Fatwa ID: 01481

Answered by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Question:

What is true meaning of tauba in islam? If a young person is ashamed of what he has done in past and he beg to Allah for His mercy and forgiveness and it is not possible for him to ask forgiveness from those whose non- financial rights were exploited by him due to fear of fitna/enmity/further anger then what does shariah say in this regard? Is he able to be forgiven by ALLAH because at the time he was exploiting rights(non-economic) of others he was not aware that these harms would invite anger of ALLAH due to lack of knowledge, shaitan's dominance, anger, enmity and other bad feelings. But now he has realized all his past mistakes and he has started changing his life but always have fear that ALL PROBLEMS IN HIS LIFE ARE DUE TO PAST MISTAKES AND SINS.He is facing so many losses,problems and mental stress in his life.he is deprived of blessings of life.is that makafat e amal?if yes,then what should he do?is there any way out?is there any ray of hope?despite true toba and change in life style still he deserve saza?he is young person and has long life to spend?IN ISLAM WHAT IS THE STATUS OF SUCH PERSON?Does he deserve mercy of Allah?can True repentance and sincerity towards life bring improvement in his wordly matters and failures or will the saza in the form of failures in life continue?please give guidance in the matter. 

Answer:

In the name of Allah, the most Beneficent, the most Merciful.

Allah is the Most Merciful, the Most Kind and he forgives all our sins if we sincerely repent for our shortcomings however, grave and serious it may be.    

The following are some ahadith which have been taken from Imam Nawawi’s Riyadhus Saliheen indicating towards the merciful nature of Allah .

• Saaiduna Abu Hurairah reports that I heard the Prophet of Allah saying: "By Allah, I seek Allah's forgiveness and repent to Him more than seventy times a day.'' (Sahih Bukhari).

• Saaiduna Al-Agharr bin Yasar Al-Muzani narrated that: The Prophet of Allah said: "Turn you people in repentance to Allah and beg pardon of  Him. I turn to Him in repentance a hundred times a day".
  (Sahih Muslim).

• Saaiduna Anas bin Malik the servant of the Prophet of Allah narrated: The Prophet of Allah said, "Verily, Allah is more delighted with the repentance of His slave than a person who lost his camel in a desert land and then finds it (unexpectedly)".
  (Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim).

• Saaiduna Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari  reported: The Prophet of Allah said: "Allah, the Exalted, will continue to stretch out His Hand in the night so that the sinners of the day may repent, and continue to stretch His Hand in the daytime so that the sinners of the night may repent, until the sun rises from the west". (Sahih Muslim)

• Saaiduna Abu Hurairah  Radiallahu Anhu  narrated: The Prophet of Allah Sallallahu Alahi Wasalam said, "He who repents before the sun rises from the west, Allah will forgive him".(Sahih Muslim].

The scholars have written if the sin committed is related to Allah (SWA), then there are 3 conditions for the repentance of the sinner to be accepted.

1.      Refrains from committing the same sin again.

2.      Feels ashamed at what he has done.

3.      Makes a firm intention of not committing that sin again.

The sins that involve the rights of other men: there are four conditions for making tawbah for the sins involving other people’s rights. The fourth condition, apart from the three conditions stated above, is that it is compulsory that the rights be restored to the people and he has to ask for forgiveness from the person whose right is violated. If those rights are in the form of property, then he may encounter the following possibilities:

1. The grabbed possessions should be given back if they are still available and their true owner is known. (Imam Sarakhsi in his Mabsut p.176 v.9)

2. If the stolen belongings are at the hands of the thief and the true owner is not known, then those belongings should be given as charity and he should not keep them any more.

With regards to your question, as you mentioned that you exploited someone of his non-financial right, therefore, seek dua for the person who you harmed and wronged. Allah being the most merciful will Insha Allah will forgive you and enable to come closer closer to Islam. Ameen.

Only Allah Knows Best

Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham.