There is no such person in the world who does not commit sin, but some people repent after the sin and confess their mistake. The judicial system of this world never grants forgiveness to criminals who commit offenses. Courts always punish. Your pleading and crying will not prevent you from getting punished.
Allah instantly forgives you after you commit a sin while turning to Him with complete sincerity. Allah grants His mercy instantly when He shows it. His mercy and kindness are greater than we can imagine.
Allah maintains an open door for forgiveness throughout every moment of the day. He waits perpetually for His servants throughout every day and night. Allah continues to extend His forgiveness.
True repentance combined with asking for forgiveness is all that is needed. Allah shows His love toward His servants who come back to Him.
The following article provides instructions on how to ask Allah for forgiveness. This article will show you the proper way to repent with genuine feelings and faith in His merciful nature.
What is Repentance?
In Islam, repentance (Tawbah) means turning back to Allah after committing a sin. It is asking Allah for forgiveness and seeking His mercy. Every human makes mistakes.
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
كُلُّ بَنِي آدَمَ خَطَّاءٌ وَخَيْرُ الْخَطَّائِينَ التَّوَّابُونَ
“Every son of Adam commits sins, and the best of those who commit sins are those who repent.”
(Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2499)
Islam teaches that we should never lose hope in Allah’s forgiveness. Allah says in the Qur’an:
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
“Say, ‘O My servants who have wronged themselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.’” (Surah Az-Zumar 39:53)
When we repent, we admit our sins and make a strong effort to change. Repentance is not just feeling sorry; it also means stopping the sin and following the right path.
Allah loves those who sincerely repent. Allah says:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ التَّوَّابِينَ وَيُحِبُّ الْمُتَطَهِّرِينَ
“Indeed, Allah loves those who are constantly repentant and loves those who purify themselves.” (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:222)
Steps to Repent in Islam
A believer uses well-defined steps to attain Allah’s forgiveness in Islamic repentance. The following steps show you how to repent sincerely:
Step 1: Acknowledge the Sin
The repentance process starts with acknowledging which sins you have performed. A proper start of repentance requires full acknowledgment of both the wrongs committed. You have to accept that your disobeying Allah made damage to both your religious commitment and your connection with Him.
Step 2: Feel Regret
A sincere repentant experience profound sorrow that accompanies their understanding of their wrongdoing. Your heart should have two parts of sincere remorse regarding your sinful deeds along with your disobedience to Allah. Your sincere and heartfelt need to gain Allah’s forgiveness becomes evident through this feeling of regret.
Step 3: Stop the Sin
There should be an immediate end to the sin which you practice. Continuing with sin after seeking forgiveness makes Allah unable to approve your repentance. To seek genuine repentance you need to make a firm resolve to abandon wrong conduct and stay away from it forever.
Step 5: Make a Firm Intention Not to Repeat the Sin
The next step requires making a strong resolution to never repeat the offense again. Regretful acts cannot succeed as short-term resolutions for sinful behaviors. A sincere firm decision in your heart must replace any relapse of the same wrongdoing. Your dedication to transformation needs to become both deeply intense and pure in its honesty.
Step 5: Ask for Forgiveness
Your primary task during the process of seeking forgiveness should be to ask Allah for forgiveness. You should perform Dua (prayer) to Allah as you offer Him a heartfelt request for His forgiveness of your sins. Make your request with complete sincerity because Allah is known as the Most Merciful One.
Step 6: Make Amends (if necessary)
You need to take steps to correct your wrongdoing to another person when your sin included actions like stealing or harming others. Salvaging the situation requires dual actions like extracting stolen possessions and expressing apologies to affected peoples. Repentance includes getting right those wronged in order to achieve complete forgiveness.
These steps help you make sincere repentance while performing all necessary measures to obtain Allah’s forgiveness.
Step 7: Seek forgiveness by reciting a sincere dua.
You should ask Allah for forgiveness with a clean heart.
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) taught this powerful dua:
اَللّٰهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّيْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ، خَلَقْتَنِيْ وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ، وَأَنَا عَلٰى عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ، أَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ، أَبُوْءُ لَكَ بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَيَّ وَأَبُوْءُ بِذَنْبِيْ، فَاغْفِرْ لِيْ فَإِنَّهُ لَا يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوْبَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ.
