بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Allah سبحانه و تعالى has favoured certain times and places over others, and the servants have been encouraged to increase in their worship and obedience to benefit from the additional virtues of such times. However a question has been posed from times of old; Which is more virtuous – the last 10 of Ramadan or the 1st 10 of Dhul-Hijja?

Ibn ul-Qayyim stated, “So if you were to ask which 20 are the best? [i.e. days with nights – the last 10 days and nights of Ramadan or the 1st 10 days and nights of Dhul Hijja], then the correct statement is to say that the last 10 nights of Ramadan are better than the 1st 10 nights of Dhul Hijja, however the 1st 10 days of Dhul Hijja are better than the last 10 days of Ramadan”.

Ibn Kathir stated,”Generally it has been said regarding these 10 days of Dhul Hijja that they are the best days of the year as the hadith stated, and many [scholars] preferred them over the last 10 of Ramadan. That is because the same affairs are legislated in these days of Dhul Hijja as the last 10 of Ramadan in terms of prayer and fasting and charity etc [so they are similar in that sense] however there is a distinguishing factor for the days of Dhul Hijja and that is the performance of Hajj in them.

Although it has [also] been said [in another opinion] that the last 10 of Ramadan are better because within them is the Night of Decree [laylat ul-Qadr].

However some [scholars] took a middle course in this and stated that the first 10 days of Dhul Hijja are better than the last 10 days of Ramadan, and that the last 10 nights of Ramadan are better than the nights of Dhul Hijja – and in this manner the evidences are combined”.

[via Sahab]