Episode 5 | Knowing Allah | Al Ghaffur, At Tawaab & Al Afuw

Al-Ghafoor, At-Tawwab & Al-Afuw — Knowing Allah's Names of Forgiveness

If you want to receive the mercy, the forgiveness, the blessing of Allah, make some effort. The more effort you make, the more you will see that blessing and that mercy in your life. Today's lesson we're going to stick on the same theme of Allah's mercy and we're going to cover a few more names of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

Al-Ghafoor, Al-Tawwab and Al-Afuw. Today whoever came, you got the mega deal. You got the three in one sale. You should all be very excited.

These Names Are Always Mentioned in Pairs

When you think about these names of Allah — Al-Ghafoor, Al-Tawwab, Al-Afuw — whenever they are mentioned in the Qur'an, they are mentioned in pairs, not on their own. They're mentioned in pairs, two names side by side.

One of Allah's names is Al-Ghafoor — the one who consistently and constantly forgives and conceals the sins. And one of his names is Al-Afuw — the one who not just forgives, not just covers it up, but cleans it so nobody ever knew it was there. That is why when Allah mentions in the Qur'an Al-Ghafoor Al-Raheem, Al-Tawwab Al-Raheem — but when he mentions his name Al-Afuw, it comes first.

Is Forgiveness for Everyone?

What we learn from these names of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is that Allah's rahma — Allah's mercy — affects everyone: Muslim, non-Muslim, every human being, animal, plant, the wall, everything receives some portion of Allah's rahma. But forgiveness — is that for everybody? And for every deed? Are there deeds which Allah doesn't forgive?

Allah doesn't forgive that you make anything equal to him. And does Allah forgive everyone? The forgiveness of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala comes to those who seek it and those who ask for it. And so in the Qur'an, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala talks about a third concept — Al-Istighfar — to seek Allah's forgiveness, to search for it. And he talks about another concept, very similar — Al-Tawbah.

The Meaning of Tawbah — Making a U-Turn

Tawbah comes from the root word Taba Ya Tubu wa Aaba Ya Ubu — which means to return. If I'm driving in one direction and suddenly Google Maps tells me you made a wrong turn, you have to take a U-turn — this U-turn in Arabic is called Taba Ya Tubu, to make a detour, to make a U-turn. You're going in one direction but you return back to the direction you were supposed to go in. This is the meaning of Tawbah. You are going in the wrong direction, you are disobeying Allah, you are far from him, but now you're going to make a U-turn back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

The First Example of Tawbah — Adam (alayhi salam)

The first example of Tawbah in the Qur'an is the example of our father Adam alayhi salam. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells Adam: don't eat from this tree. Everything else is halal — just avoid this tree. But Shaytan, our enemy, his job is to continuously whisper to us, distract us, and make this one tree look like the best thing on earth. And so Adam alayhi salam eventually falls into the mistake and eats from the tree.

And Adam alayhi salam faces a consequence. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala sends him from our original home of paradise — that home that came without a mortgage, without a high price, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gifted to us — and sent him to this earth, the place of tests and tribulations, the place where we have to prove ourselves.

When Adam alayhi salam comes down, the first thing is he realises his mistake. But he doesn't know how to apologise. Nobody has ever apologised in the history of humanity just yet. Someone has to teach Adam alayhi salam how to apologise. Allah taught Adam some words, and Allah accepted his repentance — his U-turn. Allah is At-Tawwab.

What Does At-Tawwab Really Mean?

Who is At-Tawwab? At-Tawwab means Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala — if you come sincerely to Allah, he will always accept your apology. But it doesn't just mean that. The majority of linguists, the Arabic language scholars, say At-Tawwab means Allah inspires you to come back to him.

You don't feel like it. You're drowning in your sins — in the nightclub, with a cigarette in one hand, in muharramat, you're looking at things you shouldn't be looking at — whatever it is that you're doing, you're drowning in it, you're immersed in it, you find no escape. One morning you wake up and there's some feeling in your heart that says: I can't continue to live this way. I have to change. Who inspired you? Where did that inspiration come from?

That is the beauty of Allah's mercy — he inspires us by putting fear in our hearts. Because if we think Allah is only mercy, all nice, everything's happy, everything's perfect, we become complacent. We get too relaxed. That is why Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, whenever he introduces a consequence or a punishment, he always mentions there is also reward if you can escape that deed.

