Repentance and Its Conditions
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Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says: [Al-Hujurat: 12] These are two of the names of Allah: the first is al-Tawwab.
And the second: al-Rahim.
And al-Tawwab here: It is a form of exaggeration,And the active participle from تاب (to repent): from Tawwab,And al-Tawwab means: indicating the abundance of repentance, and that He, Mighty and Majestic, is described with this attribute,And the reason the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, is called al-Tawwab (the One who repeatedly accepts repentance): because the servants are numerous; this is one reason.
And because the sins that a person commits are numerous; how often a person commits a sin and Allah accepts his repentance! For this reason, He named Himself al-Tawwab. What is repentance?Repentance from the servant: It is moving from the disobedience of Allah to His obedience.
And repentance from Allah: It is Allah accepting from the servant, whereby He replaces his bad deeds with good ones.
Therefore: What is the servant's repentance? It is the transition.
From what? From disobedience to obedience.
Returning from disobedience to obedience,And repentance from Allah: and the acceptance of this repentance from the servant, and the replacement of his bad deeds with good ones,As Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said:
[Al-Furqan: 68] until He said: [Al-Furqan: 70] .
And the repentance of Allah may be used to mean His guiding the servant to repentance.
So the servant has two types of repentance: Repentance meaning: guidance to repentance.
And repentance in the sense of: Acceptance of the repentance.
What is the evidence for this?The evidence: The saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He: [At-Tawbah: 118] , how did He repent so that they would repent?Meaning: He guided them to repentance, so they repented.
As for the other repentance, which is: The acceptance of the servant's repentance: such as His saying, the Exalted: [Ash-Shura: 25] .
The servant's repentance requires conditions; for not every repentance is accepted.It is necessary, O my brothers! to have conditions: The first: sincerity of intention.
The second: Regret for the sin, the breaking of the heart, and its shame before Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and that the person feels that he is a sinner who needs repentance and a favor from Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
The third: Ceasing the disobedience, either by performing the obligatory and making up for it if possible, or by ceasing the forbidden.
And the fourth: The resolve not to return to the sin again; if he ceases from it and regrets it, but in his intention he is that whenever the opportunity arises he will return to the sin, then his repentance is not accepted.
The fifth condition: That it be within the time in which repentance is accepted; for repentance has a time in which it is rejected no matter how much the servant repents, and that is—Meaning: the time in which repentance is not accepted—Two types: Specific.
and general.
As for the specific one, it is: The arrival of the term: if death is present, then there is no acceptance of repentance no matter what,The evidence for that is the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He: [An-Nisa: 18] , this person has no repentance after he has witnessed and seen the punishment, saying: Shall I repent? It is of no benefit. As for the hudud in this world, if the servant is caught and repents after being caught, is the hadd lifted from him? No.
Regarding His saying: [Al-Ma'idah: 34] , likewise, if a person is faced with death and witnesses and sees it, repentance does not benefit him, due to the noble verse which is in Surat An-Nisa, and this actually occurred when Pharaoh repented after drowning overtook him; Allah, the Exalted, said: [Yunus: 90] What was said to him? It was said to him [Yunus: 91] meaning: Do you believe now in what the Children of Israel believed in? This is of no benefit, [Yunus: 91] .
The second: The general: the time that is for the general people; if it occurs or comes, then repentance is not accepted, and that is when the sun rises from the west. The sun now revolves since Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created it; it comes from the east and sets in the west. If Allah, the Exalted, wills the end of the world, the situation is reversed and the sun comes from the west. And when people see it, they will all believe; because they know that this universe has a Manager, otherwise who is able to bring the sun from the west? Is there anyone who can? No.
And for this reason, Ibrahim said to the one who debated with him: [Al-Baqarah: 258] ; but if all people see the sun after it has set, returning from the west, they will believe; but is this belief compelled or voluntary? It is compelled; because he witnessed it.
Therefore, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said: [Al-An'am: 158] and the meaning of some of the verses here is: the rising of the sun from the west.
Therefore: Repentance requires five conditions: the first: regret for committing the disobedience.
The second: Sincerity of intention for Allah, Mighty and Majestic, such that the person does not intend by repentance to attain a rank, or to attain prestige, or to be praised by people,Its example is: A person known for open sinfulness and dissolution is announced as being appointed as the imam of a mosque, and it is known that he will not be appointed as the imam of the mosque unless he is upright. He became upright for what? For the sake of being an imam in the mosque. This repentance does not benefit him; because he did not make his intention sincere for Allah.
