Laylatul Qadr Dua: Arabic, Meaning and the Authentic Wording

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) once asked the Prophet ﷺ a question many of us ask every Ramadan: if I find Laylatul Qadr, what should I say? His answer was a short dua for pardon. This is the Laylatul Qadr dua, in the exact words he taught her.

The Laylatul Qadr dua in Arabic

Aisha asked: “O Messenger of Allah, what do you think I should say in my supplication, if I come upon Laylatul Qadr?” He said: “Say:”

At-Tirmidhi narrates the same conversation. In his version, Aisha asks: “If I know which night is Laylatul Qadr, what should I say in it?” and the Prophet ﷺ answers:

At-Tirmidhi called it hasan sahih. The only difference between the two texts is one word, which is explained next.

A note on the word “karim”

Many books, posters and websites give the dua with one extra word: karim (Generous), as in “Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun karim…”. The Sunnah.com text of Tirmidhi 3513 has it too.

IslamQA (answer 260806) explains that al-Albani graded the Tirmidhi narration with this word in Sahih at-Tirmidhi, but later wrote in as-Silsilah as-Sahihah that it was probably added by a copyist or typist and has no basis in the early sources. The answer also notes that an-Nasa’i narrated the hadith through the same chain without it, and that the editions of at-Tirmidhi checked by Bashshar ‘Awwad and Shu‘ayb al-Arna’ut do not have it.

So on this site we teach the dua as Ibn Majah 3850 has it, without karim. Allah is al-Karim, so the word is not wrong in meaning; the aim is simply to keep to the wording that was passed down.

What the dua means

The dua has three short parts: a name of Allah, something Allah loves, and one request.

• Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun: O Allah, You are al-‘Afuw, the One who pardons.
• tuhibbul-‘afwa: You love to pardon.
• fa‘fu ‘anni: so pardon me.

Ibn Kathir recommends saying this dua often in Ramadan, especially in the last ten nights and more so in the odd nights, and notes that at-Tirmidhi called the hadith hasan sahih (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Surah al-Qadr).

Reflection: It is striking what Aisha was not told to ask for. On the greatest night of the year, the Prophet ﷺ did not point her to wealth, health or success, though asking for those is allowed. He taught her to ask for pardon. Perhaps that is because once Allah pardons a person, nothing is left standing between them and His mercy, and every other good follows from that.

When is Laylatul Qadr?

The Prophet ﷺ did not fix one date for the night. Aisha reports that he told us where to look:

So the night falls on one of the odd nights of the last ten: the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th or 29th. Many people focus on the 27th, and the companion Ubayy ibn Ka‘b (may Allah be pleased with him) swore that it was that night:

This is Ubayy’s own view of the 27th. Other reports point to other nights: Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) described it falling on the 21st one year (Muslim 1167a). The sign Ubayy gives is seen the morning after, so the safest way is to seek the night across all ten.

Why this night is worth staying up for

Allah tells us its worth in Surah al-Qadr:

What does “better than a thousand months” mean? Al-Tabari reports that Mujahid explained it as the night’s deeds, its fasting and its standing in prayer being better than a thousand months, and that Qatadah said: a thousand months in which there is no Laylatul Qadr. Al-Tabari judged the meaning closest to the verse to be that a deed done on this night is better than the deeds of a thousand months without it (Tafsir al-Tabari on 97:3). Ibn Kathir likewise explains that worship on this night is like worship done over a thousand months (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Surah al-Qadr).

A thousand months is about 83 years, longer than many people live. That is the reward one night can hold.

And Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Prophet ﷺ said:

The reward of standing in prayer and the dua Aisha was taught point the same way: this is a night for being forgiven.

How to practise it

• Learn the dua by heart before Ramadan, so it comes easily at night.
• In the last ten nights, say it in your sujud, in the last part of the night and between your other duas. The hadith gives no set number, so say it as often as you can.
• Pair it with night prayer, as in Bukhari 1901: even a few rak‘ahs of tarawih or tahajjud.
• Don’t pin your hopes on the 27th alone; spread your effort across all ten nights.
• On nights you cannot pray, you can still make this dua and remember Allah.

Questions people ask

Key lessons

• The Prophet ﷺ taught Aisha to ask for pardon on Laylatul Qadr.
• The authentic wording is “Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul-‘afwa fa‘fu ‘anni”, without karim.
• Seek the night in the odd nights of the last ten of Ramadan, not on one night only.
• Standing in prayer that night with faith and hope of reward brings forgiveness of past sins.

Part of our Dua series: see all our dua articles in one place.

May Allah let us reach Ramadan and its last ten nights, and may He pardon every one of us.

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