The Meaning of His Saying, "Then I Sought Forgiveness from Me..."
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Question:
This sister questioner (Zaynab H. 'A) from Romania says: Your Eminence, Allah the Exalted said in the Qudsi Hadith:Jami` at-Tirmidhi 3540Hasan (Darussalam) Does this mean that I should seek forgiveness by saying, "I seek Allah's forgiveness"? Or is it in some other way?
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon His Messenger, his family, and all his Companions.
As for what follows:
The required istighfar is seeking forgiveness, saying, "O Allah, forgive me," as the Exalted said: [al-Baqarah:199] "O Allah, forgive me. I seek Allah's forgiveness and I turn to Him in repentance." But this must be accompanied by repentance; words without repentance are of no benefit. Repentance is necessary, and it must be accompanied by remorse and abandoning the sin, as the Exalted said: [Ali 'Imran 3:135] "Those are the ones whose reward is forgiveness from their Lord and gardens beneath which rivers flow, in which they will abide forever. And excellent is the reward of those who work." [Al-Imran:135-136].
So istighfar must be accompanied by repentance, remorse, and abandoning the sin; only then will it be beneficial and achieve the desired result of erasing and forgiving sins. As for saying it with the tongue while continuing to commit sins, it is of no benefit. We ask Allah for well-being.
The presenter: We ask Allah for well-being.
This sister questioner (Zaynab H. 'A) from Romania says: Your Eminence, Allah the Exalted said in the Qudsi Hadith:
O son of Adam! Were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky, then you sought forgiveness from Me, I would forgive you, and I would not mind.
يا ابن آدم لو بلغت ذنوبك عنان السماء، ثم استغفرتني؛ غفرت لك ولا أباليAnswer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon His Messenger, his family, and all his Companions.
As for what follows:
The required istighfar is seeking forgiveness, saying, "O Allah, forgive me," as the Exalted said:
and ask forgiveness of Allah. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
وَاسْتَغْفِرُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌAnd those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression], remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins - and who can forgive sins except Allah? - and [who] do not persist in what they have done while they know.
وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ So istighfar must be accompanied by repentance, remorse, and abandoning the sin; only then will it be beneficial and achieve the desired result of erasing and forgiving sins. As for saying it with the tongue while continuing to commit sins, it is of no benefit. We ask Allah for well-being.
The presenter: We ask Allah for well-being.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.