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Salam aleikum brother

If i am correct brother for most scholars, there is no sunnah rakahs before salat al jumma. There is only nafl.

See below:

Question:

How many raka's of sunnah are to be prayed before and after the farz of the Juma prayers?

When I go to the mosque on Friday the athaan is pronounced, then everyone prays 2 or 4 rakaat. Then athan is again pronounced and immediately after it iqamah. Having prayed 2 Jum'ah rakaat, people pray again 2 or 4 rakaat.

Besides, the imaam when supplicating raises hands then wipes his face and everyone follows him. Is it bid'ah? If so, what should I do (just look at others?)

Answer: Praise be to Allah.

Before the obligatory Jumua prayer, there are two opinions: the Hanafi school of thought says 4 consecutive Rakaats (not 2, then salaam, then 2 more), while the Shafii school of thought says 2 Rakaats only. Both of these opinions are considered valid. As to the number of Rakaats after the Jumua prayer, it is only two according to both schools of thought.

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to come out of his house on the day of Jumu’ah (Friday) and climb up on his minbar. Then the muezzin would give the Adhaan, and when he finished, the Prophet (PBUH) would start his khutbah. If there were any Sunnah prayer to be done before Jumu’ah, he (PBUH) would have told them about it and directed them to do it after the Adhaan, and he would have done it himself. At the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) there was nothing apart from the Adhaan just before the khutbah.

Hence the majority of the imaams agreed that there is no sunnah to be done at a specific time before Jumu’ah with a specific number of rak’ahs, because that would have been reported from the words or actions of the Prophet (PBUH), and nothing of that nature has been reported from him. This is the madhhab of Maalik, al-Shaafa’i and most of his companions, and is the well known view in the madhhab of Ahmad.

Al-‘Iraaqi said: “I have not seen anything to indicate that the three imams recommended praying Sunnah before it (Jumu’ah).”

The muhaddith al-Albaani commented:

For that reason this so-called Sunnah is not mentioned by Imaam Al-Shaafa’i, or by Imaam Ahmad, or by any of the other early imaams, as far as I know.

However many saheeh reports indicate that what is prescribed for the Muslim when he comes to the mosque on Friday is to pray whatever Allah wills, he should pray before the imaam comes out. The Prophet (PBUH) did not specify whether it should be two or four or more. All of that is good, but the minimum is two rak’ahs to “greet the mosque.”

Prophet (PBUH) said: “The prayers of the night and the day (i.e., other than the obligatory prayers) are two by two.” (Narrated by Imaam Ahmad and the authors of Sunan with a hasan isnaad; the original is to be found in al-Saheeh without any mention of the day.)
It is not valid to draw an analogy between Jumu’ah and Zuhr prayer and say that it is mustahabb to offer the regular Sunnah prayer before Jumu’ah as it is mustahabb to do so before Zuhr, because Jumu’ah prayer is different from Zuhr prayer in many ways, and because this analogy is contrary to the apparent Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH), which is that he did not offer any regular Sunnah prayer before Jumu’ah.

The best guidance is the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). If the Prophet (PBUH) had offered any prayer before Jumu’ah, that would have been narrated to us. As there is no such narration, we know that he (PBUH) did not offer any regular Sunnah prayer before Jumu’ah.

Rakat after Jumma Prayer :

There are a number of ahaadeeth which speak of the number of rak’ahs to be prayed after Jumu’ah.

1- That the number should be two rak’ahs.

It was narrated from ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) did not offer any prayers after Jumu’ah until he left, then he prayed two rak’ahs. (Narrated by al-Bukhaari 937 and Muslim 882).

2- That the number should be four rak’ahs.

It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: “When one of you has prayed Jumu’ah, let him pray four (rak’ahs) afterwards.” (Narrated by Muslim 881).

The scholars differed concerning that and there are a number of opinions based on the differences of these ahaadeeth.

The first view is that one should pray two rak’ahs. This was narrated from the actions of Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).

The second view, which is the view of the majority of fuqaha’, is that it is mustahabb to pray four rak’ahs after Jumu’ah. This was narrated from ‘Abd-Allah ibn Mas’ood (may Allah be pleased with him) and his companions, as it says in Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah (2/40-41). This is also the view favoured by the Hanafis, as it says in Radd al-Muhtaar (2/12-13), and it was the view favoured by Imam al-Shaafa’i in al-Umm (7/176) where he said: We say: he should pray four. End quote.

The third view is that one has the choice between two and four.

Imam Ahmad said: If he wishes he may pray two rak’ahs after Jumu’ah, or if he wishes he may pray four. End quote. Al-Mughni (2/109).

The fourth view is that it depends. If a person is offering the Sunnah prayer following Jumu’ah in the mosque, he should pray four rak’ahs and if he is offering it at home he should pray two rak’ahs only.

Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Our Shaykh Abu’l-‘Abbaas ibn Taymiyah said: If he prays in the mosque he should pray four and if he prays in his house he should pray two rak’ahs.

I (Ibn al-Qayyim) said: This is what is indicated by the ahaadeeth. Abu Dawood narrated from Ibn ‘Umar that when he prayed in the mosque he prayed four and when he prayed in his house he prayed two rak’ahs. End quote. (Zaad al-Ma’aad 1/417).

This view was favoured by the scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas.

See: Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (6/131).

The fifth view is that it is mustahabb to pray six rak’ahs. This is what is narrated from ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib (may Allah be pleased with him) and from a number of the salaf. See: Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah (2/40-41). This is the view favoured by Abu Yoosuf and al-Tahhaawi among the Hanafis. See Sharh Ma’aani al-Aathaar (1/337). It was also narrated from Imam Ahmad as mentioned by Ibn Qudaamah in al-Mughni. Al-Haafiz Ibn Rajab regarded it as strange in al-Qawaa’id (p. 15).

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

How can we reconcile between the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), “When one of you has prayed Jumu’ah, let him pray four (rak’ahs) afterwards”, and his actions when he (PBUH) prayed two rak’ahs in his house?

He replied:

The scholars differed concerning this.

Some of them said that he prayed six rak’ahs, two rak’ahs based on his actions and four based on his words. This is one view.

Another view is that what counts is the words, which is that one should pray four rak’ahs, so the Sunnah prayer after Jumu’ah is four rak’ahs.

The third view is that it depends. If one prays in the mosque then it should be four rak’ahs and if he prays at home it should be two.

This is the view favoured by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him).

With regard to the prayer after Jumu’ah, Ibn al-Qayyim said in al-Zaad (1/440):

When the Prophet (PBUH) had prayed Jumu’ah, he would enter his house and pray two Rak’ahs of Sunnah, and he commanded those who had prayed it to pray four rak’ahs afterwards. Our shaykh, Abu’l-‘Abbaas Ibn Taymiyah said: if he prayed in the mosque, he would pray four, and if he prayed at home, he would pray two. I say: this is what is indicated by many ahaadeeth. Abu Dawood reported in his Sunan (1130) from Ibn ‘Umar that when he prayed in the mosque, he prayed four and when he prayed at home, he prayed two.

It seems that the choice is between two rak’ahs or four, and differentiating between praying in the mosque or at home.

Praise be to Allah, the matter is broad in scope, i.e., if a person goes home and prays four rak’ahs with two tasleems, that is good and does no harm insha Allah. End quote. (Liqaa’aat al-Baab il-Maftooh no. 214, question no. 8).

And Allah knows best.

Excerpted, with slight modifications, from: http://************/index.php?ln=eng