The Greatest Sins — and the Greatest Hope

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala mentions some of the worst deeds in the Qur'an. Those who don't worship another creator alongside Allah — shirk — and they don't murder, and they don't commit fornication. These are major sins. In fact, the first is disbelief. If you do these things, there are going to be big consequences in the afterlife. Your punishment will be multiplied on the Day of Judgment, and you will stay there forever. How does that feel? You feel that fear? You feel that consciousness of Allah? You feel that consequence in your mind?

Now watch what Allah does. Except for those who make a U-turn and return to Allah. Is that enough? Is it enough just to say, "Allah, I'm sorry, I did zina, I murdered"? Yes, it can be enough. But there are levels of repentance. There are levels of returning to Allah, and Allah's response, and Allah's mercy in your life, and Allah's forgiveness, and your happiness — all depend on how much effort you made to come back to Allah.

The Levels of Repentance

If you did the maximum — what is the maximum? Number one: you did tawbah. You said, "I'm sorry, I was wrong. I shouldn't have done this." Level one. Then you renewed your iman. You revived, you refreshed your iman. But then the most important thing — it would have been enough for Allah to say he did good deeds. But Allah repeats the idea of action. Returning to Allah is not just about saying sorry — it is about changing.

That is the maximum level of repentance and return to Allah — to change. The same person who used to worship idols, fifteen years later reads the entire Qur'an in one rakah. This is what tawbah means. Tawbah is to change.

The Story of Umar and Ar-Rahman

What was the first name of Allah that Umar ibn al-Khattab ever heard from the Qur'an? The first name of Allah Umar was ever exposed to was the name Ar-Rahman. This is the motivator to change. Because when you know Allah's mercy is limitless, when you look at your criminal record and you look at how many black points you have and you think there is no hope for me — but when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says his mercy is unlimited.

"Say, O My dear slaves who have committed crimes against themselves — do not despair, never lose hope in the mercy of Allah. Allah forgives every single sin. Every single sin."

And if we want more mercy of Allah in our life, then we have to show more effort in front of Allah.

The Hadith of Drawing Closer to Allah

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, in the hadith of Abu Hurairah in Sahih al-Bukhari, that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala conveyed to the Prophet:

"I am the companion of one who remembers me. If he mentions Allah on his own, Allah mentions his name on his own. And if you mention Allah in a group, Allah will mention you in a better group — the angels. And if you come to Allah this much forward, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is going to come to you this much forward. And if you come to Allah this much, he is going to come closer to you that much. And if you come to Allah walking, Allah comes to you running."

What is the point of this hadith? If you want to receive the mercy, the forgiveness, the blessing of Allah, make some effort. The more effort you make, the more you will see that blessing and that mercy in your life. And those who do the bare minimum will see the minimum from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala as well.

Sins Exchanged for Good Deeds — The Promise of Surah Al-Furqan

That is why we return to this ayah from Surah Al-Furqan. Allah talks about people who commit the most deadly sins — murder, fornication, shirk. But then Allah says: if they repent and they believe and they change their actions, they change their ways.

It doesn't just mean they do good deeds. It means to fix something. When you go to your bike and it's rusting, it's brown, and you go and put some WD-40, and you scrub it and you clean it — you fixed it. You've rectified it. This is what it means — you fix yourself.

It's not just about saying sorry to Allah but changing your ways. You drop that cigarette addiction and you replace it with a miswak addiction. You drop that pornography addiction and you replace it with Sheikh al-Minshawi. You drop whatever music that you're listening to and instead you start listening to Surah Al-Furqan in the masjid — and that will help you on Yawm al-Furqan. You change, you replace.

And when you do that, Allah promises you something he has never promised elsewhere in the Qur'an. I told you about forgiveness — covering the sin. I told you about forgiveness — erasing the sin completely from all records. There is something even greater than that.

Those who repent, they return to Allah, they apologise to him, they refresh their iman and they change their ways — Allah is not just going to forgive them. He's not just going to clean their sins. He is going to exchange their sins for good deeds.

Imagine somebody who murdered a thousand people and they return to Allah and repent to him and change their ways — and Allah gives them the reward of giving life, of reviving a thousand people. Imagine somebody who memorised all the music albums of today and they came to Allah and they repented and sought forgiveness and changed their ways — and Allah rewards them as though they memorised the whole Qur'an. He swaps your sins for good deeds.

He doesn't just erase. He doesn't just forgive. He exchanges. Today the exchange rate for the pound is not very good. But Allah's exchange rate will never disappoint you.

