Repentance
is ultimately the goal that we all seek. All sane people are conscious
of their numerous sins, and those who believe in Allah and
His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم recognize that they will be held accountable for their sins, and
therefore desire to be free of the evil consequences of their misdeeds. Islam
offers man the ideal way by which he may be release from the burden of his sins.
The word Tawbah (repentance) in Arabic literally means 'to return'.
In an Islamic context, it refers to the act of leaving what Allah has
prohibited and returning to what He, Almighty, has commanded.
The subject of repentance is one that concerns all people who
believe in Allah, and is vital for the Muslims to understand because our
salvation in the Hereafter depends on our repentance to Allah, as Allah
commands (what means): "…And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, that
you might succeed." [Quran 24:31]
Allah also Says (what means): "…Indeed, Allaah loves
those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves.”
[Quran 2:222]
The door of repentance is always open, until...
The door to repentance is always open and will not be closed in the
face of any repentant person, regardless of his sins. Expect this gate to have
two locks: death and the approach of the Day of Judgement. The first was
mentioned in the Hadeeth: "Allah accepts a slave's repentance unless his
death approaches." [At-Tirmithi]
"Whosoever turns to Allah in repentance before the sun rises in
the West, Allah will forgive him." [Ahmad]
Allah Says "But repentance is not [accepted] of those who
[continue to] do evil deeds up until, when death comes to one of them, he says:
‘Indeed, I have repented now,' or of those who die while they are
disbelievers...” [Quran 4:18]
O heedless soul! Hasten to repent before the knock of death sounds
and the time of repentance runs out. Do not get caught dying in a state of
disobedience to your Most Merciful Lord. Satan gives you long hope and empty
promises; he delays your repentance until your heart becomes as callous as a
rock by being adamant in sin and disobedience, and you would therefore meet
your Lord in a wretched state. If the door of repentance is closed to you, it
will never open to you again.
What keeps us from repenting ????
1. Taking sins lightly:
The problem with many of us today is that we do not fear Allah SWT,
which means that we do not think seriously about disobeying Him and therefore
fall into sin, without giving any real thought to it. Hence, we should think
about the statement which Ibn Mas'ood made: "A believer sees his sins as
if he were sitting under a mountain which he is afraid may collapse on him,
whereas the wicked person considers his sins as flies passing over his nose
which he just drives away like this (and he waved his hand across his face to
illustrate this)." [Al-Bukhaari]
The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: "Take caution against minor
sins, because such sins are like a group of people who temporarily settled in
the middle of a valley. Then, they decided to make a fire, so each one of them
brought a stick until they were able to make it, so they baked their bread.
Thus, minor sins (when they accumulate) may destroy the one who commits
them." [Ahmad]
2. "What is the point? I will only end up doing
it again"
Such an approach is the result of a misunderstanding. Indeed, one of
the conditions of repentance is having a real intention not to return to the
same sin. This, however, does not mean that Satan will never tempt you to
commit the same sin again. Thus, if you have failed yourself, and you returned
to the same sin, it does not mean that your first repentance was a lie. You
should hasten to make additional repentance, with a real intention not to
return to this sin, keeping in mind that Allah's mercy extends over everything.
3. "Allah is forgiving, so let me sin"
When reminded of repentance and the hideousness of disobedience,
some people would respond that Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. An
atheist once said in sarcasm: "You should commit as many sins as you can
because you are heading towards the Lord who is Most-Generous." There is
no doubt that such a view is complete ignorance of the religion of Allah,
because Allah's mercy is close to the righteous and not to the
wrongdoers.
4. "I am destined to be a sinner"
Some people may choose to blame Al-Qadr (fate) for their
sins.
For example, if you ask any of them,
"Why do you not perform the Prayers? Why do you not fast? Why do you drink
or smoke? Why do you not repent from your disobedience?" They would
respond by saying: "This is Allaah's Qadr" or: "I am doomed to
do this." This is definitely a grave misconception and an evasion
of the truth. Believing in Al-Qadr does not mean that one is destined to commit sins. It is true that Allaah has written all human beings'
deeds, good or bad, and only He knows the unseen, but the believer is not
forced to perform a good deed, nor is he forced to commit any disobedience. Instead, he has been granted the ability to reflect,
reason and then make a decision freely.
Al-Qadr is only responsible for the calamities and blessings that an individual
may confront because he can do nothing about them.
For example, if a couple were to marry and have three
children, then this is their Qadr. It is impermissible to fault Al-Qadr for our
sins and disobedience because doing so is a sin to being in confrontation and
showing dissatisfaction with Allah.
Practical steps Towards Sincere Repentance
First: Counting all the
sins that you have committed since adulthood until the present time in writing.
