Sincere Repentance

In a hadeeth reported by Imam Bukhari, Rasūl Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

والله إنِّي لأَسْتَغْفِرُ الله وأَتُوبُ إِلَيْه في

اليَوْمِ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّةً

By Allah I seek forgiveness from Allah and repent to Him more than seventy times in a day
[Tirmidhi]

A person cannot progress on the path of tazkiyah (spiritual purification) without sincere tawbah (repentance). Tawbah is to return to one’s original pure state. The Ulama (scholars) of tazkiyah say that a person should be repentant every moment of the day. Repentance is not only verbal, but more importantly, repentance should be in one’s state of heart and mind. The proof of tawbah and it’s main component is remorse and one can never be remorseful without remembering one’s sins. A person’s character should be dripping with remorse and this inspires others to forgive. The true state of tawbah reveals itself in a person’s speech, gait and appearance.

This dunya (world) is where sins are committed and a truly repentant person will dislike the dunya because he is trying to flee from sin.

[This short excerpt is based on a brothers’ majlis (gathering held for spiritual training) held by Shaykh Abu Yusuf Riyadh ul Haq on 14th July 2001].