The Isha prayer ( ṣalāt al-ʿišāʾ, "night prayer") is one of the mandatory five daily Islamic prayers, and contains four cycles. 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 (Furū al-Dīn) according to Shia Islam. In Persian it is known as نماز عشاء (Nemāz-e ʿišāʾ). In Kashmiri, it is known as Khoftan Nemaz. Likewise in Punjabi, it is called Khuftaan di namaz.

Ahadith mentioning virtues

Uthman reported that he heard Muhammad saying: "The one who offered Isha salat in a congregation, it was as if he remained in salat up to midnight, and he who offered the Fajr salat in a congregation, it was as if he remained in salat the whole night." (Muslim) Abu Hurairah reported: The Messenger of Allah said, "The most difficult Salah for the Munafiqeen (the hypocrites) is Isha and Fajr. Had they known the rewards for them, they would have attended them even if they had to crawl on their knees." (Bukhari)

Sunni Muslims

The time period within which the Isha prayer must be recited is the following:

Shia Muslims

The time period within which the Isha prayer must be recited is the following: For Shia Muslims: However, it is very important to recite the prayer as soon as the time begins. Often Maghrib and Isha are offered together with a small gap of time in between.