Of all the words a believer might say on Laylat al-Qadr (لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْر, “the Night of Decree”), one supplication stands apart, because the Prophet ﷺ chose it himself in answer to a direct question. ʿĀʾishah, his wife, asked what she should say if she came to know which night was the Night of Decree. His reply was a single sentence, and its brevity is part of its strength: it praises Allah by one attribute and asks Him for one thing.1
This page sets out the Arabic text, its transliteration and meaning, the sources that preserve it, the difference between their wordings, and guidance on how to use the supplication through the last ten nights of Ramadan.
The duʿāʾ the Prophet ﷺ taught
اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي
| Arabic | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| اللَّهُمَّ | Allāhumma | O Allah |
| إِنَّكَ | innaka | truly You are |
| عَفُوٌّ | ʿafuwwun | One who pardons, often and completely |
| تُحِبُّ | tuḥibbu | You love |
| الْعَفْوَ | al-ʿafwa | pardon, the act of effacing a fault |
| فَاعْفُ | fa-ʿfu | so pardon |
| عَنِّي | ʿannī | me |
Where the supplication comes from
Two of the six canonical hadith collections record the exchange between ʿĀʾishah and the Prophet ﷺ. Ibn Mājah preserves the wording shown above.2 Al-Tirmidhī records the same exchange and judges the hadith ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ, a grade that places it among sound narrations; the edition on which this guide relies grades it ṣaḥīḥ.3
The wordings differ by one word. The text in al-Tirmidhī’s collection, as published, adds karīmun, “Generous,” after ʿafuwwun:
اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ كَرِيمٌ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي
| Collection | Wording | Grade shown by the source | Question asked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ibn Mājah | Allāhumma innaka ʿafuwwun tuḥibbu l-ʿafwa fa-ʿfu ʿannī | Ṣaḥīḥ (al-Albānī; Dār al-Salām) | “What should I supplicate if I come upon the Night of Decree?” |
| al-Tirmidhī | Allāhumma innaka ʿafuwwun karīmun tuḥibbu l-ʿafwa fa-ʿfu ʿannī | Ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ (al-Tirmidhī); ṣaḥīḥ (al-Albānī; Dār al-Salām) | “If I know which night is the Night of Decree, what should I say in it?” |
Either wording is sound to use. Readers who want a single form to memorise will find the shorter wording in Ibn Mājah the more widely taught of the two, and this guide uses it as its main text.
What the words mean
The supplication rests on the root ʿ-f-w, which carries the sense of effacing a mark until nothing of it remains. ʿAfuww, the divine name used here, describes one who pardons in that thorough way and does so repeatedly. The request that follows, fa-ʿfu ʿannī, asks for exactly that: the removal of the fault itself, together with its consequence.
The order of the sentence matters. The believer first acknowledges who Allah is, then states what He loves, and only then asks. Each clause prepares the next, so that the request arrives as a natural conclusion drawn from the praise. For the holiest night of the year, the Prophet ﷺ taught a sentence a child can learn in a minute, and its compactness allows it to be repeated through a whole night without strain.
It is striking that the supplication asks for pardon, when the night invites every kind of request. The choice directs the believer to the need that underlies all others. A person who is pardoned stands clear with his Lord, and the Prophet ﷺ promised that whoever stands in prayer on this night out of faith and in hope of reward will have his previous sins forgiven.4
When and how to say it
The hadith sets no count and no fixed moment. ʿĀʾishah asked what to say on the night itself, and the answer applies to the whole of it, from sunset until dawn. Because the exact night is unknown, the sound course is to use the supplication on every night of the last ten, with particular attention to the odd nights.5
| Moment of the night | How the supplication fits |
|---|---|
| After the ʿIshāʾ (night) prayer | Begin the night with it, before voluntary prayer. |
| During voluntary night prayer | Say it in the prostrations and before the closing salutation, where supplication is customary. |
| Between units of prayer | Repeat it quietly while resting. |
| The last third of the night | Return to it with renewed attention before the pre-dawn meal. |
| At any free moment | While walking or resting: the words need no preparation. |
Say the words with understanding. A believer who knows what ʿafuwwun means, and who has a particular fault in mind when asking for pardon, prays with a present heart. Repetition serves that purpose when it deepens attention; it defeats it when it becomes a count to finish.
A Qurʾānic supplication for the same nights
Many believers pair the Prophetic duʿāʾ with a supplication from the Qurʾān that asks for good in both worlds. It is a general supplication with no specific link to the Night of Decree, and its breadth makes it a natural companion:
وَمِنۡهُم مَّن يَقُولُ رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِنَا فِي ٱلدُّنۡيَا حَسَنَةٗ وَفِي ٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ حَسَنَةٗ وَقِنَا عَذَابَ ٱلنَّارِ ٢٠١
The verse is Qurʾānic text and is set here in the Madinah Muṣḥaf script, so that it remains visibly distinct from the words of the Prophet ﷺ above.
Supplicating in your own words
Nothing in the sources restricts the night to set formulas. Alongside the duʿāʾ taught to ʿĀʾishah, a believer may ask in any language for anything lawful, for himself and for others. Many find it useful to prepare a short written list before the last ten nights begin, so that personal needs and the names of people who asked for prayers are not forgotten in the hours of the night.
| Area | Examples of what to ask for |
|---|---|
| Faith | Steadfastness, sincerity, a heart that loves the Qurʾān |
| Forgiveness | Pardon for specific faults you can name; relief from their effects |
| Family | Guidance for children, reconciliation, health of parents |
| Livelihood | Lawful provision, work that benefits others, freedom from debt |
| The deceased | Mercy for parents, relatives and teachers who have died |
| The community | Relief for those suffering hardship, justice, peace |
Common questions
Must the duʿāʾ be said in Arabic?
The Prophetic wording is best learned in Arabic, and it is short enough for anyone to memorise. Personal supplication may be made in any language; Allah hears every tongue.
Is there a special prayer attached to it?
The authentic reports attach no particular prayer, number of units or recitation to this supplication. Lists that prescribe fixed prayers for individual nights have no support in the narrations cited on this page.
May a woman who is not praying because of menstruation say it?
Yes. The supplication is a spoken remembrance and needs no ritual purity. ʿĀʾishah, to whom it was taught, asked about the night as a whole, and supplication remains open to every believer throughout it.
What if I do not know which night it is?
That uncertainty is intended. The Prophet ﷺ was once about to announce the night, and the knowledge was withdrawn; he told his Companions that this might be better for them.6 Saying the supplication on every night of the last ten ensures that the one night is not missed.
- Sunan Ibn Mājah, no. 3850, graded ṣaḥīḥ by al-Albānī and by Dār al-Salām. VERIFIED on sunnah.com/ibnmajah:3850, 25 September 2026. ↩︎
- Ibid. ↩︎
- Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī, no. 3513, graded ṣaḥīḥ by al-Albānī and by Dār al-Salām; al-Tirmidhī’s own verdict, ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ, appears after the hadith in the Arabic text. VERIFIED on sunnah.com/tirmidhi:3513, 25 September 2026. ↩︎
- Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 35. VERIFIED on sunnah.com/bukhari:35, 25 September 2026. ↩︎
- Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 2017, on seeking the night in the odd nights of the last ten. VERIFIED on sunnah.com/bukhari:2017, 25 September 2026. ↩︎
- Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 2023. VERIFIED on sunnah.com/bukhari:2023, 25 September 2026. ↩︎