This is
an introduction to repenting for all these sins, because when the soul
considers all its sins, it will be humble and tend to repent as soon as
possible. Here is a list of the categories of sins to help you remember your
past sins:
- Sins of
the body such as the tongue (backbiting, tale-bearing, lying, and ridiculing
others); the eyes (looking at what is prohibited), ears, hands, feet and
private parts.
- Sins
of the hearts, such as arrogance, envy, aggression, self-conceit, and so on.
- Negligence
in performing your duties towards one’s parents, relatives and negligence
regarding the other duties such as enjoining what is good and forbidding what
is evil, as well as Da'wah (calling to Islam).
- Negligence
in the acts of worship like delaying the prayer after its due time.
Second: Try to count the blessings of Allaah The Almighty upon
you in writing.
You should keep counting these blessings until
you realize how negligent you are towards the rights of Allaah The Almighty and
until you despair of counting. Allaah The Exalted Says (what means):
{And He gave
you from all you asked of Him. And if you should count the favor of Allaah, you
could not enumerate them. Indeed, humankind is [generally] most unjust and
ungrateful.} [Quran 14:34]
Then, you should make a comparison between the blessings that Allaah
The Almighty sends down to you, and your misdeeds that are being sent to Him in
return. In this case, you will not be able to resist your tears, your heart
will be soft and you will say: “I acknowledge the
favors that You have bestowed upon me, and I confess my sins. Pardon me, for
none but You has the power to pardon.” [Al-Bukhaari]
When
you shed tears and feel remorse, you should then move to the
third step.
Third: Repentance Prayer
After
deserting the sin, you should immediately implement the advice
of the
Prophet,
,who said: “Whenever one commits a sin, and then
performs ablution perfectly, and prays two Rak’ahs (units of prayer) after
which he seeks the forgiveness of Allaah He will forgive him.” [Al-Albaani: Saheeh]
Then, you should determine that you would never return to sins. In
this way, you will live the best day of your life since your birth.
Salaat al-Tawbah (the Prayer of Repentance)
Abu Bakr Al siddiq (May Allah be pleased with him), narrated:
"I heard Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) saying: ‘There isn’t a man
who, when he commits a sin, rises, makes ablution, and offers two rak'as of
prayers, but Allah forgives his sins.’
Allah
says in the Qur'an:
"Those (are the true believers) who,
when they commit an evil deed, or wrong their souls, remember Allah, and seek
forgiveness for their sins - and who but Allah forgives sins? They do not
insist upon the sins they have committed, and they know (that Allah is
forgiving)." (Qur'an 3:135)
Fourth: Keep away from bad friends and evil companions.
Sever
your relationship with them, because they will prevent you from returning to
your Lord. If you succeed in getting rid of them, then this is a great sign
that Allaah The Almighty has accepted your repentance.
Fifth: You should have a daily program of acts of
worship to perform.
This program aims at helping you make up for what you missed and
compensate your negligence towards the rights of Allaah The Almighty. This
program should include reading parts of the Quran, Thikr (words of remembrance) reported from the Prophet, , night
prayer and fasting. However, the most important thing is that this program
should be gradual and realistic.
Sixth: You should
attend a religious lecture in a mosque once a week on a regular basis.
This
step aims at strengthening your relationship with your Lord and the righteous
people who are your companions on the road to faith. Accompany those righteous
people and never keep away from them.
Finally: Remember that you are in need of the Lord of the heavens and the
earth, and that without Him, you are impoverished in every way.
Remember
that you have wronged yourself, so be humble in front of your Lord. Listen to
the teacher, Ibn Al-Qayyim
who was an excellent example of humble
servitude in front of Allaah The Almighty. While referring to some signs of
sincere repentance, he said:
The prerequisites of sound repentance include a special kind of
humility in one’s heart that does not resemble any other feeling, because it
only occurs to the sinful slave. Such a feeling cannot be obtained through
hunger, or mere love; rather, it is a feeling beyond all of this. It breaks the
heart completely, grabs it and throws it humbly in front of the Lord.
There is nothing dearer to Allaah The Almighty than this feeling,
humility and submission on the part of His slave.
How sweet the words of the slave in this state are when he
says:
I ask You by Your grandeur and my humility to have mercy on me
me….
I entreat You by Your strength and my weakness,
by Your richness and my poverty to pardon me….
Here I am, the wrongful and sinful slave,
before You…
You have many slaves other than me, but I have no Lord but You…
I have no shelter other than with You, as there is no escape
from You, except to You….
I ask and entreat You, as I am humble, poor, frightened and
blind…
I ask You while I am surrendering completely to You, and weeping
out of fear of You…. to pardon me...Ameeen ya Rabbul Alameen
Such a feeling is a sign of accepted repentance, so, if you lack
this feeling, accuse your sincerity and correct your repentance.
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