3 Conditions to Forgiveness

[chams]

As Salam alaykum
I wanted to share with you this explanation of an hadeeth about the forgiveness, because it’s explaining in a very beautiful and effective manner. It was taken from the book of Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbalee’s “Jaami’ Al-‘Uloom wal-Hikam”, which is an explanation of the fortytwo famous Hadeeths collected by Imaam An-Nawawee.

The Hadeeth

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عن أنس بن مالك رضي الله عنه قال: سمعت رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - يقول: قال الله تبارك وتعالى: (يا ابن آدم إنك ما دعوتني ورجوتني غفرت لك على ما كان فيك ولا أبالي، يا ابن آدم لو بلغت ذنوبك عنان السماء ثم استغفرتني غفرت لك ولا أبالي، يا ابن آدم إنك لو أتيتني بقراب الأرض خطايا ثم لقيتني لا تشرك بي شيئا لأتيتك بقرابها مغفرة) رواه الترمذي وصححه الألباني.

Anas Ibn Maalik ra said: I heard Allaah’s Messenger saws1 saying:
“Allaah swt said, ‘Oh son of Aadam, as long as you call upon Me and hope in Me, I will forgive you for whatever (sins are) with you and I will not mind. Oh son of Aadam, if your sins were to reach the clouds in the sky and then were you to ask for My forgiveness, I would forgive you and would not mind. Oh son of Aadam, if you were to come to Me with sins as much as the earth and then you meet Me not worshipping anything with Me, I would come to you with as much forgiveness’.”
Recorded by At-Tirmidhee (no. 3540). Shaykh Al-Albaanee declared it to be authentic in “Saheeh
Sunan At-Tirmidhee” (no. 2805).
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This Hadeeth of Anas’ ra comprises the three conditions to obtain forgiveness …

The First Condition
Supplication & Hope
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The first condition is supplication and hope. Indeed, calling upon Allaah is something commanded of us and promised a response as Allaah swt said:

And your Lord said, "Call upon Me, I will answer you."
[Surah Ghaafir, 40:60]

Additionally, in the four famous collections of Hadith (An-Nasai, Abu Daawood, At- Tirmidhee, & Ibn Majah), An-Numaan Ibn Basheer narrated that the Prophet said:

"Indeed, supplication – it is worship." (An-Numaan continues) "Then he recited this (the previous) verse."
Hadeeth Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree in “Al-Adab wal-Mufrad”, An-Nasaaee, Aboo Daawood, At-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah, and Ahmad. At-Tirmidhee said it is “A Hasan Saheeh Hadeeth”. Al-Haakim also said it is authentic and Ath-Thahabee agreed with him. See “Ahkaam Al-Janaaiz” (pg. 194) by Al-Albaanee.

However, supplication only necessitates a response when its conditions are fulfilled, and anything that prevents the response is avoided. The response may be delayed or withheld due to some of its conditions not met or because of some things or etiquettes which prevent one’s supplication from being answered (As Shaykh Ibn Rajab explains in a previous part of his book, “Jaami’ Al-‘Uloom wal-Hikam,” some conditions for the acceptance of supplication such as one’s sustenance being permissible and from permissible means, the supplicant being certain of Allaah’s response, the supplicant’s heart being fully attentive and present during supplication, etc.)

From the greatest of these conditions is that the caller must put his full heart into his supplication and have certain hope in Allah answering him as in the Hadith of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said:

Call upon Allah while you are certain of (His) response. And know that Allah does not accept the supplication from a careless, inattentive heart.
Hadeeth Hasan: Recorded by At-Tirmidhee (no. 3479), Al-Haakim and others. It is acceptable (Hasan) based on its many supporting chains. Al-Albaanee declared it as Hasan in “Saheeh Sunan At-Tirmidhee” (no. 2766).

For this (the fact that you must be certain of a response), the servant has been forbidden to say in his supplication:

Let no one of you say, "Oh Allah, forgive me if You want. Oh Allah, have mercy on me if You want. (Rather,) he should be certain and determined in supplicating, for surely Allah does whatever He wills – there is no forcing or compelling Him anyway."
Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree (no. 6339, 7477) and Muslim (no. 2679) and by At-Tirmidhee, Aboo Daawood, Ibn Maajah, Imaam Ahmad, and others.

A person is also not allowed to be hasty and therefore stop calling upon Allah if the response he wishes for is not immediate. This is one of the things that prevent supplications from being answered so that the servant does not lose hope in having his supplication answered, even if time passes. Certainly, Allah loves those who are persistent and intent upon always supplicating to Him.

Allah says:

And call upon Him in fear and aspiration. Indeed, the mercy of Allah is near to those who do good.
[Surah Al-‘Araaf, 7:56]

So as long as the servant persists in calling upon Allah, aspiring for a certain response without losing hope, then he is then close to his response. And whoever consistently knocks on the door will eventually have it opened to him. From the most important things a servant could ask his Lord for is the forgiveness of his sins and what that implies is being saved from the Fire and entering Paradise. The Prophet said:

In general, it is about that (the Fire & Paradise) that we constantly supplicate for.
Saheeh: Recorded by Aboo Daawood (no. 792), Ibn Maajah (no. 910), and others. Al-Albaanee declared it to be authentic in “Saheeh Sunan Abee Daawood” (no. 710). The full text of the Hadeeth is that the Prophet saws1 asked a man, “What do you say in prayer?” He replied, “I make the Tashahhud and then I say, ‘Oh Allaah, I ask You for Paradise and I seek Your protection from the Fire.’ As for me, I am not proficient in constantly making those detailed, elaborate supplications like you or Mu’aadh.” The Prophet saws1 then replied with the above Hadeeth.

Abu Muslim Al-Khawlani said, "I never made a supplication in which I mentioned the Fire except that I ended up making it (the supplication) totally for seeking protection from it."
From the Mercy of Allah towards His servant is that whenever a servant calls upon Him, seeking help with any of his needs of this world, He assists him with it and exchanges it for something better. He may, as a response to his call, either prevent some harm from befalling him, or save the response and reward for him in the Hereafter, or He may forgive, due to it (his supplication), one of his sins. Imaam Ahmad records in "Al-Musnad" a Hadith from Abu Sa’eed that the Prophet said:

There is no Muslim that makes a supplication, as long as it does not pertain to anything sinful or the cutting of ties with one’s kinship, except that Allah will give him due to it one of three things. Either He will immediately respond to his supplication, or He will save it (its reward) for him in the Hereafter, or He will prevent a similar evil from befalling him.
The companions said, "Then we will increase (in supplication)". The Prophet :saws1: replied:
Allah will (also) increase.
Saheeh: Recorded by Imaam Ahmad (no. 10749) and Saleem Al-Hilaalee is of the opinion that it is authentic based upon its supporting chains as he explained in the checking of “Jaami’ Al-‘Uloom wal- Hikam” (pg. 556-557).

In any case, remaining persistent and diligent in supplicating for forgiveness while hoping in Allah is the way to obtaining this forgiveness. Also from the greatest means to obtain forgiveness is that whenever the servant commits a sin, he neither seeks nor hopes for anyone’s forgiveness other than from his Lord. He knows that no one forgives sins or takes people to account for them other than Allah.

As for Allah’s saying (in the first Hadith on pg. 3), "As long as you call upon Me and hope in Me, I will forgive you for whatever (deeds are) with you and I will not mind." This means: No matter how numerous your sins and misdeeds may be, that (forgiveness) will not be something too great for Me nor will I consider it too much. As recorded in "Sahih Muslim", the Prophet :saws1: said:

When anyone of you supplicates, let him not say, "Oh Allah, forgive me if You want." Rather, let him be resolved and certain in his request and let him increase his hope and enthusiasm, for Allah – nothing is too great for Him.
Saheeh: Recorded by Muslim (no. 2679).

So the sins of a servant, regardless of how great and numerous they may be, definitely the pardon and forgiveness of Allah is much greater. Such sins are absolutely insignificant when compared to the pardoning and forgiving of Allah. Someone said (in poetry form):
My Lord, although my sins are grave and numerous, I have already known Your forgiveness is greater. If only a good-doer hopes in You, then whom does the sinner call upon and hope in? I have no way to You except by hope in the beauty of Your forgiveness and the fact I am a Muslim.

 

[chams]

The Second Condition
Asking for Forgiveness
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The second condition for obtaining forgiveness is to sincerely ask for this forgiveness even if the sins were very grave and were as numerous as the clouds in the sky or as far as the eye can see. In another narration of the same Hadeeth, there is the wording:

If you committed sins, even if your sins were to fill what is between the sky and earth, and then you were to ask for Allaah’s forgiveness, He would forgive you.

Seeking this forgiveness is to seek protection from the evil results of one’s sins and for them to be concealed. Seeking forgiveness has been mentioned many times in the Qur’aan.
Sometimes, seeking forgiveness is commanded as in the statement of Allaah swt:

And ask forgiveness from Allaah. Indeed, Allaah is Forgiving, Merciful.
[Soorah Al-Baqarah, 2:199]

And His statement:

And seek forgiveness of your Lord and repent to Him.
[Soorah Hood, 11:3]

At other times, Allaah praises those who consistently seek His forgiveness such as:

…and those who seek forgiveness before dawn.
[Soorah Aali-‘Imraan, 3:17]

And He swt says:

And those who, if they commit an immoral deed or wrong themselves, they remember Allaah and seek forgiveness for their sins. And who can forgive sins other than Allaah?
[Soorah Aali-‘Imraan, 3:135]

Sometimes, it is mentioned that Allaah forgives whoever asks His forgiveness.

And whoever commits an evil or wrongs himself but then asks for Allaah’s forgiveness, he will find Allaah Forgiving, Merciful.
[Soorah An-Nisaa, 4:110]

Often, seeking forgiveness is mentioned alongside repentance. In that case, seeking forgiveness would mean to actually ask for Allaah’s forgiveness with one’s tongue while
repentance would mean to refrain from sinning with the heart and limbs.
Other times, seeking forgiveness is mentioned alone (without the mention of repentance) and the obtainment of Allaah’s forgiveness is mentioned as the result; such is the case with this Hadeeth and others like it.
It is said that whenever seeking forgiveness is mentioned, it is understood to also include repentance. It is also said that all of the texts that only mention seeking forgiveness are general, yet are still tied to the condition mentioned in the verse of Soorah Aali-‘Imraan (And those who, if they commit an immoral deed or wrong themselves, they remember Allaah and seek forgiveness for their sins. And who can forgive sins other than Allaah? – those who do not knowingly persist in what they have done.[Soorah Aali-‘Imraan, 3:135]) in that there should be no insistence and continuation of the sin. In this verse, Allaah promises forgiveness to whoever asks for forgiveness of his sin and does not persists upon committing it. So with this understanding, the texts that are general in the mention of seeking forgiveness and are all understood to be with this condition. So when someone says, “Oh Allaah, forgive me,” he is requesting this forgiveness and supplicating for it. So the ruling of such is the same as any other supplication – if Allaah wills, He may answer and forgive the supplicant, especially when such a supplication originates from a heart that has ceased committing the sins, or if it were made during one of the times or certain response such as before dawn or at the end of the prayers.
A Hadeeth narrated by Aboo Hurayrah ra in the two authentic collections (“Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree” & “Saheeh Muslim”) attests to this in which the Prophet (:saws1:) says:

Indeed, there was a servant who committed a sin and said, “My Lord, I have sinned so forgive me.” So his Lord replied, “Does My servant know that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account? I have forgiven My servant.” Then, a period of time passed as Allaah willed, and he sinned. He said, “My Lord, I have committed another sin so forgive it.” He said, “Does My servant know that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account? I have forgiven My servant.” Then, another period of time passed as Allaah willed, and he committed another sin. He said, “My Lord, I have sinned again so forgive it.” He said, “Does My servant know that he has a Lord who forgives sins and takes them to account? I have forgiven My servant,” for the third time (then saying), “So let him do as he pleases.”
Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree (no. 7507) and Muslim (no. 2758).

Meaning: He will be forgiven as long as he continues in this state – whenever he sins, he asks for forgiveness.
Apparently, it is understood that his seeking of forgiveness is without insisting on or intending to commit the same sin again.
As for asking forgiveness only with the tongue while the heart is still intent on committing the sin again, this is merely a supplication; if Allaah wills, He may forgive him, and if not, He may refuse.

Perhaps his insistence upon committing the same sin could become the very factor that prevents his supplication from being answered. In Imaam Ahmad’s “Al-Musnad”, there is the Hadeeth of ‘Abdullaah Ibn ‘Umar ra:

Let the insistent sinners beware, those who insist on committing (their sins) while they know.
Saheeh: Recorded by Ahmad (no. 6505, 7001) and Saleem Al-Hilaalee is of the opinion that it is authentic as he explained in his checking of “Jaami’ Al-‘Uloom wal-Hikam” (pg. 559).

