Q: Can LaylatulQadr (the Night of Decree) be seen with the naked eye? Some people claim that if a person sees LaylatulQadr, they see a light in the sky and the like. How did the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and the Sahabah (Companions of the Prophet (may Allah be pleased with all of them) see it? How can a person know that they have seen Laylat ulQadr? Will a person still gain its reward, if they could not see that night? Please explain and mention the evidence.
A: LaylatulQadr may be seen with the eye for the one whom Allah (Exalted be He) helps to see it, by seeing its signs. The Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them) used to recognize it by its signs. However, if these signs are not seen, this does not mean that one will not gain its reward if they spend that night in Salah (Prayer) out of Iman (Faith) and hoping for Allah's reward. Muslims should strive to seek it in the last ten nights of Ramadan, as enjoined by the Prophet (peace be upon him), hoping to earn rewards. If it so happens that a person spends this night in Salah out of Iman and seeking reward, they will gain its reward, even if they do not know that it was LaylatulQadr.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Whoever spends Laylat ulQadr in Salah out of sincere Iman and hoping for a reward from Allah, all their previous sins will be forgiven. In another narration, he (peace be upon him) said: Whoever spends that night in Salah, seeking LaylatulQadr, then it happens that it is (LaylatulQadr), their previous and future sins will be forgiven.
It is authentically reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him) that one of its signs is that the sun rises on the following morning with no visible rays. Ubay ibn Ka`b used to swear that it is the night preceding the twentyseventh day, citing this sign as evidence. The most correct view is that it moves through all the last ten nights, but it is most likely to be on the odd numbered nights, and the night preceding the twentyseventh day is the most likely among the oddnumbered nights. Whoever strives in `Ibadah (worship) during all of the last ten nights, offering Salah, reciting Qur'an, saying Du`a' (supplication), and participating in other charitable ways of disposition will undoubtedly catch up with LaylatulQadr and attain what Allah (Exalted be He) has promised to those who do that out of Iman and seeking reward.
May Allah grant us success! May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions!