excerpt from Shaykh Mubashar Ahmad Rabbani’s book “Ahkām wa Masā’il – In the Light of the Qur’an and Sunnah”:
Is it authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to seek forgiveness 70 or 100 times before concluding every gathering? And is it permissible for someone to recite istighfār during the Friday khuṭbah? Please clarify.
It is narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما:
“We used to count that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would say in a single gathering one hundred times:
‘Rabbi ighfir lī wa tub ʿalayya, innaka anta al-Tawwābu al-Raḥīm’
(O my Lord! Forgive me and accept my repentance. Indeed, You are the Oft-Returning, the Most Merciful).”
Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Witr, Bāb: Regarding Seeking Forgiveness – 1516
Ibn Mājah – 3814
This authentic ḥadīth shows that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would recite this supplication 100 times while sitting in a gathering.
Therefore, we too should frequently make istighfār in our gatherings, so that our sins may be forgiven.
However, reciting istighfār during the Friday khuṭbah is not proven from the Sunnah.
Rather, the listener is required to:
Listen attentively and with full concentration to the sermon.
One who is engaged in personal duʿāʾ or istighfār cannot properly focus on the khuṭbah being delivered by the khaṭīb.
❖ Question:
Is it authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to seek forgiveness 70 or 100 times before concluding every gathering? And is it permissible for someone to recite istighfār during the Friday khuṭbah? Please clarify.
❖ Answer:
It is narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما:
“We used to count that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would say in a single gathering one hundred times:
‘Rabbi ighfir lī wa tub ʿalayya, innaka anta al-Tawwābu al-Raḥīm’
(O my Lord! Forgive me and accept my repentance. Indeed, You are the Oft-Returning, the Most Merciful).”
Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Witr, Bāb: Regarding Seeking Forgiveness – 1516 Ibn Mājah – 3814This authentic ḥadīth shows that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would recite this supplication 100 times while sitting in a gathering.
Therefore, we too should frequently make istighfār in our gatherings, so that our sins may be forgiven.
❖ Ruling on Istighfār During the Friday Khuṭbah:
However, reciting istighfār during the Friday khuṭbah is not proven from the Sunnah.
Rather, the listener is required to:
Listen attentively and with full concentration to the sermon. One who is engaged in personal duʿāʾ or istighfār cannot properly focus on the khuṭbah being delivered by the khaṭīb.❖ Conclusion:
- ✔ The Prophet ﷺ did seek forgiveness 100 times in one sitting.
- But during the Friday sermon, silent supplications such as istighfār should be avoided, and the listener must remain attentive to the khutbah.
