Sunnah Rawatib: the 12 rakat that build a house in Jannah.

Sunnah Rawatib (Arabic: as-sunan ar-rawātib) are the regular voluntary prayers performed before and after the five fard prayers. The Prophet ﷺ never abandoned them in his lifetime, and he promised a remarkable reward for those who pray them:

"Whoever prays twelve rakat in a day and night, voluntarily, Allah will build for him a house in Jannah." (Muslim)

Twelve rakat. Across the whole day. Distributed before and after the prayers you're already praying. That's the deal.

What is Sunnah Rawatib?

The Arabic word rawātib comes from rātiba, "regular, fixed." These are the voluntary prayers tied to the five obligatory prayers, performed regularly as a habit modeled by the Prophet ﷺ.

They are not fard, you won't sin by missing them. But the Prophet ﷺ rarely missed them, and the scholars across all four schools consider them a major part of consistent Islamic practice.

The 12 rakat: exactly which prayers

The hadith of Umm Habibah (Muslim) specifies the twelve rakat as:

• 2 rakat before Fajr, the most emphasized of all sunnah rakat.
• 4 rakat before Dhuhr (some narrations say 2, both are accepted).
• 2 rakat after Dhuhr.
• 2 rakat after Maghrib.
• 2 rakat after Isha.

Total: 2 + 4 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 12 rakat.

Muakkadah vs ghair muakkadah

Sunnah rawatib are split into two categories:

Sunnah Muakkadah (emphasized)

The ones the Prophet ﷺ rarely missed:

• 2 rakat before Fajr (the strongest, never miss).
• 2 rakat before Dhuhr.
• 2 rakat after Dhuhr.
• 2 rakat after Maghrib.
• 2 rakat after Isha.

Sunnah Ghair Muakkadah (recommended)

• 2 more rakat before Dhuhr (extending to 4 total).
• 4 rakat before Asr.
• 2 rakat before Maghrib.
• 2 rakat before Isha.

How to pray sunnah rawatib

Pray them in 2-rakat sets, the same way you'd pray any 2-rakat prayer:

1. Make niyyat for the specific sunnah ("2 rakat sunnah before Dhuhr").
2. Pray as a normal 2-rakat prayer (Al-Fatihah + a surah in each).
3. End with salam.

For 4-rakat sunnah, pray them as 2 + 2 (most schools) or 4 in one (Hanafi acceptable for Dhuhr).

The rewards

• House in Jannah for the 12 daily rakat (Muslim).
• Pre-Fajr 2 rakat better than the world and everything in it (Muslim).
• Compensation for any shortfall in the fard prayers, on the Day of Judgement, Allah will ask "Did my servant have any voluntary prayers?" to make up for deficiencies in the fard (Tirmidhi).

FAQ

Are sunnah rawatib obligatory?

No, they're voluntary. You won't sin for missing them. But they're heavily recommended.

What if I miss a sunnah rawatib?

You can make it up (qadha), some scholars recommend, especially for the 2 before Fajr. Otherwise, no specific obligation to make up.

Can I combine sunnah rawatib with tahiyyatul masjid?

Yes. If you enter the masjid and pray 2 rakat with niyyat for both sunnah Dhuhr and tahiyyatul masjid, it counts for both.

What about Asr: no rawatib?

There's no muakkadah rawatib for Asr. Four rakat before Asr is ghair muakkadah (lighter recommended), and praying 2 after Asr is not done, there's actually a prohibition on voluntary prayer after Asr until Maghrib.