Question:
May the peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
What are the recommended supplications on Laylatu Al-Qadr (the Night of Divine Decree)? What are the Quranic verses that should be recited during this night?
Answer:
In the Name of Allah, The Most Merciful, The Ever-Merciful
Dear sister,
May the peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
Your question regarding the supplication that should be recited on Laylatu Al-Qadr was first asked by the Mother of the Believers, ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her. It was narrated that she said, "I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, if I know which night is Laylatu Al-Qadr, what should I say on that night?' He said: 'Say: 'Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun kareemun tuhibbu al-‘afwa fa‘fu ‘anni (O Allah, You are Ever Pardoning and Generous and You love pardoning, so pardon me!)'" [At-Tirmithi]
This authentic and beautiful Hadeeth (narration) says that one of the greatest and noblest supplications on this blessed night is "Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun kareemun tuhibbu al-‘afwa fa‘fu ‘anni (O Allah, You are Ever Pardoning and Generous and You love pardoning, so pardon me!)"
According to another authentic narration the Messenger of Allah gave a different wording: "Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbu al-‘afwa fa‘fu ‘anni (O Allah, You are Ever Pardoning and You love pardoning, so pardon me!)" [Ibn Maajah]
Both supplications are good and you should use both.
This means that this great supplication is one of the best supplications to entreat Allah therewith on this night. Saying this supplication implies several virtues:
First: Entreating Allah The Almighty by means of His Noble Attributes. The supplication includes two great Attributes: the first is pardoning, since Allah pardons, forgives, covers up, wipes out, expiates and replaces evil deeds with good deeds; and the second is generosity, which necessitates that the giving, bounty and forgiveness of Allah is extremely vast. You actually entreat Allah The Almighty by means of these two noble Names, The Ever Pardoning and The Ever Generous. Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And to Allah belong the best Names, so invoke Him by them.} [Quran 7: 180]
Then you assert this supplication by saying: "You love pardoning". It means that Allah The Almighty is The Ever Pardoning and The Generous and that He loves to pardon His weak sinning servants. Then, you supplicate Allah to pardon you by saying finally "so pardon me!" You ask Allah to pardon you and when one is granted this advantage, he has obtained the highest degrees. Whoever is pardoned by Allah, it is not only that his sins are forgiven and covered up, but he is also exalted in rank and elevated in position. Allah The Almighty is vast when He gives and He is Generous. He replaces evil deeds with good deeds, as we referred to in the beginning.
Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.} [Quran 25: 70]
You should be keen to say this supplication and repeat it often. This is the supplication the Prophet specified for this great night.
It is also prescribed and recommended to supplicate Allah with all other supplications. It does not mean that you have to use only the aforesaid supplication during this night; rather, you should intensify using it because the Prophet specified it. You should also use the other different supplications which bring you goodness in the two worlds, especially those reported from the Prophet . I will present to you some of these supplications at the end of the answer, by the permission of Allah.
As for your question about the Quranic verses that should be recited on Laylatu Al-Qadr, there are no specific verses or Chapters whose recitation is recommended on this night. Nonetheless, it is recommended to recite the Quran in general. It is recommended to intensify recitation of the Quran as well as doing other righteous deeds, such as almsgiving, kindness, benevolence, and observing the voluntary night prayers. Rather, spending this night in observing voluntary prayers is one of the greatest acts of worship. The Prophet of Allah said: "Whoever prays at night during Laylatu Al-Qadr out of faith and hope of reward, all his previous sins will be forgiven." [Saheeh (authentic)]
You should be keen to seize this opportunity and spend this night in prayer as well as other acts of worship. You are not required to spend the whole night in prayer, as some people believe; rather, you should pray as much as you can. When you perform the Taraaweeh prayer in congregation along with other women in their place of prayer, this is permissible and you are rewarded with a complete reward of praying the whole night. The Mesenger of Allah said: "Whoever prays with the Imaam (i.e. the person leading the congregation in prayer) until he finishes, it will be counted as if he prayed the whole night."
However, your prayer at home is enough and you do not need to go to the Masjid (mosque) in order to receive this reward.
Here are some Prophetic supplications that are recommended to supplicate Allah therewith in all conditions:
These are chosen supplications and they are not specific to Laylatu Al-Qadr exclusively. Only the supplication mentioned at the beginning is specific to this night, as the Prophet indicated. There are no Sharee‘ah restrictions in this regard. You should also intensify remembrance of Allah The Almighty. The greatest form of remembrance is reciting the Quran, especially in prayer.
You should also be keen to supplicate Allah to grant you the righteous husband who helps you to obey Allah The Almighty. You can say something like, "O Allah, grant me a righteous husband who helps me to obey you. My Lord, expand for me my heart [with assurance], make my matters easy and guide me to the straight path."
We ask Allah The Almighty to expand your heart [with assurance], make all your matters easy, grant you the grace to spend Laylat-ul-Qadar in worship, pardon you and free us all from Hell.
Allah is The Bestower of success.