Source: Urdu Sharh of ‘Umdat al-Ahkam min Kalam Khayr al-Anam
Translation: Hafiz Faizullah Nasir
“Some of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ were shown Laylat al-Qadr in their dreams during the last seven nights. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘I see that your dreams have agreed (on this matter), so whoever wants to search for it, let him do so in the last seven nights.’”
❖ The Prophet ﷺ also described a sign of Laylat al-Qadr, that the sun rises the next morning without rays.
[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 762]
❖ In another narration, the Prophet ﷺ explicitly said:
“Seek it on the twenty-seventh night.”
[Musnad Aḥmad: 2/27]
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Seek Laylat al-Qadr in the odd nights of the last ten nights.”
❖ According to the Shāfiʿī school, Laylat al-Qadr is more likely on the 21st or 23rd night.
❖ According to the majority of scholars, the 27th night is more likely.
❖ The correct view, however, is that its exact date is not fixed, and this uncertainty motivates people to worship throughout the entire last ten nights.
[Fatḥ al-Bārī by Ibn Ḥajar: 4/266]
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to observe Iʿtikāf in the middle ten days of Ramadan. One year, he stayed in Iʿtikāf until the night of the 21st, which was the night when he would normally leave Iʿtikāf. He then said: ‘Whoever was in Iʿtikāf with me should continue for the last ten nights. I was shown Laylat al-Qadr but then made to forget it. I saw myself prostrating in water and mud in its morning.’”
(The narrator added: That night, it rained, and the mosque’s roof leaked. I saw the Prophet ﷺ with traces of water and mud on his forehead the morning of the 21st.)
❖ The signs of Laylat al-Qadr mentioned in Ahadith are possibilities, not certainties.
❖ These signs may or may not occur every year, and should not be solely relied upon to determine the night.
① Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Book of Ṣawm,
Chapter: Seeking Laylat al-Qadr in the Last Seven Nights,
Hadith no.: 2015
② Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Fasting,
Chapter: The Virtue of Laylat al-Qadr and Encouragement to Seek It,
Hadith no.: 1165
③ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Book of Iʿtikāf,
Chapter: Iʿtikāf in the Last Ten Nights,
Hadith no.: 2027
④ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Fasting,
Hadith no.: 1167
Laylat al-Qadr should be sought in the odd nights (21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 29th) of the last ten nights of Ramadan. While the 27th night is popularly considered likely, the exact night is not known, so continuous worship throughout the last ten nights is encouraged.
Translation: Hafiz Faizullah Nasir
First Hadith: Narrated by ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما
“Some of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ were shown Laylat al-Qadr in their dreams during the last seven nights. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘I see that your dreams have agreed (on this matter), so whoever wants to search for it, let him do so in the last seven nights.’”
Vocabulary Explanation:
- تَوَاطَأَتْ: Aligned or agreed.
Commentary on the Hadith:
❖ The Prophet ﷺ also described a sign of Laylat al-Qadr, that the sun rises the next morning without rays.[Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 762]
❖ In another narration, the Prophet ﷺ explicitly said:
“Seek it on the twenty-seventh night.”
[Musnad Aḥmad: 2/27]
Second Hadith: Narrated by ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: Seek Laylat al-Qadr in the odd nights of the last ten nights.” Commentary:
❖ According to the Shāfiʿī school, Laylat al-Qadr is more likely on the 21st or 23rd night.❖ According to the majority of scholars, the 27th night is more likely.
❖ The correct view, however, is that its exact date is not fixed, and this uncertainty motivates people to worship throughout the entire last ten nights.
[Fatḥ al-Bārī by Ibn Ḥajar: 4/266]
Third Hadith: Narrated by Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī رضي الله عنه
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to observe Iʿtikāf in the middle ten days of Ramadan. One year, he stayed in Iʿtikāf until the night of the 21st, which was the night when he would normally leave Iʿtikāf. He then said: ‘Whoever was in Iʿtikāf with me should continue for the last ten nights. I was shown Laylat al-Qadr but then made to forget it. I saw myself prostrating in water and mud in its morning.’”(The narrator added: That night, it rained, and the mosque’s roof leaked. I saw the Prophet ﷺ with traces of water and mud on his forehead the morning of the 21st.)
Vocabulary Explanation:
- عَرِيش: Canopy or roof.
- وَكَفَ الْمَسْجِدُ: The mosque’s roof began to leak.
Commentary:
❖ The signs of Laylat al-Qadr mentioned in Ahadith are possibilities, not certainties.❖ These signs may or may not occur every year, and should not be solely relied upon to determine the night.
References:
① Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Book of Ṣawm,Chapter: Seeking Laylat al-Qadr in the Last Seven Nights,
Hadith no.: 2015
② Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Fasting,
Chapter: The Virtue of Laylat al-Qadr and Encouragement to Seek It,
Hadith no.: 1165
③ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Book of Iʿtikāf,
Chapter: Iʿtikāf in the Last Ten Nights,
Hadith no.: 2027
④ Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, Book of Fasting,
Hadith no.: 1167
Conclusion: