By Amjad Rafiq
How many of us need to start regretting our
evils deeds and turn back in repentance to our
Lord the Most High?
Tawbah is waajib (obligatory) upon every Muslim
from all sins no matter how small or how great
in all situations till death.
Allaah the Exalted has mentioned many qualities
that He likes and loves that His servants
possess them. He has also made entry into
Paradise dependant upon such qualities.
Allaah says, for example:
Indeed Allaah loves those who do good (muhsineen)
Indeed Allaah loves those who have taqwaa of Him
(muttaqeen) Indeed Allaah loves those who place
their reliance upon Him (mutawakkileen) Indeed
Allaah loves those who are just (muqsiteen)
One such quality is Tawbah - repentance. The
Exalted said:
Indeed Allaah loves those who constantly repent
and those who keep themselves clean and pure
[2:222]
[2:222]
Anas bin Maalik reported that the Messenger (sallallaahu
’alayhi wa sallam) said:
Allaah is more pleased with the repentance of
His servant than a person who rides his camel in
a waterless desert and the camel is lost; even
though upon it is his provision and drink.
Having lost all hope of finding it he sits down
in the shade of the tree. While he is resting
the camel appears in front of him. He gets hold
of it by the nose-string and out of extreme joy
says: O Lord you are my servant and I am your
Lord. He says this out of boundless joy.
Allaah is more pleased than this person who at
the moment of thinking he is ruined finds that
his lost camel returns to him along with all his
provisions and drink without which he would
starve and die. Imagine the joy that you would
feel in such a situation.
So what does the word tawbah mean?
The word Tawbah comes from the verb 'Taaba'
meaning to return, to come back. In the
Shar'eeah it means to return from the
disobedience of Allaah to His obedience, to
return from sinning to obedience and fear of
Allaah Azzawajall
Tawbah is waajib (obligatory) upon every Muslim
from all sins no matter how small or how great
in all situations till death. Allaah the Exalted
says:
O you who believe! Turn to Allaah in sincere
repentance [66:8]
Tawbah is one of the means by which one enters
paradise and achieves salvation. The Exalted
says:
And turn to Allaah together O believers, in
order that you may succeed [24:31]
By sincere Tawbah, Allaah forgives sins whether
serious/grave or numerous. He said:
Say: O my servants who have been excessive in
sins! Despair not of the mercy of Allaah. Who
forgives all sins. Indeed He is the Forgiver,
the Mercy -Giving[39:53]
The door of Tawbah is open till the sun rises
from the west. This is one of the signs of the
Day of Judgement. There are many other signs
which the Messenger (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa
sallam) has pointed out to us such as the
frequent occurrence of earthquakes, the increase
in the number of women, the rise in killings and
many others. The Messenger (sallallaahu ’alayhi
wa sallam) said:
Allaah, the Glorious and Exalted stretches His
Hand out during the night so that people may
repent for the sins committed from dawn to dusk
and He stretches out His hand during the day so
that people may repent for the sins committed
from dusk to dawn until the sun rises from the
West
Allaah has given examples of some of the serious
sins which he forgives: He said:
And those who invoke not any other deity along
with Allaah nor take the life which Allaah has
made sacred except for just cause and whoever
does that shall (not only) encounter sin but the
punishment will be doubled for him on the Day of
Judgement and he will dwell therein in
humiliation: unless he repents, reaffirms his
faith and works righteous deeds. For them Allaah
will change their evil deeds into good. Allaah i
s the Forgiver, the Mercy-Giving [25:68-70]
So Allaah's Mercy encompasses every single thing
and every single sin. Provided that the servant
repents for that sin. The angels say as
mentioned in Allaah's Book:
O our Lord! You have encompassed every thing
with (your) Mercy and your Knowledge
So these are just some aspects of the quality of
Tawbah . In the second khutbah we shall go
through the necessary conditions of Tawbah.
