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‫ﺑﺴﻢ ﷲ اﻟﺮﺣﻤﻦ اﻟﺮﺣﯿﻢ‬
ISTIGHFAAR: GATEWAY TO BLESSINGS UNLIMITED
By Muqeet Mujtaba Ali
The word ‘istighfaar’ comes from the Arabic root ghafara which means
‘to forgive’. ‘Istaghfara’ means ‘to seek forgiveness’. Istighfaar is ‘the
Islamic way of seeking forgiveness from Allah, Who is one’s Creator,
Nourisher and Cherisher.
When we say ‘astaghfirullaah’ it means ‘I seek forgiveness from Allah’.
Only Allah can forgive the sins of people:
We Muslims firmly believe – and it is natural and the only right way –
that it is only Allah who has the right to forgive the sins of people. No
human being has any business to interfere in this matter!
Allah is Al-Ghafir, the One Who forgives.
He is Al-Ghafoor, the Most Forgiving.
He is Al-Ghaffaar, the One who is readily inclined towards forgiving.
Seeking forgiveness is enjoined upon believers:
“And seek forgiveness of Allah . Indeed, Allah is ever Forgiving and
Merciful”.(Surah an-Nisaa: 106)
“So know, [O Muhammad], that there is no deity except Allah and ask
forgiveness for your sin and for the believing men and believing women.
And Allah knows of your movement and your resting place”. (Surah
Muhammad: 19)
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Accordingly, a Muslim is not only enjoined but also highly encouraged
to seek forgiveness for oneself and for believing men and believing
women. One must always remember one’s own parents and seek the
Lord’s forgiveness for their sins and shortcomings.
How many times to seek forgiveness in a day?
According to one authentic hadith, Prophet Muihammad (sal-lal-laahu-
alaihi-wa-sallam) used to seek forgiveness from Allah for more than 100
times in a day.
To put it simply: Allah’s thought at all times will motivate one to be
conscious of one’s deeds. The more you fear Allah, the more number of
times you turn to Him in repentance. There must not be any
procrastination in seeking forgiveness. Remembering death very often
is the springboard to istighfaar!
Be Quick, Compete and Overtake!
I simply love the two loving commands of Almighty Allah:
Saari’oo and Saabi’qoo
“And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a garden as wide as the
heavens and earth, prepared for the righteous” (Surah Aal-e-Imran:
133)
Saari’oo is in the imperative form which means ‘be fast’, ‘be quick’, ‘be
prompt’, ‘run’, ‘hasten’ ‘dash’, ‘speed up’, ‘accelerate’!
If we adopt this attitude of ‘saari’oo’ amongst ourselves, we won’t
postpone, we won’t delay, we won’t lag behind, and we won’t have
second-thoughts in seeking forgiveness from Allah.
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Another beautiful verse related to istighfaar is this:
“So vie with one another in seeking to attain your Lord’s forgiveness
and a Garden whose width is as the width of the heaven and the earth,
one which has been prepared for those who believe in Allah and His
Messengers. That is Allah’s bounty which He bestows upon those whom
He pleases. Allah is the Lord of abounding bounty”. (Surah al Hadeed
21)
In our life and work, we compete with each other. We compete for
different things and for various reasons. Mostly, man competes for
worldly gains and riches (Takathur). Allah vividly describes the
contemporary reality of man when He says,
“The craving for ever-greater worldly gains and to excel others in that
regard keeps you occupied until you reach your graves”. (Surah al
Takathur: 1-2)
Man is busy having cut-throat competitions to pile up wealth upon
wealth. Until his last breadth! And he visits his grave without taking
that wealth with him!
Sensible people think of the future. That which is to be sent in advance
for the preparation of Aakhirah is what the meat of the matter is!
We Muslims need to compete amongst ourselves in seeking forgiveness
from Allah. One way of competing is to reduce sinful acts and increase
our good deeds (al Hasanaat). After all we are created by Allah for a
test: Who excels others in good deeds!
The craving to be good at all times will happen when we remember
Allah more and seek His forgiveness very often.
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Benefits of Istighfaar:
1) Istighfaar brings forgiveness of one’s sins
Talking about the qualities of righteous people, Allah says:
“These are the ones who, when they commit any indecency and wrong
against themselves, instantly remember Allah and implore forgiveness
for their sins – for who will forgive sins save Allah? – and who do not
wilfully persist in the wrong they did”. (3: 135)
Here, we must note that Allah is not saying that the righteous people
will never commit sin but He tells us that whenever they commit any act
of evil nature they will immediately remember Allah and their guilty
feeling will make them to seek His forgiveness almost immediately after
committing the evil act.
