Lamp light in Tarawih prayers

Followed by the text of the Tarawih prayer book

Author's name: Taqi al-Din Ali ibn Abd al-Kafi ibn Ali al-Subki al-Shafi'i

A short treatise by Imam al-Subki from his works on fasting, which addresses an issue that occupied a considerable portion of the discussions of jurists in the eighth century AH; namely, the ruling on the Tarawih prayer and people gathering for it. Despite its brevity, it is comprehensive in its subject, as it brings together the scattered evidence for the virtue of the Tarawih prayer. In this treatise, Imam Taqi al-Din al-Subki explains the ruling on the Tarawih prayer, mentioning the opinions of the four imams on this matter. He then lists the evidence for each group, commenting on these opinions, and finally responding to the doubts of those who oppose the Sunnah of the Tarawih prayer.
Origin of the book:
The original of this letter is extracted from the fatwas of Imam al-Subki, may God have mercy on him, in the first part of it, pages (165-170), from the Jerusalem edition of 1306 AH. Imam al-Subki also wrote a large book on the subject of the letter, in a large volume called: “The Light of the Lamps in the Tarawih Prayer,” in which he detailed the disagreement regarding the Tarawih prayer, with an explanation of the evidence of each group, and the preference between them in terms of jurisprudence.
The book:
This thesis discusses the ruling on Tarawih prayer or Qiyam al-Ramadan. It is basically a voluntary prayer, and its ruling is that it is a confirmed Sunnah according to the majority of jurists. Taqi al-Din al-Subki discusses the opinions regarding Tarawih prayer and its issues in three brief chapters. In the first chapter of his thesis, he presents the opinions of the four imams on the ruling on Tarawih prayer. He begins with the Shafi'i scholars, who stated that Tarawih prayer is a confirmed Sunnah in most of their books. Then he presents the opinions of the Hanafi scholars, who narrated three narrations from Abu Hanifa that it is a confirmed Sunnah, a Sunnah that should not be abandoned, and a Sunnah that cannot be abandoned. As for the Maliki scholars, they stated that Qiyam al-Ramadan is a Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Hanbali scholars considered it to be a confirmed Sunnah, and the first to establish it was the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Al-Subki then presents the opinions of scholars from outside the four schools of thought. Such as Al-Layth ibn Sa'd, who believes that "people standing in prayer during the month of Ramadan is something that should not be neglected." In the second chapter, Taqi al-Din al-Subki cites the scholars' evidence for the Sunnah of Tarawih prayer, based on hadiths and reports, and the encouragement of it. He mentions the gathering of the people behind a single imam for Tarawih prayer toward the end of his caliphate by Umar ibn al-Khattab, and the reasons for this. He also mentions that it is a Sunnah of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recommended that we adhere to. In his epistle, al-Subki cites eleven pieces of evidence for the desirability and Sunnah of Tarawih prayer, and the sum of these evidences confirms its validity, as it is one of the virtuous deeds performed during the month of Ramadan, which one should regularly perform. As for the third chapter, he presents evidence and proof to refute the doubts of those who dispute the Tarawih prayer, concluding at the end of the epistle that "there is no doubt that it is a confirmed Sunnah," and that it is something the ummah has agreed upon and accepted.