Mufti Ashraf Zia: People are only wrong. We get involved in various crimes without understanding or sometimes unknowingly. The life of a believer is no exception. A pious believer can sometimes indulge in sin under the temptation of Satan. In various areas of life, one may violate the commands and prohibitions of Allah Ta'ala. He may make mistakes in following the will of Allah Ta'ala.

Touba

But a wise believer never persists in his mistakes. Allah Ta'ala has made repentance for the believers to return from their mistakes. As if a believer who follows the path of repentance returns to the path of Allah immediately. Not only the forgiveness of sins but repentance includes various worldly benefits.

Repentance and Istegfa are the Sunnah of the Prophets

The Prophets themselves repented and sought forgiveness from their Lord, and commanded the Ummah to repent and seek forgiveness. He taught repentance and istegfar. However, there are many differences between the repentance and forgiveness of the Prophets and the repentance and forgiveness of the Ummah. Prophets are innocent. Allah protects them from sin. Their repentance and istighfar is done only to increase their status.

In various places of the Holy Qur'an, Allah Ta'ala has mentioned the repentance of the Prophets. Verse 21 of Surah Araf mentions the repentance of Hazrat Adam alaihis salam, verse 22 of Surah Nuh about the repentance of Hazrat Nuh alaihis salam and verse 24 of Surah Qasas mentions the repentance of Hazrat Musa alaihis salam. Hazrat Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, the leader of the prophets used to repent one hundred times a day.

Hazrat Agar Ibn Yasar Almuzani RA. He said, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, O people! Repent to Allah. Because I repent a hundred times a day. (Sahih Muslim 2702) Repentance and Istighfar is a special quality of believers and muttaqi servants.

The Holy Qur'an mentions various qualities of believers in different places. A special quality among them is repentance and istegfar. Allah, the Exalted, has said, and they are those who, whenever they commit an indecent act or (in some other way) wrong themselves, immediately remember Allah and thereby seek forgiveness for their sins, and there is none but Allah Who forgives sins. can do And they do not consciously persist in their actions. (Surah Al-Imran: 135)

Repentance and Istegfar will earn Allah's forgiveness and mercy

In the Holy Qur'an, Allah Ta'ala has associated His Mercy and Forgiveness with Istegfar. And reminded His servant of His mercy. He said, and ask Allah for forgiveness. Surely Allah is Most Forgiving and Most Merciful. (Surah Baqarah 199) He also said, Ask your Lord for forgiveness. Then return to Him. Surely my Lord is Most Merciful and Most Merciful. (Surah Hud 90) Those who repent and seek forgiveness are not punished by Allah. Those who repent are saved from Allah's wrath and punishment. Allah does not punish them.

Allah says, Allah will not punish them for anything while you are among them. And do not punish them even when they ask for forgiveness. (Surah Anfal 33) Repentance and Istighfar enrich the believer's worldly blessings and strength.

We sometimes face various problems due to climate change. Sometimes due to lack of rain and sometimes excessive rain, crops are destroyed. Many are childless and lead miserable lives. In the Holy Qur'an, Allah Ta'ala mentions repentance as a solution to this problem. It is mentioned in the Qur'an,

I said, seek forgiveness from your Lord. Surely He is Forgiving. Then He will send rain upon you in torrents. And He will increase you in wealth and children. He will create for you various gardens and rivers. (Surah Nuh: 10-12)

It has been mentioned elsewhere, O my community! Ask your Lord for forgiveness. Then repent to him. He will send rain upon you in torrents. Increase your strength. And do not turn away as criminals. (Surah Hud 52) Repentance gives relief from anxiety, danger and crisis and increase in sustenance.

Nowadays most of the people are suffering from depression. Many choose to commit suicide not being able to survive it. Many become very weak in danger. The number of people suffering from food shortages is not less in our society. But Allah Ta'ala has put the way out of all these problems in repentance.

In the hadith, the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, "Whoever asks for forgiveness, Allah Almighty will provide him with a way out of all his troubles, remove all his troubles, and provide him with sustenance from places he cannot imagine." (Sunan Abu Dawud: 1518) In this way, many benefits and benefits of repentance and istegfar have been highlighted in the Quran and Hadith Sharif.

There is no alternative to repentance and istighfar for us to obtain Allah's forgiveness, grace and help in all areas of both worlds. Through repentance and forgiveness, a believer's worldly life becomes beautiful and happy, and in the Hereafter he attains the Lord's pleasure and eternal peace. May Allah Ta'ala grant us all a sin-free life and grant us the grace to repent from all sins.

Author: Teacher, Al Abrar Islamic Research Center.