rak’ah, then he recited, then went into rukū’. Then he stood up and made five takbīrāt, then recited, then made takbīr and went into rukū’…”
— Reported by Abū Dāwūd (no. 1152), Ibn Mājah (no. 1278), Aḥmad (2/180). Graded Ḥasan due to supporting narrations. (Irwā’ al-Ghalīl, 3/108-112)
The above narration in different forms is present in many places:
1. Ḥadīth of ʿĀʾishah (Radi Allahu Anha)
– Abū Dāwūd — no. 1150
– Ibn Mājah — no. 1280
– Aḥmad — 6/70
– Al-Bayhaqī — 3/287
– Authentication: Isnād graded Ṣaḥīḥ — explicitly stated by al-Albānī in Ṣaḥīḥ Abī Dāwūd and in Irwāʾ al-Ghalīl (3/108–112)
2. Ḥadīth of ʿAmr ibn Shuʿayb, from his Father, from his Grandfather
– Abū Dāwūd — no. 1152
– Ibn Mājah — no. 1278
– Aḥmad — 2/180
– Authentication: Graded Ḥasan due to supporting narrations — al-Albānī, Irwāʾ al-Ghalīl (3/108–112)
3. Ḥadīth of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (Radi Allahu Anhuma)
– Aḥmad — Musnad
– Al-Dāraquṭnī — Sunan
– Authentication: Graded Ḥasan by Shuʿayb al-Arnāʾūṭ in the takhrīj of Musnad Aḥmad
4. Narration of Ibn ʿUmar on the Authority of Abū Hurayrah (Radi Allahu Anhuma)
– Mālik ibn Anas — al-Muwaṭṭaʾ, Book 10, no. 4.9
– Authentication: Isnād graded Ṣaḥīḥ by al-Albānī in Irwāʾ al-Ghalīl
5. Narration of Kathīr ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn ʿAwf, from his Father, from his Grandfather (Radi Allahu Anhum)
– Al-Tirmidhī — no. 536
– Ibn Mājah — no. 1278
– Authentication: Authenticated by Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal and ʿAlī ibn al-Madīnī as cited in Sunan al-Tirmidhī.
Part Two: The Second Method — 3 Takbeers Before Recitation, 3 After Recitation (The Ḥanafī Position)
The Method Explained
In the first rak’ah, after the Takbīrat al-Ihrām and the Sanā’ (opening supplication), three extra takbeers are said, then al-Fātiḥah and a sūrah are recited. In the second rak’ah, al-Fātiḥah and a sūrah are recited first, and then three extra takbeers are said immediately before going into rukū’. The takbeer of rukū’ itself serves as a fourth and final takbeer in the second rak’ah, completing the action.
This is the position of Imām Abū Ḥanīfah (d. 150H), and it is rooted in the Fiqh school of Kūfah, which drew heavily from the legal opinions of ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas’ūd (Radi Allahu Anhu).
We will mention the evidences here in detail InshaAllah, because these narrations are not as widely spread on online sites and forums.
The Evidences
Evidence 1: The Marfū’ Ḥadīth in Sharḥ Ma’ānī al-Āthār of Imām at-Ṭaḥāwī-
“The Prophet (Salallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) prayed with us on the day of ‘Eid, so he did takbīr — four [in the first rak’ah] and four [in the second] — and then he turned to us with his face when he finished and said: ‘Do not forget, [the takbīrs of ‘Eid are] like the takbīr of janāzah.’ And he gestured with his fingers and clutched his thumb (signalling the number four).”
— Imām at-Ṭaḥāwī, Sharḥ Ma’ānī al-Āthār, 2:371 (no. 321). Graded Ḥasan by Imām at-Ṭaḥāwī; its isnād is ṣaḥīḥ according to ‘Allāmah al-‘Aynī in Nukhab al-Afkār (16:442).
