This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Abu Hamza Abdul Khaliq Siddiqi's book Sahih Fazail-e-Amaal.
① The Repentance of Adam (peace be upon him):
Allah Almighty has taught all, including the Prophets (peace be upon them), to continuously praise and glorify their Lord in every situation and to keep praying for His forgiveness and mercy. Accordingly, Satan deceived both Adam and Eve and brought them down from a high place to a low one. In other words, he gave them the courage to commit sin. So, when they ate from the forbidden tree under Satan's deception, the consequence of that disobedience immediately became apparent to them: their garments separated from their bodies, and they began to see their private parts. They started to stick the leaves of the trees of Paradise on their bodies to cover themselves:
﴿وَيَا آدَمُ اسْكُنْ أَنتَ وَزَوْجُكَ الْجَنَّةَ فَكُلَا مِنْ حَيْثُ شِئْتُمَا وَلَا تَقْرَبَا هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةَ فَتَكُونَا مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ. فَوَسْوَسَ لَهُمَا الشَّيْطَانُ لِيُبْدِيَ لَهُمَا مَا وُورِيَ عَنْهُمَا مِن سَوْآتِهِمَا وَقَالَ مَا نَهَاكُمَا رَبُّكُمَا عَنْ هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةِ إِلَّا أَن تَكُونَا مَلَكَيْنِ أَوْ تَكُونَا مِنَ الْخَالِدِينَ. وَقَاسَمَهُمَا إِنِّي لَكُمَا لَمِنَ النَّاصِحِينَ .فَدَلَّاهُمَا بِغُرُورٍ ۚ فَلَمَّا ذَاقَا الشَّجَرَةَ بَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْآتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ الْجَنَّةِ ۖ وَنَادَاهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا الشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَا إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ .﴾
"And O Adam! Dwell you and your wife in Paradise and eat freely wherever you wish, but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers." Then Satan caused them to slip out of it and brought them down from that [condition] in which they had been. And We said, 'Go down, [all of you], as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time.' Satan whispered to them to reveal to them what was concealed from them of their private parts. He said, 'Your Lord did not forbid you this tree except that you become angels or become of the immortal.' And he swore [by Allah] to them, 'Indeed, I am to you from among the sincere advisors.' So he made them fall, through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten together over themselves from the leaves of Paradise.
Reference: (7-Al-A'raf:19 to 20)
Then Allah Almighty said to them: Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is your clear enemy?
﴿وَنَادَاهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا الشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَا إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ﴾
And their Lord called to them, 'Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you, "Indeed, Satan is to you a clear enemy"?'
Reference: (7-Al-A'raf:22)
Thus, they realized their mistake and wanted to seek forgiveness from Allah. They learned from Allah the words through which they asked for His forgiveness. Allah Almighty says:
﴿فَتَلَقَّىٰ آدَمُ مِن رَّبِّهِ كَلِمَاتٍ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾
"Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of Repentance, the Merciful."
Reference: (2-Al-Baqarah:37)
The words that Allah taught Adam to declare his repentance were this supplication:
﴿رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ﴾
"Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers."
Reference: (7-Al-A'raf:23)
Some commentators have written that Adam (peace be upon him) possessed five qualities:
● He acknowledged his sin.
● He felt remorse for it.
● He blamed his own self.
● He repented immediately.
● And he did not despair of Allah’s mercy.
And in Iblis (Satan) there were five faults:
● He did not acknowledge his sin.
● He did not feel remorse.
● He did not blame himself but rather objected to his Lord.
● He did not repent.
● And he despaired of Allah’s mercy.
Reference: (Tafsir al-Rahman: 459/1)
② The Repentance of Our Master Noah (peace be upon him):
Allah Almighty sent Sayyiduna Nuh (Noah) عليه السلام as a prophet to invite his people to Islam. It is said that their disbelief, polytheism, evil, and corruption had filled the earth. Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام told them that he was sent to warn them of Allah's punishment. O people! Do not worship anyone besides Allah, otherwise I fear that Allah's painful punishment will seize you.
The leaders of Nuh عليه السلام's people rejected his invitation and expressed three types of doubts about his prophethood. The first doubt was that you are a human like us, so how have you become entitled to prophethood instead of us? Their second doubt was that none of the leaders of the nations followed you; only lowly people who are foolish and lack deep understanding followed you. If you were a prophet, the leaders of the nation would have believed in you. The third doubt was that there is no quality in you or your followers that we do not have, so how have you become a prophet?
﴿فَقَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن قَوْمِهِ مَا نَرَاكَ إِلَّا بَشَرًا مِّثْلَنَا وَمَا نَرَاكَ اتَّبَعَكَ إِلَّا الَّذِينَ هُمْ أَرَاذِلُنَا بَادِيَ الرَّأْيِ وَمَا نَرَىٰ لَكُمْ عَلَيْنَا مِن فَضْلٍ بَلْ نَظُنُّكُمْ كَاذِبِينَ﴾
"So the disbelieving chiefs of his people said, 'We see you only as a man like ourselves, and we see that only the lowliest among us follow you, those who are of little understanding. We find no superiority in you over us; rather, we think you are liars.'"
Reference: (11-Hud:27)
Hafiz Ibn Kathir رحمه الله, while examining these doubts, wrote that these statements were evidence of the ignorance and foolishness of the people of Nuh. Because the truth is the truth, whether the noble follow it or the poor. History shows that those who accept the truth are always the weaker people. When Heraclius, the King of Rome, asked Abu Sufyan about the characteristics of the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم, one of his questions was whether the believers were the leaders of the nation or weak people. Abu Sufyan said: weak people. Heraclius said that those who follow the prophets are always such people. And what they said that your followers are not deep thinkers is also not significant, because if the truth is clear and the mirror of the heart is bright, a person does not doubt for even a moment and immediately accepts the truth. When the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم announced his prophethood, Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه immediately responded to his call and embraced Islam without hesitation.
Reference: (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, under this verse)
Thus, when Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام heard their disbelieving words, he said: O people of my nation! Allah Almighty has given me conclusive proof of my prophethood. My being equal to you in human nature does not prevent Him from granting me the status of prophethood. Similarly, the financial weakness of my followers does not prevent prophethood, because in humanity and intellect they are like you. This prophethood is Allah's mercy and grace that He has given me. If your insight has ended and you cannot see the truth, I cannot force you to accept it. My duty is only to invite to the religion.
Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام also said to them that he does not ask for any compensation for his invitation and preaching, so that they do not suspect that he is doing it for worldly gain.
In short, when the people of Nuh had no argument left to remain in disbelief and obstinacy, and they found themselves completely helpless before the arguments and proofs of Nuh عليه السلام, they said: O Nuh! We are tired of your debates. If you are truthful, then bring the punishment you have promised. Nuh عليه السلام replied that it is not in my control; when Allah wills, the punishment will come, and at that time you will not be able to prevent it.
Finally, Allah Almighty informed Nuh عليه السلام that no one else will believe except those who have already believed. So he lost hope in their belief and prayed against them, saying: O Allah! Do not let any disbeliever remain on the earth.
When the coming of the punishment became certain, Allah Almighty commanded Nuh عليه السلام to build an ark and taught him how to do so, so that he and his believing followers could be saved from the flood. He was forbidden from interceding for the disbelievers because Allah's decree had been issued that they would be destroyed by the flood.
When the disbelievers saw Nuh عليه السلام building the ark, they said that after becoming a prophet, he has now become a carpenter. They laughed and mocked him. They said, if you mock me today, then mock, tomorrow we will all witness your drowning in the flood.
When the command for the destruction of Nuh's people came and the water began to boil fiercely, Allah Almighty ordered Nuh عليه السلام to take pairs of all animals and birds found on earth into the ark, and to take only those relatives who had believed along with other Muslims.
When Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام saw the flood rising, he said to his Muslim companions: Board the ark; it will sail in the name of Allah and stop according to His will. Indeed, my Lord is forgiving and merciful; He will surely save us from this flood.
﴿وَقَالَ ارْكَبُوا فِيهَا بِسْمِ اللَّهِ مَجْرَاهَا وَمُرْسَاهَا ۚ إِنَّ رَبِّي لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ﴾
Reference: (11-Hud:41)
When Nuh and his Muslim companions boarded saying "Bismillah," the ark began to sail among waves as high as mountains. At that time, Nuh عليه السلام called his son, who had not boarded the ark because he was a disbeliever, saying: O my son! There is still an opportunity to enter our religion and board the ark with us and abandon the disbelievers:
﴿يَا بُنَيَّ ارْكَب مَّعَنَا وَلَا تَكُن مَّعَ الْكَافِرِينَ﴾
Reference: (11-Hud:42)
He replied that he would take refuge on a mountain and be saved from drowning. Nuh عليه السلام said that today only those whom Allah shows mercy to will be saved from Allah's punishment, and His mercy today is only for the believers. After this conversation between father and son, a terrifying wave arose that engulfed Canaan and he drowned. Moved by paternal compassion, Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام prayed to his Lord and said:
﴿رَبِّ إِنَّ ابْنِي مِنْ أَهْلِي وَإِنَّ وَعْدَكَ الْحَقُّ وَأَنتَ أَحْكَمُ الْحَاكِمِينَ﴾
"O my Lord! My son is of my family, and Your promise is true, and You are the most just of judges."
Reference: (11-Hud:45)
Allah Almighty then informed Nuh عليه السلام of His final decision: O Nuh! He will not believe because he is not of your family. Your family are those who adhere to religion and law and are reformers, and he is not righteous, so he will not be saved from the flood. After this, Allah Almighty warned Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام not to ask Allah about matters whose outcome he does not fully know, because doing so is the way of the ignorant.
When Sayyiduna Nuh عليه السلام realized that his question to Allah was not according to Shariah, he admitted his mistake and sought forgiveness and mercy from Allah:
﴿رَبِّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أَسْأَلَكَ مَا لَيْسَ لِي بِهِ عِلْمٌ ۖ وَإِلَّا تَغْفِرْ لِي وَتَرْحَمْنِي أَكُن مِّنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ﴾
"My Lord! I seek refuge in You from asking You that of which I have no knowledge. And if You do not forgive me and have mercy on me, I will be among the losers."
Reference: (11-Hud:47)
③ The Repentance of Our Master Yunus (peace be upon him):
Prophet Yunus bin Matta (peace be upon him) was sent as a prophet to the people of Nineveh in the region of Mosul, to invite them to the oneness of Allah, justice, fairness, and good morals. However, they did not accept his invitation, and their mischief increased day by day. Eventually, fed up with their disbelief, he warned them that if they did not believe, Allah's punishment would surely come upon them, and he himself left and went to Jerusalem. From there, he set out towards 'Jaffa' and boarded a ship heading to 'Tarshish'. By Allah's will, a strong storm arose, endangering the ship, so the people threw their cargo into the sea to lighten the load. When the danger did not subside, they thought there must be someone on the ship causing the danger. They cast lots, and the lot fell on Prophet Yunus (peace be upon him), so they threw him into the sea. Then the storm ceased. Allah sent a fish that swallowed him. He remained in the belly of the fish for three days or more (according to different narrations), then he prayed, calling himself unjust, so Allah, the Lord of Glory, accepted his prayer, and the fish came to the shore and threw him out of its belly:
﴿لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا أَنتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ﴾
"There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."
Reference: (21-Al-Anbiya:87)
◈The Virtue of Supplication:
It is narrated from Saad bin Abi Waqqas, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "The supplication of Yunus when he was in the belly of the fish was: ﴿لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا أَنتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ﴾. Whenever a Muslim makes this supplication to his Lord for any need, it will be accepted."
Reference: Sunan Tirmidhi, Book of Supplications, Hadith No: 3505 -
Muhaddith Albani, may Allah have mercy on him, declared this hadith authentic.④ The Repentance of the Killer of One Hundred Men:
Sayyiduna Abu Saeed bin Malik bin Sinan Al-Khudri رضي الله عنه narrates that the Prophet Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وآلہ وسلم said: "In the times before you, there was a man who had committed ninety-nine (99) murders. He inquired about the greatest scholar on the face of the earth, and he was directed to a monk. He went to the monk and said: I have committed ninety-nine (99) murders; can my repentance be accepted? The monk said: No. Then he killed the monk as well, completing the number to one hundred. He then inquired about the greatest scholar on the earth again, and he was directed to a religious scholar. He said to the scholar: I have committed one hundred murders; is there any way for my repentance to be accepted? The religious scholar said: Yes! Who can stand between repentance and its acceptance? Go to such and such a region, where some people worship Allah Almighty. Join them in worshiping Allah, and do not return to your land, for it is a land of evil.
That man set out from there. When he reached the middle of the way, his time of death came. The angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed over him. The angels of mercy said, "He was on the path of repentance and had turned his heart towards Allah." The angels of punishment said, "He did not do any good deed at all." Then an angel came in the form of a man to them, and the angels accepted the judgment of this angel in human form. The judging angel said:
قيسوا ما بين الأرضين فإلى أيتهما كان أدنى فهو له ، فقاسوا فوجدوه أدنى إلى الأرض التى أراد فقبضته ملائكة الرحمة .
