Taraweeh Etiquettes 101
One of my favorite things about Ramadan is going to taraweeh, which are the extra recommended night prayers during Ramadan made after ishaa prayer. It’s spectacular to see a great amount of people gathered at the masjid after a long day of fasting. Here are some tips and reminders for all of you who are intending to go to taraweeh. Again, it is optional for both men and women to go to taraweeh at the masjid.
Many women opt to pray taraweeh at home, which is recommended. Regardless where you pray the action of praying taraweeh itself is rewarding and a lot of good deeds will be accumulated. God Willing, everyone has a blessed Ramadan and make the most out of it.
Top Taraweeh Tips
- Renew your intentions. This is something so simple, yet often we forget the reason why we are going. The intentions can be for several good reasons (receiving good deeds, meeting your fellow sisters, listening to a lecture, etc.) but make sure you renew it before you go so you get more hasanat (rewards).
- Garlic-free. We know you spent hours preparing for a big family iftar at your home, but make sure you take a quick shower to get rid of the delicious food that might have lingered. You don’t want to be praying while the person next to you smells like yummy curry, garlic, or samosas. And you want to talk to Allah (swt) while smelling fresh and clean.
- Comfortable clothes. You want to wear comfortable clothes during the 2-3 hour prayers. Abayas are fine, but make sure you don’t wear pajamas under it (and for men, don’t wear pajamas under your jelabeya)! It is disrespectful to go to the masjid wearing pajamas. Think about it, when you go to a job interview, you put on a nice suit, skirt, and iron everything. Now how about when you go to Allah (swt)’s masjid? Leggings, cotton pants or loose fitting jeans are comfortable and appropriate under the abaya. Another option for the ladies would be maxi dresses because they are chic, comfortable and modest.
- Cell phones. There are signs everywhere at the masjid that remind people to turn off their cell phones, but someone still manages to forget to put it on silent and the latest nasheed or ring tones start playing in the middle of taraweeh. As soon as you walk into the masjid, make it a habit to put your phone on silent—even better, turn it off if possible. You want all your attention to be focused on prayer and worship, inshaAllah.
- Gossip. Many times I go to the masjid during Ramadan and there’s a room filled with people sitting there and gossiping. Gossiping is haram any time of the year, but one must be extra careful not to gossip, use bad words or backbite during Ramadan. Try to refrain as much as you can from gossiping. This is a good time to re-read one of Ponn’s most popular posts, Muslim Wives Need to Learn to Just Shut Up! article.
- Shoe rack. Masajid are filled during Ramadan, Alhamdulilah, and often people run into the prayer area and throw their shoes at the entrance of the door. Don’t do it. People will trip, the area looks messy, and shoes will get lost. Please carefully place your shoes on the shoe rack—it will take only 5 seconds more, inshaAllah Ta’ala.
- Water. I like to take a tumbler with me to taraweeh and fill it up with ice and water before I go. A reusable water bottle will also work. This will keep you refreshed and hydrated throughout taraweeh so you don’t have to keep running to the water fountain after every two rakahs. These are my two favorite water bottles: Water Bobble and Tervis Tumbler which can be found at Bed Bath and Beyond, Target, and many super markets.
Those are my top tips and reminders. What are some of your taraweeh tips? What actions do you see at taraweeh that bug you and wished people didn’t do? Let us know below!
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Category: Family
[...] American Muslim Mom Article by Aya Khalil [...]
We actually rarely go because they make the ladies with kids under 7 pray in the “old masjid” regardless of how the kids behave. My children have NEVER misbehaved, they always, at the very least sit quietly next to me. Instead we have to be in “free for all” land with 50 kids running around screaming and their mother’s not behaving much better. You cannot even hear the Imam and the few good kids that are there, learn bad behaviors form the others.
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Ayakhalil Reply:
August 9th, 2011 at 5:18 pm
That’s unfortunate. Many parents do teach their children to be well-behaved and also plan ahead before going to Taraweeh. It’s sad when Masjid’s don’t cater to parents or single parents with children. I wrote an a blog post on tips for parents with children who want to go to taraweeh. http://americanmuslimmom.com/tips-for-parents-taking-kids-masjid
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I’m not quite familiar but this could really help…
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I’m not a Muslim but just like any other prayer services, the things you listed must all be noted. Two of my pet peeves are cellphones and gossip during prayer or in any prayer dwelling.
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Ayakhalil Reply:
August 9th, 2011 at 5:19 pm
Thank you Vivian for your response. It’s true. When people go into an important meeting or interview, cell phones are turned off, so why not at Mosques, Churches and other places of worship? The gossiping is also unfortunate, especially at such holy places!
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Maldives Resorts,
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