DIVERS

In the name of Allah, Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all creation, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and all his Companions.

Dear brothers and sisters, know that, seeking forgiveness from Allah with repentance is a virtue. Human beings are not perfect. Forgiveness is a critical aspect of Islam as everybody makes mistakes in life and unintentionally commits sins. Muslims believe that Allah is Merciful and Forgiving.

There are two kinds of forgiveness in Islam: Allah’s forgiveness and human forgiveness. We as human beings are in need of both since we make mistakes in our relations to Allah as well as our relations to each other. In Islam, all that is needed is to recognise the mistake or sin, improve it and seek forgiveness from Allah Almighty and also from other human beings.

In Qur’an, the word “Allah is Most Merciful” is repeated many times. In Islamic religion, anyone who has committed sin can ask forgiveness directly from Allah, there is no one between Allah and the one who is asking forgiveness from Him. In Qur’an, Allah Almighty says:

“Allah loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and He loves those who keep themselves pure.”

From this Qur’anic verse, we can conclude that if someone asked forgiveness with repentance then Allah will love him/her and surely He will forgive him/her but there is one condition and that is he/she should not commit that sin or mistake again.

If someone did wrongs to another human being, the act must first be redressed with the wronged person or human being who should be asked for forgiveness before asking forgiveness from Allah. Islam teaches human beings to be forgiving and if someone sincerely asks for forgiveness, the wronged person should forgive him. Our beloved Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:

“Whoever suffers an injury and forgives (the person responsible), Allah will raise his status to a higher degree and remove one of his sins.”

If we expect forgiveness from Almighty Allah then we also have the ability to forgive others.

In the noble Qur’an, “forgiveness” and “mercy “are mentioned around 100 and 200 times respectively. An entire chapter of the Qur’an is devoted to the quality of mercy that is (Surah Rahman). We all know that Allah is the Most Merciful and He forgives those who ask forgiveness with repentance. There are so many Qur’anic verses related to forgiveness in Qur’an some of them I will discuss below. In the noble Qur’an Allah Almighty says:

“. . . and let them pardon and overlook. Would you not like that Allah should forgive you? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.”

In this Qur’anic verse we are given the greatest motivation to push ourselves to forgive; it’s Allah’s forgiveness. In another verse of the noble Qur’an, Allah Almighty says:

“The reward of the evil is the evil thereof, but whosoever forgives and makes amends, his reward is upon Allah.” [Qur’an, 42:40]

Whoever forgive others from the heart then Allah Almighty will give him reward and we know Allah’s rewards are best from all. Allah Almighty says:

“Whosoever desires honour, power, and glory then to Allah belong all honour, power, and glory [and one can get honour, power, and glory only by worshipping Allah (Alone)]. To Him ascend (all) the goodly words i.e. and the righteous deeds exalt it (the goodly words i.e. the goodly words are not accepted by Allah unless and until they are followed by good deeds), but those who plot evils, – theirs will be a severe torment. And the plotting of such will perish.” [Qur’an, 35:10]
In another verse of the noble Qur’an, Allah Almighty says:

“That [is so]. And whoever responds [to injustice] with the equivalent of that with which he was harmed and then is tyrannised – Allah will surely aid him. Indeed, Allah is Pardoning and Forgiving.” [Qur’an, 22:60]

From this Qur’anic verse, we can say that Allah Almighty is all forgiving and pardoning we should seek forgiveness from Him and try to forgive others too.

Our beloved Prophet (Peace be upon him) was so kind and forgiving with all, no matter he is a believer or non-believer. We have so many examples from the life of Prophet (Peace be upon him) about forgiving others and show kindness to even those who were so rude to Him. Some of the examples from the life of Prophet (Peace be upon him) are mentioned below:

Abdullah Ibn Amr reported that, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him), said:
“Be merciful to others and you will receive mercy. Forgive others and Allah will forgive you.” [Musnad of Imam Ahmad]