Besides the forbidden times...

[rickyraws]

Is it possible to pray nawafil or voluntary salat at any time, any rakats?

I'm not talking about the 12 sunnah ones, just any extra salat after them.

 

[ahmed_indian]

:salam2:

yes brother, u can whenever u want.

just avoid 3 times: after fajr until sunrise, after asr until sunset and midday.

 

[weakslave]

Not any rak`aat. Nawaafil are well defined and must be prayed as specified if you choose to pray them....

That is a little confusing.

Nawafil are any prayers that are "extra", ie. not obligatory.

Sunnah prayers are those confirmed nawafil prayers that the Prophet practised regularly.

The sunnan are many:

2 before fajr (the only naafilah that Prophet never, ever missed)
4 before thuhr, 2 after thuhr
2 after maghrib
2 after isha
2 rak'aah after sunrise, before thuhr (duha prayer)
2 rak'aah after wudoo
2 rak'aah after entering the masjid
2 rak'aah after performing tawaaf
2 rak'aah before leaving the home, and 2 after returning to the home
2 rak'aah in the local masjid after returning from a journey

and so on.

Then the Prophet was in the habit of concluding his nightly prayers with a special kind of prayer called witr, which can be 1, 3, 5, 7, or 9 rak'aahs:

witr prayers

Nawafil can be prayed in 2 or 4 rak'aahs as we find in the sunnah of the prophet . The 4 rak'aahs can have the form of thuhr/asr/isha prayer. The evidence for this is you are allowed to lead individuals in fajr/thuhr/asr/isha prayers even when you have prayed it yourself. For you it would count as a naafilah, for those following you it would be fulfilling the obligation.

Muaadth ibn Jabal used to pray 'Isha behind the Prophet then he would travel to his masjid and lead another congregation in 'Isha. Obviously he would pray the four rak'aahs as one would pray 'Isha.

Imaam in congregation

No one can say there is a limit to how many rak'aahs you can pray, as long as they are done in pairs or quartets. We know the Prophet used to pray 8 rak'aahs in the night prayer and that he used to make them very long:

Prolonging night prayers

Because of what the Prophet did, it is clear that prolonging the night prayers is more favourable to Allaah, rather than making them short.

Following the sunnah of the Prophet is always the most favourable with Allaah, and Allaah knows best.