It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: At the time of the fasting person's iftar, perform the Maghrib prayer and offer it before the appearance of the stars.

(Second chain) The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: Perform the Maghrib prayer before the appearance of the stars.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Maghrib prayer is the witr of the day’s prayers, so make the night prayer also witr, and the night prayer is in sets of two rak‘ahs, and in the last part of the night, witr is one rak‘ah.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Sa’ib bin Yazid (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: My Ummah will always remain upon the natural disposition (fitrah) as long as it continues to perform the Maghrib prayer before the appearance of the stars.

Sayyiduna Abu Abdur Rahman Sanabahi (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: My Ummah will always remain upon goodness as long as it does not do these three things: delaying Maghrib prayer while waiting for darkness in imitation of the Jews, delaying Fajr prayer until the stars disappear in imitation of the Christians, and handing over the funeral to its family.

Mirthad bin Abdullah Yazni says: The Companion of the Messenger, Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Khalid bin Zayd Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) came to Egypt for jihad. Sayyiduna Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan (may Allah be pleased with him) had appointed Sayyiduna Uqbah bin Amir Juhani (may Allah be pleased with him) as our leader. One day, Sayyiduna Uqbah (may Allah be pleased with him) became occupied after the Maghrib prayer and delayed this prayer. So when he led the prayer, Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) went to him and said: Uqbah! Did you see the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do this? Did you not hear the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say that my Ummah will remain upon goodness or upon the natural disposition as long as they do not delay the Maghrib prayer until the stars become mixed up? He said: Yes, of course. He (Abu Ayyub) said: Then what made you do this? He said: I became occupied. Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Beware! By Allah, I do not feel any harm in this, but I fear that people may begin to think that you saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do this.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mughaffal Muzani (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Never let it happen that the Bedouins overpower you regarding the name of the Maghrib prayer. The Bedouins used to call this prayer 'Isha'.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Nu’man bin Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him), who says: I am the most knowledgeable about the time of the ‘Isha prayer of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). At the beginning of the month, after the setting of the crescent moon of the third night, he (peace and blessings be upon him) would perform this prayer.

(Second chain) There is a similar narration, except that it states: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would perform the ‘Isha prayer on the third or fourth night at the time equal to the setting of the moon.

A man from the tribe of Juhaina says: I asked the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, when should I perform the ‘Isha prayer? He, peace and blessings be upon him, replied: When the night fills the belly of every valley.