“O Allah, You are my Lord, none has the right to be worshiped except You. You created me and I am Your servant, and I abide to Your covenant and promise as best as I can. I seek refuge in You from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge Your blessings upon me and I confess my sins to You, so forgive me, for none forgives sins except You.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6306 — Sayyidul Istighfar)
Step 8: Pray two rakats (units) of voluntary prayer (Salat al-Tawbah).
After repenting, pray two rakats sincerely to ask Allah for forgiveness.
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
مَا مِنْ عَبْدٍ يُذْنِبُ ذَنْبًا، فَيُحْسِنُ الطُّهُورَ، ثُمَّ يَقُومُ فَيُصَلِّي رَكْعَتَيْنِ، ثُمَّ يَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ، إِلَّا غَفَرَ اللَّهُ لَهُ
“There is no servant who commits a sin, then performs ablution properly, and then prays two rakats, and then asks Allah for forgiveness, except that Allah forgives him.”
(Sunan Abi Dawud 1521)
Signs of Accepted Repentance
Your sincere repentance changes you along with your actions which demonstrates that Allah has accepted your repentance. Allah reveals the following indicators after accepting your genuine repentance.
1. Changes in Behavior
Acceptance of your repentance becomes evident through your actions which transform into positive behaviors. The acceptance of your repentance should lead you to want to stay away from sins while also following paths that please Allah. Your devotion to prayer grows stronger as you eliminate dangerous behaviors and extend your kindness toward everyone.
2. Feeling Peaceful and Close to Allah
Your acceptance by God after repentance will bring you inner peace while drawing you nearer to Allah. Your peace of mind emerges because Allah has pardoned your wrongdoing along with your assurance that you walk on the correct spiritual direction. When you experience this closeness with God it inspires you to grow further in your relationship with Him.
These signs in your life signal that Allah has approved your request for forgiveness along with pardon for your transgressions. Allah shows endless mercy to every person who sincerely asks for forgiveness.
Importance of Repentance
Islamic belief places repentance at a central position because this act creates spiritual cleanness while developing stronger ties between humans and Allah. Here’s why repentance is important:
1. Purification of the Heart
Through repentance our souls eliminate all the adverse effects caused by our sins. Your heart can become pure and find peace after you seek Allah’s forgiveness because you free yourself from the weight of guilt and negativity. The human heart requires complete purging to establish a perfect bond with Allah.
2. A Chance for a Fresh Start
Through repentance to Allah you obtain a complete restoration. Thankfully repentance creates multiple opportunities for you to start fresh even after experiencing multiple incidents of sin. Allah offers all his mercy to mankind because he continues to forgive true repentants without limitation. Such forgiveness creates an opportunity for you to start anew with purity.
3. Strengthens Your Relationship with Allah
Through repentance you will find spiritual closeness with Allah. By asking for forgiveness you demonstrate your humility in front of Allah because you understand the extent of His greatness and compassion. Through repentance you create stronger bonds with Allah and achieve better awareness of His guidance throughout your existence.
4. Allah’s Mercy is Unlimited
The Islamic belief establishes that Allah’s compassion surpasses all transgressions committed by His followers. Allah shows constant willingness to forgive sincere penitents despite any number of their mistakes. Through forgiveness Allah reveals His unlimited love and mercy which extends to every one who approaches Him as a servant.
5. Protects from the Negative Effects of Sin
Your mind together with your heart coupled with your actions experience destructive effects from sins. Through repentance your soul obtains safety from negative effects by purifying itself and leading you to the path directed by Allah. Through repentance you avoid repeating sins and continue to have a strong bond with Allah.
Through ongoing repentance and prayers to Allah you build a foundation for righteousness that leads to spiritual growth. Allah gives repentance to His believers as a blessing which serves as a principal means for them to receive His mercy and forgiveness.
Conclusion
Tawbah is a beautiful gift from Allah. Allah offers infinite mercy to us regardless of the number of errors we commit. He shows great pleasure when His servants sincerely ask for His forgiveness. We must never delay repentance. We need true remorse to stop our evil behavior while we directly ask God for pardon and make an unquestionable vow to stay away from it.
Our devotion to Allah becomes visible through dua accompanied by two rakat prayer of Salat al-Tawbah. Allah promises muslim believers in the Qur’an to forgive all their sins upon true repentance.
Allah says:
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِنْ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
“Say, ‘O My servants who have wronged their souls! Do not lose hope in the mercy of Allah. Surely, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, He is the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.’”
(Surah Az-Zumar 39:53)
So, let us turn back to Allah today with sincere hearts and hopeful souls. May Allah accept our repentance and guide us on the straight path. Ameen.