The third condition: Ceasing the sin, and that is by performing the obligatory if it can be made up, or its substitute if it cannot be made up and it has a substitute, or ceasing the forbidden if the sin was a forbidden act.
Good! If the sin is in the right of a person, such that a person stole money from someone; theft is forbidden. The man repented, regretted, and resolved not to return. So how is the realization of repentance? He must deliver this money to its owner, and repentance cannot be completed except by this,When he says: I fear that if I go to this man and give him the money, I fear that harm will result for me; to my reputation, and perhaps I will be imprisoned, and I have already repented to Allah before I was caught! So what is the situation? Is it permissible to give it in charity on behalf of its owner?
No; because its owner is known,As for if it is unknown, he says: And by Allah, if he stole from people whom he forgot or did not know, and does not know where they are, then here he gives in charity what was stolen from them; but if it is known, he must deliver it,Therefore: What should he do?We say: It is possible to give it to a person you trust and say: O so-and-so! I stole this money from so-and-so, and I have regretted and repented to Allah, so please give it to him and tell him: These are dirhams from a person who you are entitled to receive from him, and he is now offering them.
If this is not possible, you can send it by mail,And it is said: These are dirhams from a person who you are entitled to receive from him, and in this case, it is known that you will not write your name, is that not so? And it is also not good to write it with your pen; because perhaps a day of time will pass, write it with the machine that prints by computer or otherwise and send it to him, this is if the right is financial, a person's right.
And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is Accepting of repentance and Merciful.
وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَوَّابٌ رَحِيمٌAnd the second: al-Rahim.
And al-Tawwab here: It is a form of exaggeration,And the active participle from تاب (to repent): from Tawwab,And al-Tawwab means: indicating the abundance of repentance, and that He, Mighty and Majestic, is described with this attribute,And the reason the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, is called al-Tawwab (the One who repeatedly accepts repentance): because the servants are numerous; this is one reason.
And because the sins that a person commits are numerous; how often a person commits a sin and Allah accepts his repentance! For this reason, He named Himself al-Tawwab. What is repentance?Repentance from the servant: It is moving from the disobedience of Allah to His obedience.
And repentance from Allah: It is Allah accepting from the servant, whereby He replaces his bad deeds with good ones.
Therefore: What is the servant's repentance? It is the transition.
From what? From disobedience to obedience.
Returning from disobedience to obedience,And repentance from Allah: and the acceptance of this repentance from the servant, and the replacement of his bad deeds with good ones,As Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said:
And those who do not invoke any deity besides Allah, nor kill the soul which Allah has forbidden except by right.
وَالَّذِينَ لا يَدْعُونَ مَعَ اللَّهِ إِلَهاً آخَرَ وَلا يَقْتُلُونَ النَّفْسَ الَّتِي حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ.Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good
إِلَّا مَنْ تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ عَمَلاً صَالِحاً فَأُولَئِكَ يُبَدِّلُ اللَّهُ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ حَسَنَاتٍAnd the repentance of Allah may be used to mean His guiding the servant to repentance.
So the servant has two types of repentance: Repentance meaning: guidance to repentance.
And repentance in the sense of: Acceptance of the repentance.
What is the evidence for this?The evidence: The saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He:
And [He also forgave] the three who were left behind [and regretted their error] to the point that the earth closed in on them in spite of its vastness and their souls confined them and they were certain that there is no refuge from Allah except in Him. Then He turned to them so they could repent
وَعَلَى الثَّلاثَةِ الَّذِينَ خُلِّفُوا حَتَّى إِذَا ضَاقَتْ عَلَيْهِمُ الْأَرْضُ بِمَا رَحُبَتْ وَضَاقَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ أَنْفُسُهُمْ وَظَنُّوا أَنْ لا مَلْجَأَ مِنَ اللَّهِ إِلَّا إِلَيْهِ ثُمَّ تَابَ عَلَيْهِمْ لِيَتُوبُواAs for the other repentance, which is: The acceptance of the servant's repentance: such as His saying, the Exalted:
And it is He who accepts repentance from his servants and pardons misdeeds
وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَقْبَلُ التَّوبَةَ عَنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَعْفُو عَنِ السَّيِّئَاتِThe servant's repentance requires conditions; for not every repentance is accepted.It is necessary, O my brothers! to have conditions: The first: sincerity of intention.
The second: Regret for the sin, the breaking of the heart, and its shame before Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and that the person feels that he is a sinner who needs repentance and a favor from Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
The third: Ceasing the disobedience, either by performing the obligatory and making up for it if possible, or by ceasing the forbidden.
