Like the physical diseases that are treated by swallowing drugs and stopping eating delicious meals, sins should be treated by suffering repentance and turning to Almighty Allah and abstaining from the sweeping desires and the unruly whims so that the worldly and religious tragedies of the commitment of sins will not be encountered.
Reality of Repentance
True repentance can be achieved after it passes through three stages:
The first stage: is the conscious awakening the guilty feels sorry for his acts of disobedience to Almighty Allah. When the soul is full of this aware feeling, it moves to:
The second stage: which is turning to Almighty Allah and the true intention to cling to the obedience to Him. When this feeling covers the soul, it moves to:
The third stage: which is self-purification from sins, remedying the sins by acting righteous deeds and avoiding evildoings. Thus, true repentance is achieved.
Repentance however is not a play or an utterance. It is the true turning to Almighty Allah and the real avoidance of acts of disobedience to Him.
Imam Reza (PBUH) said:
“He who seeks Allah’s forgiveness from a sin that he keeps on committing is deriding his Lord”(al-Kafi, Vol.4, Page,172).
Merits of Repentance
The merits of repentance are greatly numerous. They are pictured in the holy Quran and pointed out in the texts of the Holy Prophet and his progeny (PBUTH ALL). The Divine Care has refused to neglect the disobedient floundering in the glooms of sins without surrounding them with high sympathy and noble amnesty. The Lord therefore has drawn their attentions to the turning to Him and paved the way of repentance to them:
“When those who have faith in Our signs come to you, say,” Peace to you! Your Lord has made mercy incumbent upon Himself: whoever of you commits an evil [deed] out of ignorance and then repents after that and reforms, then He is indeed all-forgiving, all-merciful” (6:54).
Also:
“Say [that Allah declares]” O My servants who have committed excesses against their own souls, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed Allah will forgive all sins. Indeed He is the All-forgiving, the All-merciful” (39:53).
And:
“telling [them]:” Plead to your Lord for forgiveness. Indeed He is all-forgiver — He will send for you abundant rains from the sky — and aid you with wealth and sons, and provide you with gardens and provide you with streams” (71:10-12).
Also:
“Indeed Allah loves the penitent and He loves those who keep clean” (2:222).
The Prophet (PBUH) said:
“The repentant from a sin is as same as him who did not commit it” (Uyun Akhbar Al-Ridha, Vol.2, Page.74, Tradition.347)
“Nothing is more favorable to Allah than a male or female repentant believer” (Mishkat-al-Anwar, page:111)
Imam as-Sadiq (PBUH) said:
“When a servant repents to Allah truly, He loves him; hence, He covers him up in this world as well as the world to come. To cover him up means that Allah makes the two angels (who recorded his deeds) forget the ill deeds that they knew about him. He then reveals to the servants limbs to conceal the sins that he had done and reveals to the areas of this earth (on which he had committed sins) to conceal his sins. That servant therefore will meet Allah as if he had done no single offense and nothing will testify against him” (al-Kafi, Vol.4, P.173)
The deadline for repentance
In accordance with Islamic traditions Allah gives the believer who commits a sin seven hours as respite before he records that sin. If the believer repents and seeks the Lords forgiveness during these seven hours, his sin will not recorded. If he does not, a single evil deed will be recorded against him. The true believer remembers his offense twenty years after its commitment and seeks Allah’s forgiveness, and he is forgiven but the disbeliever forgets the offense that he commits very soon after its commitment.(Al-Kafi, Vol.2, Page.437).
In another tradition narrated from Imam Jafar-Al-Sadiq (PBUH) we read:
“Any believer who commits forty grand sins on a single day and seeks Allah’s forgiveness, by uttering the following statement, with deep feeling of sorrow, Allah will forgive his sins. He who commits more than forty grand sins on a single day is hopeless. The statement is: “Astaghfirullah allathi la ilaha illa huwa lhayyu lqayyoumu badeeu ssamawaati wal-ardhi thu ljalaali wa likraami wa asaluhu an yussalliya ala muhammadin wa aali muhammad wa an yatouba alayy”.
The meaning of the statement: “I seek the forgiveness of Allah; there is no Almighty Allah but Whom, the Everlasting, the Eternal, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and the Lord of (I Glory and Grace, and I implore to Him to send His blessings to Mohammed and his progeny and accept my repentance”.
Obligation and Immediateness of Repentance
The obligation of repentance is something beyond doubt, because logic and texts support it. Regarding logic, it is self-evident that protection against causes of harms is something logically necessary. On that account, it is obligatory to seek the guard of repentance against the bad results of sins in this life as well as the life to come. Regarding texts, the instructions of the Quran and hadith called unto repentance through various pictures of attraction and simplification.
The Prophet (PBUH) said:
“Anyone who repents a single year before death, his repentance will be accepted by Allah. A year is very much. He who repents a month before his death, his repentance will be accepted by Allah. A month is also very much. He who repents a week before his death, his repentance will be accepted by Allah. A week is very much. He who repents a day before death, his repentance will be accepted by Allah. A day is very much. He who repents before he closes his eyes for death, his repentance will be accepted by Allah”.
