Seeking the Forgiveness of Allah (SWT) - Qari Zakaullah Saleem

Seeking the Forgiveness of Allah — Forgive to Be Forgiven

أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَإِنَّ أَصْدَقَ الْكَلَامِ كَلَامُ اللَّهِ وَأَحْسَنَ الْهَدْيِ هَدْيُ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَشَرَّ الْأُمُورِ مُحْدَثَاتُهَا وَكُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ وَكُلَّ ضَلَالَةٍ فِي النَّارِ

My dear respected brothers and sisters in Islam, while we have entered into the third part of the blessed month of Ramadan, we must first and foremost thank Allah for allowing us this great opportunity to seek His pleasure and to seek His forgiveness by performing various acts of worship in the form of qiyamul layl, reading Quran, making du'a to Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram, fasting during the day, and spending in charity for the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. We ask Allah to accept all of our good deeds that we perform for His sake alone. Innahu sami'un qareebun mujeeb.

Ramadan: The Month of Seeking Forgiveness

My dear respected brothers and sisters in Islam, the month of Ramadan is the month of seeking the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. And we all know the very famous hadith of our beloved Prophet ﷺ, in which he said ameen to the du'a of Jibreel عليه السلام when he said: may the curse and destruction of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram be upon the person who witnesses the month of Ramadan, the month of Ramadan comes to an end, yet he does not get his sins forgiven by Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. When Jibreel said this and made this du'a, our beloved Prophet ﷺ said ameen.

(Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Hadith 3545; also reported in Mustadrak al-Hākim — Jibreel made the du'a and the Prophet ﷺ said ameen)

May Allah make us not amongst those who are deprived of His mercy and those who are not forgiven within the month of Ramadan.

In fact, we are all in need of the mercy of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. We are all in need of seeking the forgiveness of Allah. And Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram, out of His mercy, has opened the gates of paradise and the gates of His mercy for us since the beginning of the month of Ramadan.

And Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram says in Surah Az-Zumar: "Say, O Muhammad ﷺ, O My slaves, O My servants — those who have transgressed, those who have wronged against themselves — do not despair of the mercy of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. Indeed Allah forgives all the sins, if you truly seek His forgiveness."

If you truly seek His forgiveness, Allah is ready to forgive you. Because amongst the beautiful names and attributes of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram is Al-Ghafoor, Al-Raheem — He is the Most Forgiving, He is the Most Merciful. Allah is willing to forgive us, and it is up to us whether we seek His forgiveness or not.

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, Allah has encouraged us in various verses of the Quran to hasten towards His forgiveness. In Surah Al-Hadeed, Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram says: "Race with one another towards the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram and race with one another towards paradise, whose width is similar to the width of the heavens and the earth."

The Key to Forgiveness: Forgiving One Another

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, one of the greatest means of attaining the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram is that we must forgive one another. And this is the topic of today's khutbah: Forgive in order to seek the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. Forgive to seek forgiveness.

If you truly want Allah to forgive your sins, then you must forgive. You must forgive your own family members. You must forgive your own relatives. You must forgive your friends, your co-workers. And this is not optional — this is something that is a must in order to seek the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram and in order to seek His forgiveness.

Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram says in Surah Āl-'Imrān: "Compete with one another, race with one another towards the forgiveness of your Lord and towards the Jannah whose width is the width of the heavens and the earth."

This Jannah has been prepared for those who have taqwa. Then Allah makes mention of some of the outstanding characteristics of those who fear Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. And this is the sole purpose of the whole month of Ramadan, as Allah says:

Fasting has been prescribed on you so that you can attain piety and taqwa. And Allah is telling us in Surah Āl-'Imrān that amongst the characteristics of those who have the fear of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram is:

Those who spend in the way of Allah in times of prosperity and ease as well as in times of hardship and difficulty. And then Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram says وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ — those who control their anger. وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ — and those who pardon, forgive, and overlook the mistakes of others.

The Connection Between Spending and Controlling Anger

What is the connection between controlling the anger and spending in the way of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram? The first characteristic that Allah has mentioned is الَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ — those who spend in the way of Allah, not only in times of prosperity and ease, but also when they are themselves financially struggling, they continue giving in charity for the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. And then the second characteristic is وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ — those who control their anger.

There is a great link, a very strong link between the two. And in order to understand this, I would like to bring to your attention an incident that took place during the life of our beloved Prophet ﷺ — in fact, the incident that shook our beloved Prophet ﷺ and his whole household, every single member of his family.