"Measure the distance between the two places; count him in the place to which he is closer." The angels measured the entire distance, and the area towards which he was heading was found to be closer! Therefore, the angels of mercy took his soul."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of Supplications and Remembrances, Chapter on Acceptance of the Repentance of the Killer, Hadith No: 7008.
In another narration, the words are:
فكان إلى القرية الصالحة أقرب منها بشبر فجعل من أهلها .
"That man was a distance of a barley grain away from the settlement of the righteous, so he was counted among the righteous."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, also: Hadith No: 7009.
In another narration, it is stated:
فأوحى الله تعالى إلى هذه أن تباعدي ، وإلى هذه أن تقربي وقال: قيسوا ما بينهما فوجد إلى هذه أقرب بشبر فغفر له .
"Allah Almighty commanded the land of the evil region to move away (to lengthen) and commanded the land of the good region to come closer. He also commanded to measure the area of both regions. It was found that he was a barley grain closer to the good region (as a result), so he was forgiven."
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of the Prophets, Hadith No: 3470.
⑤ The Repentance of Sayyiduna Ma'az Aslami (May Allah be pleased with him):
We present an example of repentance from the early and illustrious period of this Ummah, that is, the era of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all. Sayyiduna Buraydah Al-Aslami narrates: Ma'iz bin Malik Al-Aslami came to the Messenger of Allah and said: O Messenger of Allah! I have wronged myself and committed adultery. I desire that you purify me. The Prophet sent him back. The next day he came again and said: O Messenger of Allah! I have committed adultery. He was sent back again. Then the Messenger of Allah sent a message to his tribe to inquire whether, to their knowledge, Ma'iz had any mental disorder or if they considered him to be of unsound mind. The people replied: To our knowledge, he is of sound mind, and in our opinion, he is a righteous man. On the third day, Ma'iz came again. The Prophet inquired again about him, and the people said: Neither has his character changed, nor has any defect occurred in his intellect. Thus, on the fourth day, a pit was dug for him, and by the command of the Prophet , he was stoned. The Messenger of Allah said: Ma'iz has repented in such a way that if it were divided among a nation, it would suffice them abundantly.
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of Hudud, Chapter: One who confesses to adultery, Hadith No: 4431.
⑥ Repentance of a Ghazal Woman:
Then the woman from Ghamid also came. She requested, "O Messenger of Allah! I have committed adultery, please purify me." You sent her back as well. The next day she came again and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Why do you send me back? Perhaps you want to send me back just as you sent back Ma'iz." By Allah! I am pregnant!" After hearing this statement, you said: "Then the punishment cannot be enforced; go and come after childbirth." When the woman from Ghamid gave birth, she brought the child wrapped in a cloth and said, "I have given birth to the child." The Prophet ﷺ said: "Take care of it and breastfeed it until you wean it." When she had weaned the child, she brought the child with a piece of bread in his hand and said, "O Messenger of Allah! I have weaned him, and now he eats food." The Prophet ﷺ handed the child over to a Muslim. Then by your command, a pit was dug up to the chest for her, and by your command, people stoned her. Sayyiduna Khalid ibn Walid رضي الله عنه struck a stone on the head of the woman from Ghamid, and blood splattered on Sayyiduna Khalid رضي الله عنه’s face. He then spoke ill of the woman. The Prophet ﷺ heard the ill speech and said:
مهلا يا خالد! فو الذى نفسي بيده! لقد تابت توبة لو تابها صاحب مكس لغفر له .
"Khalid, stop a little! By the One in Whose hand is my soul! This woman has repented so sincerely that if even a thug who collects taxes from people repents like this, he would be forgiven."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book of Hudud, Chapter: One who confesses to adultery, No: 4432.
Then by your command, her funeral prayer was performed, and she was buried.
In another narration, Sayyiduna Umar رضي الله عنه asked: "O Messenger of Allah! You stoned her and also perform her funeral prayer." You said:
لقد تابت توبة لو قسمت بين سبعين من أهل المدينة لوسعتهم ، وهل وجدت شيئا أفضل من أن جادت بنفسها لله عز وجل
"Indeed, she has repented so sincerely that if it were divided among seventy people of Medina, all would be forgiven. Have you seen any deed better than this, that she sacrificed her life to please Allah?"
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Book and Chapter also, No: 4433.
