Whoever was in I‘tikāf with me should stay in I‘tikāf the last ten; for I was informed of that night, but I was then made to forget it. I saw myself prostrating in water and mud in its morning. So, seek it in the last ten
Authentic hadithعن أبي سعيد الخُدْري رضي الله عنه : «أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كان يَعْتَكِفُ في العَشْرِ الأَوْسَطِ من رمضان. فاعتكف عامًا، حتى إذا كانت لَيْلَةَ إِحْدَى وَعِشْرِينَ -وهي اللَّيْلَةُ التي يخرج من صَبِيحَتِهَا من اعتكافه- قال: من اعتكف معي فَلْيَعْتَكِفِ العَشْرَ الأَوَاخِرَ فقد أُرِيتُ هَذِهِ اللَّيْلَةَ ثم أُنْسِيتُهَا، وقد رَأَيْتُنِي أَسْجُدُ فِي مَاءٍ وَطِينٍ من صَبِيحَتِهَا، فَالْتَمِسُوهَا فِي العَشْرِ الأَوَاخِرِ، والتمسوها في كل وِتْرٍ. فَمَطَرَتِ السَّمَاءُ تلك الليلة، وكان المسجد على عَرِيشٍ، فَوَكَفَ المسجد، فَأبْصَرَتْ عَيْنَايَ رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وعلى جَبْهَتِهِ أَثَرُ المَاءِ وَالطِّين من صُبْحِ إحْدَى وَعشْرِيْنَ».
Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to observe I‘tikāf during the ten middle days of Ramadan. One year, while he was in I‘tikāf on the night of the twenty-first on the morning of which he would come out of I‘tikāf, he said: "Whoever was in I‘tikāf with me should stay in I‘tikāf the last ten; for I was informed of that night, but I was then made to forget it. I saw myself prostrating in water and mud in its morning. So, seek it in the last ten, and seek it in each of the odd [nights]." That night, it rained, and [the roof of] the mosque dribbled as it was made of leaf stalks of date-palms. I saw with my own eyes the signs of water and mud on the forehead of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) in the morning of the twenty-first (night).
Explanation
Abu Sa‘īd al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) used to perform I‘tikāf in the middle ten days of Ramadan, in pursuit of Laylat al-Qadr. One year, he stayed as usual in I‘tikāf up to the night of the twenty-first (of Ramadan). On the morning of that night, he was supposed to end his I‘tikāf. However, he learned that Laylat al-Qadr would be in the last ten nights. So he told his Companions who stayed in I‘tikāf with him the middle ten nights to continue their I‘tikāf the last ten nights. He also told them that Allah, the Almighty, showed him Laylat al-Qadr in his sleep, but later made him forget which night it was. However, in that year he saw in his sleep a sign of that night, which was his prostration in the morning prayer on water and mud. Allah fulfilled the vision of His Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and it rained on the night of the twenty-first. The mosque of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) was built like a lattice; its pillars were made of palm trunks and its roof made of palm stalks and fronds. Therefore, the roof leaked from rain, and the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) prostrated on water and mud in prayer on the morning of the twenty-first.
Source · Narrated by Bukhari & Muslim
From the Hadith Encyclopedia (hadeethenc.com).