The Incident of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and Mistah ibn Uthatha

This was the incident of the munafiqeen — the hypocrites of Madinah — slandering our mother, the most beloved wife of our beloved Prophet ﷺ, Sayyida 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها. When the munafiqeen slandered our mother 'A'ishah, some of the companions of Rasulullah ﷺ were also deceived by the munafiqeen and the hypocrites, and they also held something negative against Sayyida 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها.

One of those companions was Mistah ibn Uthatha رضي الله تعالى عنه — a companion who witnessed and took part in the Battle of Badr. About the people of Badr, Allah said: "I have forgiven them." They were forgiven by Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. But in that specific situation, Mistah was deceived by the slandering of the munafiqeen and he said something negative about the mother of the believers, Sayyida 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها.

Mistah was also a relative of 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها — he was a nephew of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضي الله تعالى عنه. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq used to financially support Mistah, because Mistah was a poor person. When Abu Bakr al-Siddiq heard that Mistah had said something negative about his daughter 'A'ishah, he got upset. What did he do? Just put yourself in that situation. What would you do if someone slandered your own daughter? Do you go and kill them? Do you swear at them? Yes, this is the common culture that we are living in, because we do not know anything about forgiveness.

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضي الله تعالى عنه did not say anything other than one word. He said: from today onwards, I am going to stop and discontinue my financial support to Mistah. That was all. He did not swear at Mistah. He did not beat him. He did not say anything other than this — he just stopped his financial support.

But Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram wanted to teach a lesson — to Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and to the whole Ummah of Muhammad Rasulullah ﷺ. Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram wanted to teach a lesson to me and to you, my dear brothers and sisters in Islam. Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram revealed the ayah — He sent down Jibreel عليه السلام with the ayah of Surah An-Nur that is going to be recited until the Day of Judgement:

It does not befit those who have been given bounty and special status in the sight of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram, and those who have prosperity, to swear that they are not going to spend on their own kinship, and are not going to financially support the masakeen and the needy, and those who have migrated in the way of Allah. And then Allah says: they should forgive, they should overlook. And then Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram concludes the ayah saying: "Do you not love that Allah forgives you? Because Allah is Most Forgiving and Most Merciful."

When this ayah was revealed, our beloved Prophet ﷺ recited this ayah to Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضي الله تعالى عنه. As soon as Abu Bakr heard this ayah — when he heard Allah saying: "Do you not love that Allah forgives you?" — Abu Bakr al-Siddiq started shedding tears from his eyes and he said: "Why not? By Allah, we love that Allah forgive us." And upon this, Abu Bakr al-Siddiq said: "I am going to continue my financial support to Mistah again."

Can you see the strong link between spending for the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram and controlling your anger and forgiving? What do we do when we get upset with someone within our family, our relatives, our neighbors, our friends? The first thing that we do is cut the relationship and stop completely our support — even though we know they are in need of our help. But we stop.

And this is what Allah is addressing in this passage of the Quran in Surah Āl-'Imrān: those who spend in the way of Allah in times of prosperity and ease, and those who spend in the way of Allah in times of hardship and difficulties — and then they control their anger. They do not only control their anger, rather they forgive. And those who control their anger and those who forgive — in the sight of Allah — they are the ones who are labelled as al-Muhsinun, those who are excellent in performing their good deeds and in seeking the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram.

And then in the next ayah, Allah says that one of the characteristics of those who have the fear of Allah within their heart is: when they commit any shameful act or they wronged themselves, immediately they remember Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram and they seek His forgiveness — because they know no one can forgive their sins except Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. And they never ever persist on their bad deeds and on their sins.

They are the ones whose reward is the forgiveness of Allah.

Forgive Regardless of the Harm Done

So the point is, my dear brothers and sisters in Islam, in order to seek the forgiveness of Allah, we must forgive each other. And I am sure every single one of us has, in one way or another, a problem with someone — within the relatives, within the family, within the neighbors, within the friends. If you have any problem, forgive them. Forgive them today within the month of Ramadan. Not because they are Muslim, or not because they deserve your forgiveness — no. Because you need the forgiveness of your Lord. Because you are in need of the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram within the month of Ramadan. And if you are a true believer, then you do not want the month of Ramadan to come to an end and your sins are not forgiven by Allah.

Forgive them for the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram, regardless of their crime, regardless of what they have done to you. They must have hurt you. They must have caused harm to you. But forgive them — because you claim to be the follower of a Prophet who forgave his own enemies, not just amongst the Muslims but even non-Muslims. He forgave them.

Do we not know the story — the incident — when the Prophet ﷺ conquered Makkah? The people of Makkah were brought forward to the Prophet ﷺ as captives. The Prophet ﷺ asked them: "What do you expect me to do with you?" They said: "We still believe, after so many years and all that we have done wrong to you, O Muhammad ﷺ, that you are the most generous amongst the creation of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram." The Prophet ﷺ did not even demand them to ask for his forgiveness. Rather, our beloved Prophet ﷺ said: "Today there is no blame on you. Go — you are all free."