This is a marfū’ ḥadīth — traced directly back to the Prophet (Salallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam)— narrated by a Ṣaḥābī (whose name is preserved in the chain through al-Qāsim ibn ‘Abd al-Raḥmān). The Prophet instructed: “like the takbīr of Janāzah” — and since the Janāzah prayer has four takbeers, this means four per rak’ah. Crucially, the “four” in the first rak’ah includes the Takbīrat al-Ihrām (opening takbeer), and the “four” in the second rak’ah includes the takbeer of rukū’ — yielding three extra takbeers before recitation in the first rak’ah, and three extra takbeers after recitation (before rukū’) in the second. (Reference: IlmGate)
Evidence 2: The Athar of ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas’ūd [Radi Allahu Anhu] (Musannaf ‘Abd ar-Razzāq)
This is the cornerstone narration of the Ḥanafī position. It comes via an incident involving three senior Companions:
“An emīr from the emīrs of Kūfah sent for ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas’ūd, Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān, and ‘Abdullāh ibn Qays (i.e., Abū Mūsā al-Ash’arī). He said: ‘Indeed ‘Eid has come — what is your opinion?’ They deferred the matter to ‘Abdullāh [ibn Mas’ūd].
Ibn Mas’ūd said: ‘One does takbīr four times and then he recites, then he bows, and then he stands in the second (rak’ah) and he recites, and then he does takbīr four times after recitation.'”
— Recorded by ‘Abd ar-Razzāq in his Muṣannaf, no. 5687 (3:293-4). (Al-Albānī graded its isnād as ṣaḥīḥ. Masjid Ibrahim PDF) Source
Evidence 3: The Explicit Instruction of Ibn Mas’ūd (Muṣannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah)
“You do nine takbīrs: one takbīr with which to open the Ṣalāh, and then you do three takbīrs, and then you recite a sūrah, and then you do takbīr and then you bow. Then you stand (in the second rak’ah) and you recite a sūrah, and then you do four takbīrs and bow with one of them.”
— Recorded by Ibn Abī Shaybah in his Muṣannaf. (Graded ṣaḥīḥ by al-Albānī. Masjid Ibrahim PDF)
Evidence 4: The Practice of ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās (Radi Allahu Anhuma)
“‘Abdullāh ibn al-Ḥārith reported: ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās prayed with us on the day of Eid and he gave nine takbīrāt — five takbeers in the first and four takbeers in the second.”
— Reported by Ibn Abī Shaybah in his Muṣannaf (no. 5757). Al-Albānī graded its isnād as authentic. Masjid Ibrahim PDF
‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās (Radi Allahu Anhuma) — Tarjumān al-Qur’ān, the scholar of the Ummah, the cousin of the Prophet — is here praying with a count of 5 takbeers in the first rak’ah and 4 in the second. If we understand:
– First rak’ah: Takbīrat al-Ihrām + 3 extra + 1 rukū’ takbeer = 5
– Second rak’ah: 3 extra + 1 rukū’ takbeer = 4
… this maps perfectly onto the Ḥanafī method. The “nine” total in Ibn ‘Abbās’s practice is the exact same total as Ibn Mas’ūd’s instruction above.
Part Three: For those who wish to appreciate the full scope of this discussion, the following additional positions were held by the Ṣaḥābah and early scholars:
– Anas ibn Mālik, al-Mughīrah ibn Shu’bah, and a report from Ibn ‘Abbās: 7 in the first and 7 in the second (reported by Ibn Abī Shaybah)
– Mālik (one opinion) and Aḥmad (one report): The Takbīrat al-Ihrām is counted as one of the seven in the first rak’ah (giving 6 extra before recitation)
– ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz: 9 takbeers before recitation in the first rak’ah and 9 in the second (though this is a minority position)
Conclusion: Both methods have authentic isnāds reaching back to the Ṣaḥābah. Both methods have been practiced by senior Companions of the Prophet (Salallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam). Both represent legitimate juristic traditions. The only question is one of preference and following one’s imām in congregation — not one of bid’ah versus sunnah.
A final reminder for the reader: If you pray behind an imām whose method differs from yours on this issue, follow him completely. Do not silently adjust the takbeers to your preferred count while he leads. The imām’s role is precisely to unify the congregation — and unity is itself a Sunnah, and a major one at that.
May Allāh grant us the tawfīq to follow the Sunnah in its entirety, to honor the Companions in their breadth, and to honor one another in our valid differences of opinions.
(Compiled by Mohammed bin Thajammul Hussain Manna.)
Saheehus-Seerah 