The Tanaffas and Isfar Phases of the True Dawn

Abstract

True dawn determines the beginning time of fajr prayer. At the moment dawn rises, the intensity of the brightness is very low. The brightness of the dawn increases gradually until it is bright. The brightness of dawn increases in phases. The phase of dawn or fajr in the Qur'an is mentioned as tanaffas and isfar in surah At-Takwir verse 18 and Al-Mudatsir verse 34 respectively. These verses show that there are at least two types of brightness at dawn related to tanaffas and isfar. These two different brightness levels show there are two phases of true dawn. This study aimed to determine the time and the angle of the Sun for the tanaffas and isfar phases. This study was carried out by field observation method at locations in Malaysia and Indonesia. The instrument used was a thread window. The results showed that the tanaffas phase appeared when white thread was seen and the isfar phase happened when black thread was seen. The tanaffas phase occurred 14 minutes after true dawn rises at the angle of the sun 16 degrees below horizon meanwhile the isfar phase occurred 25 minutes after true dawn rises at angle of the sun 14 degrees below horizon until sunrise