Do you truly love your Prophet ﷺ? If you love this Prophet, then this is the Seerah. And this is not a simple story to narrate, my dear brothers and sisters in Islam — this is for us to take a lesson. As Allah says:

There is a great example for you in the Seerah of Rasulullah ﷺ.

And do not say: "Imam Sahib, you are saying all these words and these ayat of the Quran, but you do not know what they have done to me. I have honor and dignity within my society, within my community, but so-and-so has done so much harm to me and hurt me to a very severe extent." I would say to you, O my dear brother and sister — wallahi, your honor, your dignity is not higher than the dignity and honor of my beloved Prophet ﷺ.

You want Allah to forgive you? Then remember the hadith of Rasulullah ﷺ in which he said:

(Sunan Abī Dāwūd, Hadith 4941; Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Hadith 1924)

Those who are merciful — Allah, the Most Merciful, showers His mercy upon them. Show mercy to those who are on the earth, so that the One who is in the heavens will show mercy on you.

You want Allah to forgive the sins of your past — all the sins that you have committed in the past — but you do not want to forgive your own brother, your own sister, your own parents, your own children, your wife, your husband, your family members, your relatives, your friends, your neighbors? Have a big heart. Have a big heart. Show your love for your Prophet ﷺ and prove through your actions that you are truly seeking the forgiveness of Allah.

May Allah give us tawfiq and ability. May Allah give us tawfiq and ability to forgive one another for His pleasure. May Allah forgive all of our sins that we have committed in our lives. And may Allah allow us to be amongst the people who are set free during the month of Ramadan by Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. Innahu sami'un qareebun mujeeb.

The Second Khutbah: Laylat al-Qadr and the Du'a of Forgiveness

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, as we know, within the last nine or ten nights of Ramadan is the night of al-Qadr — Laylat al-Qadr. Our mother 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها asked our beloved Prophet ﷺ and she said: "O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, if I was to witness the Night of Qadr, what should I do?" The Prophet ﷺ said: "Say this du'a:"

(Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Hadith 3513; Sunan Ibn Mājah, Hadith 3850 — reported by 'A'ishah رضي الله تعالى عنها)

"O Allah, indeed You are the Most Forgiving. تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ — O Allah, You also love forgiveness." And تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ means two things: O Allah, You love to forgive, and it also means O Allah, You love those who forgive — You love Your servants to forgive each other. فَاعْفُ عَنِّي — "So, O Allah, pardon me. O Allah, forgive me."

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, during these coming nights we should memorize this du'a of our Prophet ﷺ. We should constantly make this du'a. But before you make this du'a, be truthful in your words. Be truthful in your words. Because Allah knows everything that you conceal within your chest. Allah knows if you are not willing to forgive your own relatives, your own family members, your own friends, your own neighbors, your own fellow Muslims.

If you are not willing to forgive them, then how can you say to Allah: تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ — "O Allah, You are the Most Forgiving and You love forgiveness"? Are you trying to say: "O Allah, You love forgiveness, but I do not love to forgive"? Is that not hypocrisy? Is that not nifaq? What can you call it other than nifaq and hypocrisy, when you beg Allah: "O Allah, You are the Most Forgiving and You love forgiveness" — yet you are not forgiving others?

So be truthful in your words. Forgive others before you seek the forgiveness of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. Regardless of the harm, regardless of what they have done to you, regardless of their crime — forgive them. Forgive them because you are in need of the forgiveness of Allah. Forgive them within the month of Ramadan. Forgive them now, today, within this blessed day of Friday. You never know whether you are going to witness the end of this month or not.

Forgive them and do not expect them to come to you and ask and beg you for forgiveness. Rather, you go first and forgive them for the sake of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram, for the pleasure of your Lord. Forgive everyone and have a clean heart. Show and prove to your Lord that you have forgiven everyone within the creation of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram. Now say: "O Allah, I need Your forgiveness." And Allah has promised you in the Quran:

If you forgive, if you pardon, if you overlook — then remember, Allah is the Most Forgiving, Allah is the Most Merciful.

May Allah give us tawfiq and ability. May Allah give us such a big heart that we forgive everyone — we forgive everyone for the pleasure of Allah Dhul Jalal Wal Ikram — in order to seek the mercy of Allah and in order to have the hope in the mercy of Allah that Allah forgives us within the month of Ramadan. And may Allah make us amongst the people who are free from the fire of Hell within this blessed month.