So the complete way to seek forgiveness, that which assures forgiveness, is done by also refraining from committing the sin again, as Allaah has praised such people and promised them forgiveness (As in the previous verse (3:135)).
Undoubtedly, the best way to ask forgiveness of Allaah is by not insisting on the sin. In this way, the servant is hopeful of a true, sincere repentance. If he says only by the tongue, “I seek forgiveness from Allaah,” while his heart has not fully renounced the sin, he is merely calling upon Allaah to forgive him and this is still good, for it is hoped he will also be answered.
As for he who repents with a false repentance (Note that Ibn Rajab is differentiating between seeking forgiveness and repentance), this is not real repentance as some people believe. It is true – certainly repentance is not possible unless one desists in committing the sin. So when one says, “I seek Allaah’s forgiveness and I repent to Him,” then there are two possible scenarios:

1. His heart is still insistent upon committing the sin. In this case, he is lying in his statement, “I repent to You,” because he has actually not repented. So it is wrong for him to say of himself that he is repenting while he is actually not.

2. He has renounced the sin with his heart and does not insist upon it.

The people have differed with regards to the permissibility of one (who continues to insist upon the sin) saying, “I repent to Allaah.” A group of the Salaf disliked this and they are the companions of Aboo Haneefah. This is reported from them by At-Tahaawee.
Ar-Rabee’ Ibn Khaytham said that his saying, “I repent to Him,” in this case is a lie and a sin. Instead, he should say, “Oh Allaah, I seek Your forgiveness so forgive me.”
This is the case with the one who has not totally stopped committing the sin; his heart has not completely renounced it.
Muhammad Ibn Sawqah used to say when asking forgiveness, “I ask forgiveness from Allaah, the Magnificent, other then Whom there is no (true) god, the Ever-Living, the Controller of everything, and I ask Him for a sincere repentance.”
It is reported that Hudhayfah said, “It is sufficient enough as a lie for one to say, ‘I seek Allaah’s forgiveness,’ yet he returns to the same sin.”
Mutarraf once heard a man saying, “I seek forgiveness from Allaah and I repent to Him.”
So his heart was irritated and he said, “Perhaps you should not say this.”
By this, it may be understood that it is disliked (by some) that one should say, “I repent to Allaah.” This is because true, sincere repentance is one in which the repentant never returns to commit the sin again. Therefore, if he does commit the same sin again, then at that time his statement, “I repent to You,” would in fact be a lie.
Likewise, Muhammad Ibn Ka’b Al-Qurathee was asked about a person vowing to Allaah that he would never disobey Him again. To this he replied, “Who would be a worse sinner than he? He swears an oath to Allaah that His Decree will never be carried out upon him!?”
Aboo Al-Faraj Ibn Al-Jawzee supported his statement in this and it has been reported that Sufyaan Ibn ‘Uyaynah said a similar statement.
Despite this, the majority of scholars are of the opinion that it is permissible for the repentant servant to say, “I repent to Allaah.” And he may also promise Allaah to never
return to a particular act of disobedience because such a determination and intention is already obligated upon him in the first place (i.e. the intention not to sin). For this
determination, Allaah said to the one who kept returning to sins, “I have forgiven My servant so let him do as he pleases.” (See the previously mentioned Hadeeth)
Another supporting evidence of the permissibility of saying this is the Hadeeth in which there occurs the supplication for one to say when concluding any sitting. In it, the Prophet (:saws1:) concluded by saying:

“I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.”
Saheeh: Recorded by An-Nasaaee (no. 1344), Aboo Daawood (no. 4857), At-Tirmidhee (no. 3433), and others. Shaykh Al-Albaanee said it is authentic in “Saheeh Sunan An-Nasaaee” (no. 1275).

The best way to ask for forgiveness is to begin by praising his Lord, then commence to confessing the sin, and then ask for Allaah’s forgiveness. An illustration of this is in the Hadeeth of Shaddaad Ibn Aws ra that the Prophet (:saws1:) said:

(Allaahumma Anta Rabee, laa ilaaha illaa Anta. Khalaqtanee wa Anaa ‘Abduka, wa Anaa ‘alaa ‘ahdika wa wa’dika mastata’tu. A’oothu bika min sharri maa sana’tu. Aboou laka bini’matika ‘alayya, wa aboou laka bithanbee. Faghfir lee fainnahu laa yaghfiru aththunooba illaa Anta.)
The best way to seek forgiveness is to say, “Oh Allaah, You are my Lord. There is no god worthy of worship but You. You created me and I am Your servant. And I am upon Your covenant and promise as much as I am able. I seek refuge with You from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge before You Your favors upon me. And I confess to You my sin, so forgive me, for certainly no one can forgive sins except You.”
Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree (no. 6306, 6323), At-Tirmidhee (no. 3393), An-Nasaaee (no. 5522), and others. The remainder of the Hadeeth is: And whoever says it during the day, being sincere and certain in it, should he die during the day before nightfall, he is from the people of Paradise. And whoever says it during the night, being sincere and certain in it, should he die before he reaches the morning, he is from the people of Paradise.

