What are the conditions of repentance, and is it valid while persisting in another sin?
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The questioner : Is repentance accepted from one sin while another sin remains?
The Shaykh : This requires us to ask about the conditions of repentance. Do you know anything about them, Fahd?
The student: Yes, first, that one be sincere to Allah, sincerity to Allah, regret, abandoning the sin, resolving not to return to it, and seeking forgiveness from the one wronged, if applicable.
The Shaykh : No, no, no, these are included in the phrase "abandoning the sin." It must be at a time when repentance is accepted. There are five conditions. If these conditions are met, the repentance is valid. Among these conditions is not the requirement that one not be persisting in another sin. Therefore, it is correct that repentance is valid from a sin while persisting in another. However, the point of discussion is whether repentance is valid from a sin while persisting in a sin of the same type. This is the matter under consideration. If it is of a different type, there is no doubt that it is accepted, because this is the requirement of justice. But if a person repents to Allah the Exalted from looking at what is forbidden, but he kisses women, do we say that his repentance from looking is accepted and he is only punished for the kissing? Or is it not valid? There is disagreement. The type is the same. The type is the same. This is a matter of ambiguity.
The questioner : Is not kissing greater than looking?
The Shaykh : It is greater, but if he repents from looking, is he punished for both looking and kissing, or only for the kissing? We say this is a matter under consideration. Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him), in his book *Madaraj al-Salikin*, when he discussed this, said that this issue has a far-reaching implication. This is because one might look to see if this repentance is for the rectification of the heart. If his repentance is for the rectification of the heart, he must avoid kissing. How can he repent from looking but still kiss?
The questioner : Does he not look before kissing?
The Shaykh : People may not look at women generally, but if a woman is available, he kisses her—may Allah guide us and you.
But he does not look at others. Here, there are people whose only concern is looking at women; they take pleasure in looking at them but do not kiss them. And there is a person whose concern is to find a woman who has uncovered her face so that he can kiss her.
The Shaykh : This requires us to ask about the conditions of repentance. Do you know anything about them, Fahd?
The student: Yes, first, that one be sincere to Allah, sincerity to Allah, regret, abandoning the sin, resolving not to return to it, and seeking forgiveness from the one wronged, if applicable.
The Shaykh : No, no, no, these are included in the phrase "abandoning the sin." It must be at a time when repentance is accepted. There are five conditions. If these conditions are met, the repentance is valid. Among these conditions is not the requirement that one not be persisting in another sin. Therefore, it is correct that repentance is valid from a sin while persisting in another. However, the point of discussion is whether repentance is valid from a sin while persisting in a sin of the same type. This is the matter under consideration. If it is of a different type, there is no doubt that it is accepted, because this is the requirement of justice. But if a person repents to Allah the Exalted from looking at what is forbidden, but he kisses women, do we say that his repentance from looking is accepted and he is only punished for the kissing? Or is it not valid? There is disagreement. The type is the same. The type is the same. This is a matter of ambiguity.
The questioner : Is not kissing greater than looking?
The Shaykh : It is greater, but if he repents from looking, is he punished for both looking and kissing, or only for the kissing? We say this is a matter under consideration. Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him), in his book *Madaraj al-Salikin*, when he discussed this, said that this issue has a far-reaching implication. This is because one might look to see if this repentance is for the rectification of the heart. If his repentance is for the rectification of the heart, he must avoid kissing. How can he repent from looking but still kiss?
The questioner : Does he not look before kissing?
The Shaykh : People may not look at women generally, but if a woman is available, he kisses her—may Allah guide us and you.
But he does not look at others. Here, there are people whose only concern is looking at women; they take pleasure in looking at them but do not kiss them. And there is a person whose concern is to find a woman who has uncovered her face so that he can kiss her.