Question 91 : Assalaamu ‘alaykum respected Shaikhs,
Is it ok to have a long time gap between the 2 rakah and one rakah of witr?
Say I pray 2 Sunnah and 2 part of witr at masjid, then go home and do other things and before going to sleep I pray 1?
Answer : Walaikumussalam Br Ismail Ibn Ahmed\
For the three rakah to be considered as three rakah witr, we cannot leave long time between the two and the one rakah. If it is to be a three rakah witr, then they must be one after the other, though a momentary or very brief delay is permitted, as one Sahabi alluded.
But if we do delay a lot, such as pray two rakah then after a long time prayed the one rakah, then it will be one rakah witr whereas the two rakah maybe part of the night prayer the qiyam ul layl given the intention is for night prayer and not for a qada or so.
Allah knows best.