‘Abdullaah Ibn ‘Amr ra narrated that Aboo Bakr As-Siddeeq ra said, “Oh Messenger of Allaah, teach me a supplication that I may use in my prayer.” He (:saws1:) replied:

(Allaahumma innee thalamtu nafsee thulman katheeran. Wa laa yaghfiru ath-thunooba illaa Anta. Faghfir lee maghfiratan min i’ndika, warhamnee. Innaka Anta Al-Ghafoor, Ar-Raheem.)
Say, “Oh Allaah, indeed I have wronged myself with much transgression. And no one except You can forgive sins. So forgive me with a forgiveness from Yourself, and have mercy on me for surely You are the Forgiving, the Most Merciful.”
Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree (no. 834, 6326, 7388), Muslim (no. 2705), At-Tirmidhee (no. 3531), An-Nasaaee (no. 1302), Ibn Maajah (no. 3835), and others.

And also from the reported ways to ask forgiveness is that a servant says:

(Astaghfirullaah allathee laa ilaaha illaa Huwa, Al-Hayyu, Al-Qayyoom. Wa atoobu ilahi)
“I ask forgiveness from Allaah other than Whom there is no god worthy or worship, the Ever-Living, the Controller of everything. And I repent to Him.”
Saheeh: Recorded by At-Tirmidhee (no. 3397, 3577), Aboo Daawood (no. 1517), and Al-Haakim said it is authentic and Ath-Thahabee agreed. Al-Albaanee said it is authentic in “Saheeh Sunan At-Tirmidhee” (no.2831).

Recorded in “Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree” from Aboo Hurayrah ra that the Prophet (:saws1:) said:

By Allaah, I ask Allaah’s forgiveness and repent to Him during the day more than seventy times.
Saheeh: Recorded by Al-Bukhaaree (no. 6307).

And in “Saheeh Muslim,” from Al-Agharr Al-Muzanee that the Prophet (:saws1:) said:

Indeed, my heart becomes preoccupied, and indeed I seek Allaah’s forgiveness a hundred times in a day.
Saheeh: Recorded by Muslim (no. 2702) and Aboo Daawood (no. 1515).

In conclusion, the remedy for sins is to seek forgiveness.
And whoever’s sins become so numerous and uncountable, then let him ask Allaah’s forgiveness for what He (Allaah) knows of, for surely Allaah knows everything and counts it as He says:

On the day when Allaah will resurrect them all and inform them of what they did. Allaah had counted it, while they forgot it.
[Soorah Al-Mujaadilah, 58:6]

 

[chams]

The Third Condition
Tawheed
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The third condition to obtaining forgiveness is Tawheed and it is the greatest condition. Whoever lacks Tawheed will not obtain forgiveness, and whoever comes to Allaah with Tawheed has come with the greatest means of earning His forgiveness. Allaah swt says:

Indeed, Allaah does not forgive that others should be worshipped along with Him (shirk), but He forgives whatever is less than that to whom He wills.
[Soorah An-Nisaa, 4:48]

Whoever comes with Tawheed and as much as the earth full of sins, Allaah will meet him with as much forgiveness. However, it must be known that this is Allaah’s decision swt; if He wills, He may forgive him, or He may take him to account for his sins. However, the result is that such a person (who has actualized and died upon Tawheed) will not reside forever in the Fire. Rather, he will be taken out and allowed to enter Paradise.
Some scholars have said that the one who actualizes Tawheed will not even be thrown into the Fire as the disbelievers will, nor will he reside therein as disbelievers will. So if the Tawheed of a servant is complete and he is sincere to Allaah in it and fulfills all its conditions with his heart, tongue, and limbs, or with his heart and tongue at the time of his death, then that would necessitate for him complete forgiveness for whatever previous sins he may have committed. It would also prevent him from entering the Fire. So whoever actualizes Tawheed with his heart completely empty of everything but Allaah out of love, honor, respect, fear, hope, and reliance; then that would remove his sins and misdeeds even if they were as much as the foam of the sea. Perhaps they would even be exchanged for good deeds in their place as has been mentioned in the narrations of bad deeds being replaced with good ones. Undeniably, this Tawheed is the greatest of all cures. Even in its most basic form, were it to be joined with a mountain of sins and bad deeds, it would surely replace them all with good deeds.