What is the ruling on playing sports after the 'Isha prayer and returning home around 9:20 PM, and is this considered the prohibited staying up late?
It is permissible to engage in permissible activities after 'Isha' out of necessity, such as health-related exercise. However, it is disliked to engage in activities after 'Isha' that are not necessitated, such as idle talk, conversations, and useless games, due to what is mentioned in the Hadith that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, disliked conversation after it. The reason for this dislike is that staying up late leads to oversleeping and missing the night prayer (Qiyam al-Layl) or the Fajr prayer. Also, staying up late at night causes laziness during the day regarding religious duties and worldly affairs. As for conversations that serve a beneficial purpose, such as studying knowledge or conversing with a guest, there is no dislike in them.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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