Mentioning the ruling on concealing the Night of Decree from the people.
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The Shaykh : In any case, Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) concealed this night from the servants for great reasons, among which is that people should strive in all the nights. If they had known that it was in a specific night, they would have striven in that night to the exclusion of the others, and they would have missed the great reward that follows from standing in prayer throughout all ten nights.
Second, it is a test for the servants, a test of the sincere one who loves good over the negligent one. The negligent person says, "How can I stand in prayer for ten nights for the sake of one night?" while the sincere person says, "I will stand in prayer for ten nights for the sake of one night, hoping that I will be successful in it." But does the virtue of this night only accrue to the one who knows about it, or does it accrue even if he does not know? The answer to this is that it accrues even if he does not know, provided he stands in prayer for all the nights of the ten, because it is not a condition for obtaining its virtue that a person knows about it. If that were a condition, much of its good would be missed by many people, because most people do not know about it. Also, the hadiths reported regarding its virtue do not stipulate that a person must know about it. Therefore, if a person stands in prayer for the ten nights out of faith and seeking reward, he will be successful in its good and its virtue, whether he knows about it or not.
Second, it is a test for the servants, a test of the sincere one who loves good over the negligent one. The negligent person says, "How can I stand in prayer for ten nights for the sake of one night?" while the sincere person says, "I will stand in prayer for ten nights for the sake of one night, hoping that I will be successful in it." But does the virtue of this night only accrue to the one who knows about it, or does it accrue even if he does not know? The answer to this is that it accrues even if he does not know, provided he stands in prayer for all the nights of the ten, because it is not a condition for obtaining its virtue that a person knows about it. If that were a condition, much of its good would be missed by many people, because most people do not know about it. Also, the hadiths reported regarding its virtue do not stipulate that a person must know about it. Therefore, if a person stands in prayer for the ten nights out of faith and seeking reward, he will be successful in its good and its virtue, whether he knows about it or not.