The Hadith of Limitless Forgiveness

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has said that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3540 — graded Hasan)

"O son of Adam, if your sins reached in quantity from the ground to the sky, but then you came to me sincerely — without doing any shirk with me, without making anyone equal to me — I would forgive whatever you did and I would not care."

Is there anyone more merciful, more forgiving, more accepting and more tolerant than Allah?

What do we do if we want to earn this mercy of Allah? One: tawbah — to return to Allah. Two: iman — refresh your iman. And three: amal — change your ways. And you will see something phenomenal in your life. You will see miracles happen in your life.

The People of the Cave — Making Effort for Mercy

When the people of the cave — the seven people in the cave — made their supplication to Allah, they didn't just say "Oh Allah, give us mercy" and go back to bed. They got up and said to their king: we are never going to worship this. Then they looked for their safe cave and made du'a to Allah. If you want the mercy of Allah, the forgiveness of Allah to fill your life, you better stand up like they stood up. You better go look for your safe cave just like they looked for a safe cave. Make the effort, and you will see the response from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And Allah's response will never disappoint.

We Must Also Forgive Others

But there is another thing. Many of us expect the mercy of Allah, the tawbah of Allah, the maghfirah of Allah — but we are not willing to do that for other people.

The Story of the Slander of Aisha (radiallahu anha)

In the Prophet's lifetime, one of the events that shook the city of Medina — where the Prophet himself was tested — was the slander of Aisha radiallahu anha. Aisha radiallahu anha was with the believers, coming back from an expedition. She was left behind. A man by the name of Safwan found her and brought her respectfully back. The moment the hypocrites saw this one man and woman coming in, they started to spread a rumour that the two had done something on the way.

And who was spreading this rumour? Believers — spreading a rumour about the wife of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. One of these believers was a man by the name of Mistah ibn Uthatha. He was related to Aisha radiallahu anha, and he was spreading this slander about our mother. He was a believer and he was related to her. But there was something that made his situation even worse — do you know who was paying his rent? Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, the father of Aisha.

Imagine if someone pays your rent and your council tax and all your bills, and then you start spreading lies about their daughter. If it was you and me, we would slash their tyres. If it was you and me, we would break a few bones. There might even be a janazah at some point. May Allah forgive us.

Abu Bakr as-Siddiq — all he did was say: I am not going to give you any money. I am not going to spend on your rent anymore. You're on your own. You spread this lie about my daughter. Why would I keep paying your rent?

And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala revealed Qur'an speaking directly to Abu Bakr:

"People of great character and generosity among you should never stop doing good to others — the poor, the needy, and the emigrant. Do it for the sake of Allah. And let them forgive and overlook. Do you not love that Allah should forgive you? And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful."

Open your contact list on your phone today. On WhatsApp. How many people have you blocked? How many people do we not speak to anymore? How many people are we not on talking terms with? How many relatives? How many friends? How many people we see in the masjid — they say Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah and we give them our backs? How many relationships have we broken? And then we want Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to overlook all of our mistakes. How can that be?

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam has said:

"If you don't show mercy, you will not be shown mercy." And in another version of this narration — if you don't forgive, Allah is not going to forgive you. And if you don't forget people's sins, Allah will not erase your sins.

Yusuf (alayhi salam) and the Highest Level of Forgiveness

Look at Yusuf alayhi salam. After five decades — of being in the well, of being in the prison, of being tortured, of being away from his father — in the end when his brothers come back to him and say "forgive us," what does he say? "There is no blame on you today. Perhaps Allah will guarantee forgiveness for you." Why? He saw the sincerity in their eyes. And whoever is sincere, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgives — and that is a guarantee from him.

But look at something many of us don't notice in the story of Yusuf alayhi salam. At the end of the story, when he brings all of his family together and his parents do sujood in front of him, fulfilling the dream — he begins to make du'a. He speaks to Allah in front of his family. He says: "O Allah, you are the one who has blessed me. And you are the one who took me out of prison after the Shaytan whispered to my brothers. My Lord is so gentle to whomever he wishes."

In this du'a, he mentions his story — but he leaves one part out. He says: "O Allah, you are the one who brought my parents from the desert. After I was in the prison. After the Shaytan whispered to my brothers." Do you notice? He says the Shaytan whispered to his brothers — he doesn't say his brothers wronged him. He protected them even in his du'a before Allah. Allah does not forget. But you and me — we can choose to forget.

