What are the nights in which the Night of Decree is sought, what is the best supplication to be made in it, and what are its signs?
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The questioner : You ask: What are the nights in which the Night of Decree is sought? What is the best supplication to be made in it? And what are its signs?
The Shaykh : The most likely night in which the Night of Decree is expected is the twenty-seventh night, but it is not certainly the Night of Decree; rather, it is the most likely of them. Nevertheless, the stronger opinion among the scholars is that the Night of Decree moves: sometimes it is the twenty-first night, sometimes the twenty-third, the twenty-fifth, the twenty-seventh, and the twenty-ninth. It may also be on the even-numbered nights. Allah the Mighty and Majestic concealed it from His servants for two great reasons. The first is to make clear the one who is earnest in seeking it, who strives in all the nights in the hope of attaining it and hitting upon it. If it were a fixed night, people would not be earnest except in that night alone.
The second reason is that people should increase in righteous deeds by which they draw near to their Lord and benefit from them. As for the best supplication to be made in it, it is asking for pardon, as in the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), in which she said: "O Messenger of Allah, if I were to meet the Night of Decree, what should I say in it? He said:Bulugh al-Maram 5:57" This is among the best supplications to be made in it. As for its signs, one of its signs is that the sun rises on its morning clear, without any rays. This is a late sign. There are other signs, such as an increase in light, an increase in brightness in it, and the tranquility, comfort, and expansion of the chest of the believer. All of these are among the signs of the Night of Decree.
The Shaykh : The most likely night in which the Night of Decree is expected is the twenty-seventh night, but it is not certainly the Night of Decree; rather, it is the most likely of them. Nevertheless, the stronger opinion among the scholars is that the Night of Decree moves: sometimes it is the twenty-first night, sometimes the twenty-third, the twenty-fifth, the twenty-seventh, and the twenty-ninth. It may also be on the even-numbered nights. Allah the Mighty and Majestic concealed it from His servants for two great reasons. The first is to make clear the one who is earnest in seeking it, who strives in all the nights in the hope of attaining it and hitting upon it. If it were a fixed night, people would not be earnest except in that night alone.
The second reason is that people should increase in righteous deeds by which they draw near to their Lord and benefit from them. As for the best supplication to be made in it, it is asking for pardon, as in the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), in which she said: "O Messenger of Allah, if I were to meet the Night of Decree, what should I say in it? He said: