Seek forgiveness and do not Despair

 

Here is a Qudsi Hadeeth (sacred narration) that gives boundless hope to believers, and it depicts the depth of Almighty Allah's Great Forgiveness and Mercy. The subject of this article is the discussion that is based on this Qudsi Hadeeth that is reffered below. 

Anas  reported: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah  say’: Allah the Almighty said: “O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as it.”  (Imam At-Tirmithi)

 

In this Qudsi Hadeeth, Allah the Almighty gives hope to humanity more than in any other narration. It displays the quality and attribute of the mercy of Allah the Almighty. Indeed, He is Ar-Rahman (the Most Compassionate), and Ar-Raheem (the Most Merciful). In this Qudsi Hadeeth, Allah the Almighty tells man of the greatness of His Forgiveness and Mercy so that no one would despair due to the excessive quantity of sins he may have committed.

This is supported by the following verse of the Noble Quran:

{Say, “O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.”} [Quran 39:53]

This Hadeeth teaches us the importance of realizing the mercy of Allah the Almighty, having faith and hope in Him especially when making supplications, calling to Allah the Almighty alone for forgiveness, and the importance of repentance in the life and faith of a believer.

Allah the Almighty catches the attention of humankind by calling out: O son of Adam! This is a call to every human being. Why didn't Allah the Almighty say, 'O humankind or O people'?

The significance of this specific call is because it was the first human being, Aadam  who committed the first sin. Adam  was an example to all humans of the consequences of sin and how to turn to Allah the Almighty for forgiveness of one's sins. This gives hope that even after committing a violation, one's sins can be forgiven if one repents to Allah the Almighty sincerely the same way that the father of humankind sinned, repented, and was forgiven by Allah the Almighty. This was clearly mentioned in the Quran. Allah Says (what means): {Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting repentance, the Merciful} [Quran 2:37]

Allah the Almighty calls out to His servants, a call of forgiveness, mercy, and compassion, for He Knows that man was created weak and is prone to fall into sin. After calling out to humankind, Allah the Almighty informs them that as long as they call on Him and put their hope in Him, He will forgive them and not mind. This statement alone can convince one to have hope and never to despair. When one calls out to Allah the Almighty or supplicates Him, he is displaying his need and dependence on Allah the Almighty. He is demonstrating his weakness to the fact that he has no power to do anything for himself. This is the essence of submission and servitude. It is also recognition of Allah's attributes of Kindness, Generosity, Forgiving and Merciful nature, and His unlimited Power and Knowledge. Humans are never in a situation where they are not in need of Allah the Almighty. A believer always turns to Him to ask for guidance as well as to seek forgiveness of sins and shortcomings.

One of the most important conditions of supplication is that one must completely trust that Allah the Almighty will respond. One must also supplicate with sincerity, hope, and seriousness.

One must not have any doubt at all on whether Allah the Almighty will respond to one's call or if He will accept the supplication. The Messenger of Allah, sallallahu alaiyhi wa sallam, asked us to supplicate to Allah the Almighty while being certain of a response. We must also know that Allah the Almighty does not respond to a supplication from a heart that is heedless and inattentive. The Prophet  also forbade that one say: ‘O Allah, forgive me if You will’. Instead, he  asked us to supplicate with will and conviction, for there is nothing so great to Allah that He cannot grant it. Allah the Almighty Says (what means): {And to Allah belongs the depositories of the heavens and the earth, but the hypocrites do not understand} [Quran 63:7] - islamweb.net