حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْمُثَنَّى، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الأَعْلَى، أَخْبَرَنَا سَعِيدٌ، عَنْ أَبِي نَضْرَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ "‏ الْتَمِسُوهَا فِي الْعَشْرِ الأَوَاخِرِ مِنْ رَمَضَانَ وَالْتَمِسُوهَا فِي التَّاسِعَةِ وَالسَّابِعَةِ وَالْخَامِسَةِ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا أَبَا سَعِيدٍ إِنَّكُمْ أَعْلَمُ بِالْعَدَدِ مِنَّا ‏.‏ قَالَ أَجَلْ ‏.‏ قُلْتُ مَا التَّاسِعَةُ وَالسَّابِعَةُ وَالْخَامِسَةُ قَالَ إِذَا مَضَتْ وَاحِدَةٌ وَعِشْرُونَ فَالَّتِي تَلِيهَا التَّاسِعَةُ وَإِذَا مَضَى ثَلاَثٌ وَعِشْرُونَ فَالَّتِي تَلِيهَا السَّابِعَةُ وَإِذَا مَضَى خَمْسٌ وَعِشْرُونَ فَالَّتِي تَلِيهَا الْخَامِسَةُ ‏.‏ قَالَ أَبُو دَاوُدَ لاَ أَدْرِي أَخَفِيَ عَلَىَّ مِنْهُ شَىْءٌ أَمْ لاَ ‏.‏

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: Seek it (laylat al-Qadr) in the last ten days of Ramadan. Seek it on the ninth, seventh and fifth night. I (AbuNadrah) said: You know counting better than us, AbuSa’id. He said: Yes. I asked: What do you mean by the ninth, seventh and fifth night? He said: When the twenty-first night passes, the night which follows it is the night; when the twenty-third night passes, the night which follows it is the seventh; when the twenty-fifth passes, the night which follows it is the fifth.

Abu Dawud said: I do not know whether anything remained hidden from me or not.

Hadith Grading

Each grade below reflects one scholar's assessment of the chain of transmission. The grade describes the chain, not the Prophet's words. How we grade

Traditional grade: Sahih