And the fourth: The resolve not to return to the sin again; if he ceases from it and regrets it, but in his intention he is that whenever the opportunity arises he will return to the sin, then his repentance is not accepted.
The fifth condition: That it be within the time in which repentance is accepted; for repentance has a time in which it is rejected no matter how much the servant repents, and that is—Meaning: the time in which repentance is not accepted—Two types: Specific.
and general.
As for the specific one, it is: The arrival of the term: if death is present, then there is no acceptance of repentance no matter what,The evidence for that is the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He:
But repentance is not [accepted] of those who [continue to] do evil deeds up until, when death comes to one of them, he says, "Indeed, I have repented now,"
وَلَيْسَتِ التَّوْبَةُ لِلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ السَّيِّئَاتِ حَتَّى إِذَا حَضَرَ أَحَدَهُمُ الْمَوْتُ قَالَ إِنِّي تُبْتُ الْآنَRegarding His saying:
Except for those who return [repenting] before you apprehend them
إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ تَقْدِرُوا عَلَيْهِمْuntil, when drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no deity except that in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of the Muslims."
حَتَّى إِذَا أَدْرَكَهُ الْغَرَقُ قَالَ آمَنْتُ أَنَّهُ لا إِلَهَ إِلَّا الَّذِي آمَنَتْ بِهِ بَنُو إِسْرائيلَ وَأَنَا مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَNow?
آلْآنَAnd you had disobeyed [Him] before and were of the corrupters?
وَقَدْ عَصَيْتَ قَبْلُ وَكُنْتَ مِنَ الْمُفْسِدِينَThe second: The general: the time that is for the general people; if it occurs or comes, then repentance is not accepted, and that is when the sun rises from the west. The sun now revolves since Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created it; it comes from the east and sets in the west. If Allah, the Exalted, wills the end of the world, the situation is reversed and the sun comes from the west. And when people see it, they will all believe; because they know that this universe has a Manager, otherwise who is able to bring the sun from the west? Is there anyone who can? No.
And for this reason, Ibrahim said to the one who debated with him:
Indeed, Allah brings up the sun from the east, so bring it up from the west." So the disbeliever was overwhelmed
فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْتِي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَبُهِتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَTherefore, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said:
The Day that some of the signs of your Lord will come no soul will benefit from its faith as long as it had not believed before or had earned through its faith some good.
يَوْمَ يَأْتِي بَعْضُ آيَاتِ رَبِّكَ لا يَنْفَعُ نَفْساً إِيمَانُهَا لَمْ تَكُنْ آمَنَتْ مِنْ قَبْلُ أَوْ كَسَبَتْ فِي إِيمَانِهَا خَيْراًTherefore: Repentance requires five conditions: the first: regret for committing the disobedience.
The second: Sincerity of intention for Allah, Mighty and Majestic, such that the person does not intend by repentance to attain a rank, or to attain prestige, or to be praised by people,Its example is: A person known for open sinfulness and dissolution is announced as being appointed as the imam of a mosque, and it is known that he will not be appointed as the imam of the mosque unless he is upright. He became upright for what? For the sake of being an imam in the mosque. This repentance does not benefit him; because he did not make his intention sincere for Allah.
The third condition: Ceasing the sin, and that is by performing the obligatory if it can be made up, or its substitute if it cannot be made up and it has a substitute, or ceasing the forbidden if the sin was a forbidden act.
Good! If the sin is in the right of a person, such that a person stole money from someone; theft is forbidden. The man repented, regretted, and resolved not to return. So how is the realization of repentance? He must deliver this money to its owner, and repentance cannot be completed except by this,When he says: I fear that if I go to this man and give him the money, I fear that harm will result for me; to my reputation, and perhaps I will be imprisoned, and I have already repented to Allah before I was caught! So what is the situation? Is it permissible to give it in charity on behalf of its owner?
No; because its owner is known,As for if it is unknown, he says: And by Allah, if he stole from people whom he forgot or did not know, and does not know where they are, then here he gives in charity what was stolen from them; but if it is known, he must deliver it,Therefore: What should he do?We say: It is possible to give it to a person you trust and say: O so-and-so! I stole this money from so-and-so, and I have regretted and repented to Allah, so please give it to him and tell him: These are dirhams from a person who you are entitled to receive from him, and he is now offering them.
If this is not possible, you can send it by mail,And it is said: These are dirhams from a person who you are entitled to receive from him, and in this case, it is known that you will not write your name, is that not so? And it is also not good to write it with your pen; because perhaps a day of time will pass, write it with the machine that prints by computer or otherwise and send it to him, this is if the right is financial, a person's right.