Allah possesses surpluses of His sustenance that He gives to whom he wills. With the rise of every dawn, Allah extends His hands for those who commit sins at night so as to accept their repentance (if they show repentance). With the sunset of every day, He extends His hands for those who commit sins in day so as to accept their repentance.
Repetition of Repentance
Some people find the right path after deviation and straighten up after aberrance. So, they try to make right the sins that they had committed by means of repentance and turning to Almighty Allah. Others, however, are deceived by the joys and seductions of this life; therefore, they commit new sins after repentance as they drift in the violent currents of offenses. Thus, they live in the midst of a brutal conflict between the intellect and desires. Once, they overcome their desires, but their desires prevail on them in other situations. This fact is the main reason that prevents many from repeating repentance, because they anticipate that they will anew return to the commitment of sins.
Such individual must understand that everyone is the subject of the seductions and sinful inspirations of the Devil, and that none may be saved totally from such inspirations except the Sinless. Accordingly, they should have turned and repented to Almighty Allah purely whenever such devilish inspirations attacked them, even if they go astray several times. They, finally, should have put before their eyes the saying of Almighty Allah:
“O Muhammad, Say [that Allah declares]O My servants who have committed excesses against their own souls, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed Allah will forgive all sins. Indeed He is the All-forgiving, the All-merciful” (39:53).
In view of that, the Prophet and his progeny (PBUTH All) affirmed the repetition of repentance and the incessant turning to Almighty Allah so as to save the victims of sins from plunging more in their offenses and to push them to put a new beginning to an honest life:
Mohammad ibn Muslim narrated that Imam Al-Baqir (PBUH) said to him:
“O Mohammed ibn Muslim, all the sins of the believer who repents to Allah will be forgiven. He therefore should put a new beginning for himself after his repentance and Allah’s forgiveness to him. By Allah I swear, this is peculiar for people of faith. What if one commits sins from which he had repented and then repeats his repentance? I asked. The Imam (PBUH) wondered: Mohammed ibn Muslim, do you think that Allah does not accept the repentance of the believing servant who feels sorry for his sinning and seeks forgiveness and repents to Him? I said: What if that servant commits a sin repeatedly and repents to Allah repeatedly? The Imam (PBUH) answered: Whenever a believer seeks forgiveness and repents, Allah accepts his repentance again. Allah is surely All-forgiving and All-merciful. He accepts the repentance and pardons the sins. You should never make the believers feel desperate of the mercy of Allah.
From Abu Bassir related:
“I asked Imam as-Sadiq (PBUH) about the exegesis of Almighty Allah’s saying: “O you who have faith! Repent to Allah with sincere repentance“(66:8), He (PBUH) said: The pure repentance is to repent from the sin and decide not to commit it any more. I wondered: None of us can give up a sin completely. The Imam (PBUH) commented: Abu Mohammed, Allah does love the servant who commits sins frequently and repents to Him very frequently”(Al-Kafi, Vol.4, Page.168).
Courses of Repentance
The repentant must know the courses of repentance so that he can expiate each sin properly. Sins, however, take various forms; some concern a servant and his Lord. These are classified into two parts:
(1) Negligence of the obligatory rites, and
(2) Commitment of forbidden acts.
As examples on the first, we cite the negligence of the obligatory prayer, fasting, hajj, zakat, and the like rites. The course of repentance from such sins is to work hard for settling them. Examples on the second are fornication, drinking of wines, gambling, and the like forbidden acts. The course of repentance from such acts is to feel sorry for committing them and intend truly to leave them.
Some sins concern an individual and people, such as usurpation of properties, killing respectful souls, and dishonoring the believers by means of revilement, beating, tale bearing, and backbiting. These sins are the most dangerous and the most difficult in treatment. The course of repentance from such sins is to satisfy the other parties and give the usurped and seized properties back to their owners. If this is impossible, it is necessary to seek the forgiveness of Almighty Allah urgently, raise the balance of good deeds, and implore to Almighty Allah for making such wronged people be pleased with the wrong party on the Day of Judgment.
Acceptance of Repentance
The true qualified repentance is admissible. This fact is proved through many texts from the Quran and hadith:
“It is He who accepts the repentance of His servants, and excuses their misdeeds and knows what you do” (42:25).
And:
“The [gradual] sending down of the Book is from Allah, the All-mighty, the All-knowing — forgiver of sins and acceptor of repentance, severe in retribution, [yet] all-bountiful, there is no god except Him, [and] toward Him is the destination”(40:2-3).
Also:
The Prophet (PBUH) said:
“Had you not committed sins and sought the forgiveness of Allah, He would have created others who commit sins and then seek His forgiveness so that He will forgive them. A believer commits sins frequently, but repents to Allah very frequently”.
Listen to Allah’s saying:
“Indeed Allah loves the penitent and He loves those who keep clean”(2:222).