Allah says: open a new page. Try today to do this with one person — one person you have an argument with, you don't talk to anymore, you're on bad terms with. Just send them a smiling emoji. You don't have to say anything. Forgive them in your heart. Just forgive them.

The Man of Paradise — Hadith of Musnad Ahmad

We know the hadith in Musnad Ahmad — and many scholars like Zaynuddin al-Iraqi said it is a hadith hasan, a sound hadith — where the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said to his companions: "Today someone will enter this masjid who is from the people of paradise." He said it three times. No one knew who this man was. Eventually one of the companions spent a few days with him to see what was so special about him. And what did he find? He didn't do anything special. When asked why the Prophet would say this about him, he said only one thing: "When I go to sleep at night, I make sure there is nothing in my heart — no hatred, no anger, no resentment, no grudges towards other believers."

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 12697 — graded Hasan by Zaynuddin al-Iraqi and others)

How many grudges do we hold? How many people do we not talk to? If we want the mercy of Allah and his everlasting mercy and his forgiveness, then we have got to start seeking it. We have got to start forgiving. We have got to start forgetting.

There Is Always Room to Return to Allah

There is always room and margin for us to return to Allah. We know that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgave a woman from those before us who was a prostitute. What did she do to deserve that forgiveness? She gave water to a thirsty dog. The man who killed ninety-nine men — then a hundredth — and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgave him.

When it comes to the rahmah and the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, we don't know which deed we have done in our lifetime that may save us on the Day of Judgment.

The Three Men and the Boulder — Never Belittle Any Deed

Three men go out on a journey and it begins to rain heavily. They find refuge in a cave and a great boulder covers the front of it. And they begin to supplicate to Allah. When there's no way out, when you're backed into a corner, when you've got nowhere to run and hide, you have to remember Ar-Rahman. Each one says: "O Allah, there is one deed I did in my life — if this deed was sincere, O Allah, please move this boulder."

Go home and look at what these three men did. Simple things. Small things. But as the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam says — never belittle any deed. Do not think any deed too small in the sight of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This is part of Allah's maghfirah and Allah's rahmah — your small deed, Allah magnifies it because of your intention, because of the quality of the deed. We don't know which of these deeds will be our saving grace.

What Stops People from Making Tawbah?

If you take all the examples for why we do not come back to Allah, it comes down to two things. Either one: we are not scared of Allah's punishment. We don't think there are any consequences. Arrogance — we feel we don't need to go back to Allah. All of this comes back to one dangerous thought: "What is Allah going to do to me?"

But the second reason is: we think that even if we go back to him, he is not going to forgive us. And both of these, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala deals with in the Qur'an.

The Warning of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud and Sufyan al-Thawri

Abdullah ibn Mas'ud radiallahu anhu looked at the Tabi'een — the generation after the Sahaba — and said to them: "You are doing some sins, you think it is nothing, you think it is like a hair — nothing. In our days, we considered these to be major sins."

Sufyan al-Thawri says: "Don't look at the size of the deed, but look at who you disobeyed." Remember, why does Allah say in the Qur'an: know that Allah is forgiving and merciful, but also know he is severe in punishment. Watch out. These deeds are going to have consequences. Every small and large deed is going to be recorded.

But there is the other extreme — to think Allah is not good enough for me. "What's the point? I've done so much, there is no point." But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us: if you come sincerely to Allah, his mercy is unlimited. Unlimited. You have to make that decision. You have to humble yourself. We have to come back and seek his mercy, and Allah will forgive.

Summary — What We Learned Today

Today we learned the difference between Al-Afuw, Al-Maghfirah, and Ar-Rahmah. We learned that Allah in the Qur'an teaches us to call him and ask him for all three — but especially to ask Allah for his afu, for him to erase our sins completely. We learned what it truly takes to make tawbah — that tawbah is not just about saying sorry, but about changing and changing our lives. And we learned that Allah will swap our sins with good deeds when we do this sincerely. We understood the levels of returning to Allah. And we looked at what stops people from coming back to Allah — one being too relaxed, the other being too extreme in despair.

Du'a — Closing Supplication

"O Allah, forgive us our sins and wipe away our evil deeds, and cause us to die among the righteous. O Allah, pardon us and forgive us and have mercy upon us — indeed You are the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. O Allah, envelop us in Your vast mercy, and wipe away all of our sins — their minor and their major, those we know of and those we do not know of — indeed You are the One who hears all supplications."

Wassalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.