No one is exempt from falling into sins and making mistakes, whether intentionally, unintentionally, or out of negligence. Allah Almighty has prescribed repentance, knowing the nature of His creation, which is characterized by forgetfulness and weakness at times. Therefore, He has prescribed repentance and made forgiveness and the expiation of sins for those who seek it. Allah says: "And it is He who accepts repentance from his servants and pardons misdeeds, and He knows what you do." (Quran 42:25). Forgiveness is granted to those who repent sincerely.
Out of Allah's mercy for humans, He has prescribed acts that expiate sins and erase misdeeds. These acts include:
1. Prayer (Salah)
Prayer is the second pillar of Islam, and it prevents immorality and wrongdoing. Allah says: "Recite, [O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Quran 29:45). Prayer washes away sins. Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Do you think if there were a river by the door of one of you in which he bathes five times a day, would any dirt remain on him?" They said: "No dirt would remain." He said: "That is the example of the five prayers by which Allah erases sins." (Bukhari and Muslim). Walking to the mosque raises ranks and removes sins. Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever purifies himself in his house and then walks to one of the houses of Allah to perform one of the obligatory acts of worship, one step of his will remove a sin and another step will raise him one degree in status." (Muslim).
2. Increasing Charitable Acts (Sadaqah)
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: " Indeed charity extinguishes the Lord's anger and it protects against the evil death." (Tirmidhi). It is one of the most beloved righteous deeds to Allah and protects its giver from entering Hell. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Protect yourselves from the Fire, even with half of a date." (Bukhari). Anas reported that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Prayer is light, fasting is a shield, and charity extinguishes bad deeds as water extinguishes fire, and envy consumes good deeds just as fire consumes wood." (Muslim).
3. Relieving the Distress of the Afflicted
Allah has made relieving the distress of people among the means to alleviate distress on the Day of Judgment, a time when His mercy and forgiveness are most manifest. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: " If anyone relieves a Muslim believer from one of the hardships of this worldly life, Allah will relieve him of one of the hardships of the Day of Resurrection." (Muslim). He also said: "He who likes Allah to deliver him from the calamities of the Day of Resurrection, let him either give respite to a debtor or grant him remission (of loans) in straitened circumstances." (Muslim).
4. Patience (Sabr)
Allah has made trials a Sunnah (established practice) of life to test the patience of Muslims. Patience earns a great reward and serves as a means to expiate sins and rectify shortcomings in worship. Allah says: "Indeed, the patient will be given their reward without account." (Quran 39:10). He also says: "But give good tidings to the patient. Who, when disaster strikes them, say, 'Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return.' Those are the ones upon whom are blessings from their Lord and mercy. And it is those who are the [rightly] guided." (Quran 2:155-157). The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "No Muslim is afflicted by difficulty, continuous pain, anxiety, grief, injury, or care, or even by a thorn with which he is pierced, without God thereby making an atonement for his sins." (Bukhari and Muslim).
5. Forgiving Others
Islam encourages fostering an atmosphere of mutual love and harmony among members of the Muslim community. Therefore, forgiveness and tolerance among people carry a great reward and serve as a means of Allah's forgiveness of sins. The Quran emphasizes forgiveness in the story of the slander against Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her). After Aisha's innocence was proven, Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) swore to stop supporting Mistah ibn Uthatha financially, despite having supported him previously. However, Allah urged Abu Bakr to forgive Mistah and resume his financial support, saying: "Would you not like that Allah should forgive you?" (Quran 24:22). Abu Bakr affirmed his desire for Allah's forgiveness and forgave Mistah. Allah says: "But if you pardon and overlook and forgive, then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." (Quran 64:14).
6. Being Dutiful to Parents
Due to the immense importance of parents in Islam, Allah has made being dutiful to them a means of forgiveness of sins and wiping away of faults. Allah has linked the worship of Him alone with being dutiful to parents, saying: "Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him, and to parents do good." (Quran 4:36). The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "May he be disgraced! May he be disgraced! May he be disgraced, whose parents, one or both, attain old age during his lifetime, and he does not enter Paradise." That is, may he be disgraced who does not fulfill his duty towards his parents in their old age, thus missing the opportunity to earn Paradise. (Muslim).
7. Fasting (Siyaam)
Fasting is a form of patience in abstaining from food, drink, and worldly desires. Therefore, its reward is multiplied many times over. Every act of worship has a known reward except fasting, for Allah has reserved the reward for it and will bestow it as He wishes, whether it is an obligatory fast or a voluntary one. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: " He who fasts during Ramadan with faith and seeking his reward from God will have his past sins forgiven." (Bukhari and Muslim). He also said: "The five [daily] prayers, Friday to Friday and Ramadan to Ramadan make atonement for what has happened since the previous one when major sins have been avoided." (Muslim).
8. Seeking Forgiveness (Istighfaar)
Allah says: "And those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression], remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins - and who can forgive sins except Allah? - and [who] do not persist in what they have done while they know." (Quran 3:135). Abdullah ibn Mas'ud said regarding Allah's Book, "Two verses that a servant recites from the Book of Allah, and he seeks forgiveness from Allah for his sins, then Allah, Mighty and Majestic, will forgive him." He then mentioned the above verse. Among the clear signs of Allah's grace and His honoring of forgiving sins and expiating faults is His saying: "And whoever does evil or wrongs himself but then seeks forgiveness of Allah will find Allah Forgiving and Merciful." (Quran 4:110).
9. Always Being Keen on Performing Wudu' (Ablution)
Islam is a religion of cleanliness and purity, and a Muslim is distinguished among people by this trait. Uthman ibn Affan reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "If anyone performs the ablution well, his sins will come out from his body, even coming out from under his nails." (Muslim).
10. Performing Good Deeds
The opportunities for righteous deeds are vast and open. From the mercy of the Lord of the worlds towards His creation, He has made them a means of wiping away sins. Allah says: "And those who believe and do righteous deeds - We will surely remove from them their misdeeds and will surely reward them according to the best of what they used to do." (Quran 29:7). This means that those whom Allah has blessed with faith and righteous deeds, Allah will forgive their sins, because good deeds erase bad ones; "And [We] will surely reward them according to the best of what they used to do." These are acts of goodness, both obligatory and recommended. They are the best deeds a servant can perform, as he also performs permissible actions and others. (1)
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(1) Tafsir Al-Sa'di
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