by Umm Isam
“… And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is Accepting of Repentance and Merciful.” (Al Hujurat 49: 12)
At-Tawwaab, one of Allah’s (swt) beautiful names, is mentioned in the Quran eleven times.
Who is At-Tawwaab?
He is the Acceptor of repentance, Who helps His slave to turn from a state of disobedience to the right station of obedience.
At-Tawwaab’s Divine Care and Mercy doesn’t abandon the sinning slave. He first places a sense of realization in the slave as soon as the slave oversteps his boundaries and transgresses. Next, Allah, At-Tawwaab, accepts the sinner’s repentance and pardons his sins. Finally, He grants steadfastness to His believing slaves to continue obeying.
At-Tawwaab is a superlative term that denotes that Allah (swt) accepts repentance repeatedly. He forgives grave sins, different types of sins, continuous sins and multiple sins. In fact, Allah At- Tawwab even rewards the repenting believer for his repentance.
Imagine the power of At Tawwaab, Who is capable of forgiving billions of individuals for their repeated countless sins. He accepted the repentance of people in the past and will continue to do so in the future.
Abu Musa (rta) narrated that the Prophet (sa) said: “Throughout the night Allah (swt) extends His Hand of Mercy so that if anyone sinned during the day, turns to Allah (swt) at night. And He extends His Hand of Mercy throughout the day, so that if anyone sinned during the night turns to Allah (swt) during the day and asks for His forgiveness until the sun rises from the east.” (Muslim)
How is Tawbah an opportunity?
Islam does not endorse that man is a born sinner. Every person is born upon Fitrah (the natural inclination of connectedness to Allah swt). It is only when he reaches the age of puberty that his deeds start to be recorded by designated angels. Now that his training period is over, he is accountable for his actions before Allah (swt).
Allah (swt) has placed within man Khair (goodness) and Fujoor (evil) to test him. He taught Adam and Hawwa (as) how to repent and return to obedience after sinning and this is a lesson for every child of Adam (as) to follow now:
“Then Adam received from his Lord (some) words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed it is He Who is the Accepting of Repentance, the Merciful.” (Al Baqarah 2:37)
Allah (swt) honoured the human race above all of the other creation because they use their reasoning to obey Allah (swt), their Creator, voluntarily.
Repentance is our path back to Paradise, more than anything else on this earth. It is a sign of Allah’s (swt) Compassion that His slaves turn to Him in repentance. Had Allah (swt) left it to sin, mankind would have self-destructed, and created a disaster in this world, thereby falling into eternal doom in the Hereafter.
No human being has the power or capability to instill the feelings of repentance in another human, or have him forgiven and reformed. Similarly, humans do not have the authority to listen, nor right to confess, to each other after violating Allah’s (swt) laws. They must seek Allah’s (swt) forgiveness and be purified by the means taught to us in the Quran and Sunnah.
The Tawbah of our Prophets
Repentance has been the tradition of our Prophets. Musa (as) repented to Allah (swt) after accidentally committing a murder. Yunus (as) asked for Allah’s (swt) forgiveness when he was trapped in the belly of a whale. Prophet Muhammad (sa) used to recite Astaghfaar a 100 times daily.
Tawbah as practiced by our Pious Predeccesors
- Imam Hasan Al Basri
Three people came to Imam Hasan Al Basri, the great Islamic scholar of Basra, Iraq. One complained of poverty, another of childlessness and the third of drought. To all three of them Al Basri advised repentance.
When Imam Al Basri’s students asked him why the scholar gave all the three complainants with different problems the same Dua to recite, he quoted the Quran wherein Nuh (as) is quoted as advising his people that if they made collective repentance, Allah (swt) would send down rain, He would give them wealth and children and He would give them gardens and rivers.
- Fudayl ibn Ayadh
Once Fudayl was asked: “What’s more important – to do Istaghfaar or do Tasbeeh?” He replied: “Think about a stained garment. What is the priority with that garment- to embellish it or to remove the stain?” The priority is Istaghfaar to remove the stain on your heart and then embellish it [with Tasbeeh].
The roadmap of sincere Tawbah
- Tawbah by intention
Our intentions are the basis of our actions. Hence upon realization, a sinner must firmly and sincerely make a resolution not to sin again.
- Tawbah by heart
This is Tawbah’s essence. The sinner must feel guilty about the sin he commits. When we hate something from the core of our heart we give it up eventually.
- Tawbah by tongue
The beautiful Duas mentioned in the Quran and the Hadeeth, can help you recite your plea and pledge before Allah (swt). They have been taught to us by our beloved prophet Muhammad (sa).
- Tawbah by limbs
Stop committing the sin you are repenting for. Relieve your body, mind and limbs from it.
- Tawbah by replacing evil with good
A vacuum in life becomes an open field for sin. We all know that an empty mind is a devil’s workshop, so ensure to replace it with good deeds recognized by Allah (swt) and confirmed by the Prophet (sa).
- Tawbah by changing the environment and company
Migrate from the environment that incites sins. Avoid companions that influence a sinful life. Observe your pattern of sins. Is it in solitude or among a group? Is it virtual or on a particular Application? Remove it from your life.
To err is human, but to commit an error and be adamant about it is not acceptable by Allah (swt). If one doesn’t repent, Allah (swt) places him in trials and difficulties allowing the slave the opportunity to repent and elevate in rank. Those who still do not repent are warned:
“And We had gripped them with suffering (as a warning) but they did not yield to their Lord, nor did they humbly supplicate, (and will continue thus).” (Al Mominoon 23:76)
Allah At-Tawwaab loves those who purify their souls by repentance and keep their bodies clean through Taharah.
Repenting once doesn’t mean that we will never sin again- Tawbah must be constant. Recite this Dua daily:
اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّي لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ خَلَقْتَنِي وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ
وَأَنَا عَلَى عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ أَبُوءُ لَكَ
بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَيَّ وَأَبُوءُ لَكَ بِذَنْبِي فاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ
O Allah! You are my Lord, there is no true deity except You. You created me and I am Your servant. I abide by Your covenant and promise to the best of my ability. I seek refuge with You from the evil of which I have committed. I acknowledge Your blessings upon me. I acknowledge my sin. So forgive me for verily none forgives sins except You. (Bukhari)
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