The Asr prayer is one of the five mandatorysalah. As an Islamic day starts at sunset, the Asr prayer is technically the fifth prayer of the day. If counted from midnight, it is the third prayer of the day. The Asr prayer consists of four obligatory rakat. An additional four rakat are recommended to be performed before the obligatory rakat. As with Zuhr and Isha prayers, if it is performed in congregation, the imam is silent except when announcing the takbir, i'tidal, and taslim. The period of Asr prayer begins approximately when the sun is halfway down from noon to sunset, following Zuhr prayer, and ends at sunset, when Maghrib prayer begins. Shia Muslims are allowed to perform Zuhr and Asr prayers one after another, so they may perform the Asr prayer before the actual period begins. Barring the Hanafi school, which forbids prayer combination, Sunni Muslims may only do this if they are traveling and incapable of performing the prayers separately. The Asr daily prayer is mentioned as the middle prayer in the Qur'an at sura 2, ayat 238. al-Asr is also the title of the 103rd chapter of the Qur’ān. The five daily prayers collectively are one pillar of the Five Pillars of Islam, in Sunni Islam, and one of the ten Practices of the Religion according to Shia Islam.
Name variations
Format
The Asr prayer consist of four rakats, although according to some madh'habs, it may be reduced to two rakaʿāt when travelling.
However, it is very important to recite the prayer as soon as the time begins. Letter 52 of Nahj al-Balagha contains instruction of Ali to his governors on the timings of salat, "The Asr prayers can be performed till the sun is still bright and enough time of the day is left for a person to cover a distance of six miles."
The time period within which the Asr prayer must be recited is the following:
Time begins: The Sunni schools differ on when the time begins. The Maliki, Shafi`i, and Hanbali schools say it is at the time when the length of any object's shadow equals the length of the object itself plus the length of that object's shadow at noon. The dominant opinion in the Hanafi school says it begins when the length of any object's shadow is twice the length of the object plus the length of that object's shadow at noon.
Time ends: Once the sun has completely set below the horizon. However, it is frowned upon to delay the prayer without a legitimate excuse to the point of the day in which the sun turns a pale red or orange color as it begins to set, though it would still be considered to have been prayed on time.
The Islamic prophetMuhammad said, "He who observes Al-Bardan will enter Jannah.''Sahih Bukhari and Muslim, Narrated by Abu Musa. In another hadith: Muhammad said 'He who misses his Asr Salat is as if he had lost his wife, children and all his wealth.’