Secondly, Allah is pointing towards one important aspect of forgiveness:
do not persist in committing the wrong. One has to refrain committing
the sin again and again. This is very much essential.
2) Istighfaar brings abundant rain:
Allah tells us some of the benefits of Istighfaar through His blessed
Prophet, Nooh (peace be upon him):
“I said to them: “Ask forgiveness from your Lord; surely He is Most
Forgiving”. (Surah Nooh: 10)
“He will shower upon you torrents from heaven” (Surah Nooh: 11)
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Where people are conscious of their deeds and where they seek
forgiveness, there will be abundant rain.
Rain is one natural resource that is essential for many a production in
the world.
Sustainable rain is one of the blessings that come from Istighfaar.
3) Istighfaar brings manifold blessings:
“And will provide you with wealth and children, and will bestow upon
you gardens and rivers.”
The benefits of Istighfaar, according to this verse of Surah Nooh, is that
it will bring:
a) Wealth and riches: Seeking forgiveness for one’s sins from Allah will
bring economic and material prosperity.
b) Children: Istighfaar will increase human resources and enhance
human development.
c) Gardens: It will aid in cultivation and agriculture. It will help in
maintaining balance in the environment by cutting down on
deforestation. It will bless the region by maintaining its flora and fauna.
It will make people love the environment so they will keep the place
green.
d) Rivers: Istighfaar will not keep the people dry. There will be
abundance of water, the natural source of survival. It will increase
glaciers bringing pure natural water. Rivers can also mean
underground treasures in the form of oil and gas.
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4) Istighfaar increases the power and strength of the Community as a
whole:
“O my people! Ask your Lord for forgiveness and turn to Him in
repentance. He will shower abundant rains upon you from the heaven,
and will add strength to your strength. Do not turn away as those given
to guilt” (Surah Huud: 52)
In this ayah, there is an assurance of the enhancement of power and
strength to that Qaum (nation) whose members care and are mindful of
Istighfaar. Even though this was said by Prophet Huud to his nation, it
is relevant to all nations as there is no change in the way of Allah.
Sometimes, I think why most Muslim nations are so powerless in terms
of technology and military might. In spite of Allah blessing us with
abundant riches, we are no match against the kuffaar nations in terms
of power. And how can that be otherwise when we survive as mere
parasites!
If we Muslims, both as individuals and as a community, want to emerge
stronger then we need to do stock-taking of our actions and seek
forgiveness from Allah, Who alone is the Provider of all Strength.
5) Istighfaar leads to Jannah:
In the verses quoted above (the verses starting with Saari’oo and
Saabi’qoo), Allah is promising Paradise for those who adopt Istighfaar
in their life.
“a Garden as wide as the heavens and earth, prepared for the
righteous” (Surah aal-e-Imran: 133 & Surah al Hadeed: 21)
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6) Istighfaar brings goodly provisions:
“(The Messenger said) And you should ask forgiveness of your Lord:
then return to Him and He will provide you with good provisions of life
till an appointed term. And He will bestow His favours on everyone who
deserves His favours. But if you turn away I am afraid you shall meet
with the torment of a dreadful day.” (Surah Huud: 3)
Here Allah is telling His true believers through His chosen Messenger
that they must seek His forgiveness should they commit any sin and that
it must be followed by a return to Allah and submission to Him. Then
Allah is assuring that ‘He will provide you with good provisions of life’.
The Arabic words used are ‘Mata’an Hasanan’ which can also be
translated as ‘goodly enjoyment’.
So the reward for seeking forgiveness and turning to Allah in
repentance are ‘good provisions’ and ‘goodly enjoyment’ in this life.
Here I would like to emphasis that righteousness and piety never ruins
one’s worldly life. We must dispel the notion some people have that
piety and being truthful inevitably brings poverty, affliction and
distress. Allah is assuring the righteous people that their life in this
world will be happy should they honestly adopt the right and true
Ibadah and Istighfaar in their day to day life.
So Istighfaar is undoubtedly a great blessing of Allah upon his slaves. It
is really the gateway to blessings unlimited.
May Allah give us the hidayah to seek His forgiveness every on and off.
May Allah forgive our sins. May Allah protect us from the evil forces.
May Allah bestow upon us all the blessings that He has promised to
those who seek His help through Istighfaar. Aameen.
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Personal Request: Please do remember me in your du’aa. Thank you.
Jazakumullah Khayr.
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