Istighfar: Difference between revisions

'''Istighfār''' (Arabic: الاستغفار) is to ask God to forgive one’s sins. It does not merely consist in the recitation of sentences such as “اللهمَ إغفِرلی” (God! Forgive me!), rather it is a true feeling of return to God and repentance for one’s wrongdoings with a determination not to commit them again. Istighfar is not restricted to ordinary, fallible people; even the prophets asked for divine forgiveness. [[The Prophet Muhammad (s)]] was commissioned by God to ask for divine forgiveness for himself and for other believers, as an intercession for divine mercy.

The concept of asking for divine forgiveness has repeatedly appeared in the [[Quran]] in different forms. Istighfar does not have to occur at a special time or place and it is usually accepted by God. However, according to the Quran and [[hadiths]], there are times and places in which istighfar will be more likely accepted by God.

The word “istighfar” literally means to ask for forgiveness. It is from the Arabic root, “gh-f-r”, (غ-ف-ر) which originally means to cover. Terminologically, it means to verbally or practically ask God to forgive one’s sins in order to be immune to the pernicious effects of the sins and divine punishment. Some scholars have taken some occurrences of the word “istighfar” in the Quran to refer to believing, converting to Islam, or saying one’s prayers. These are instances of the practical sort of istighfar.

Istighfar is either a verbal expression, such as “استغفر اللّه” (I ask for God’s forgiveness), or a deed, such as doing something that leads one to be forgiven by God. The verbal istighfar is discussed in [[fiqh]] in issues such as [[tahara]], [[prayer]], [[fasting]], [[hajj]], commerce, [[zihar]] and [[kaffara]].

The concept of asking for divine forgiveness has appeared in the Quran 68 times: 43 of these are different forms of “istighfar” (in the form of “istif’al”), 17 in the form “ighfir” (the imperative form, meaning forgive), 3 in the form of “yaghfir” (He forgives), 2 in the form of “taghfir” (you forgive), and one in the form of “maghfira” (forgiveness). In two verses of the Quran, the divine order for forgiveness has appeared with the word “hitta” (Arabic: حطة): God issued an order for the [[Israelites]] to be forgiven.

'''* Recommended istighfar: ''' since istighfar counts as the best worship, it is particularly recommended in the following cases: between the two [[prostrations]] ([[sajda]]s) of the [[prayer]]; after [[al-tasbihat al-arba’a]]; in [[qunut]], especially the qunut of the [[watr prayer]]; during the dawn ([[sahar]]); for a dead person in his or her funeral, burial and visiting his or her grave; in [[rain prayers]]; in the [[Ramadan]] month; for not doing some traditions such as istighfar for hurting oneself as a [[kaffara]].

1. Repentance over one’s past deeds.

3. Observing people’s rights.

4. Doing all one’s obligations that one had ignored.

6. One’s body should suffer from worships, just as it had enjoyed the sins.

* Confession to one’s mistakes.

* Attention to God’s lordship.

* Attention to God’s absolute [[wilaya]].

* Considering that God accepts one’s repentance (or [[tawba]]).

* Keeping one’s promises.

God will definitely accept one’s istighfar, because:

* There are many verses of the Quran that order people to ask for divine forgiveness, so it is improbable that God does not accept one’s istighfar.

* Many divine attributes, such as the Forgiver and the Pardoner, imply that God accepts people’s requests for His forgiveness.

===Forgiving one’s sins===

According to the Quran, 71:10, the prophet [[Noah (a)]] tells his people to ask for divine forgiveness, and then the verse goes on “He is the forgiver (ghaffar)”. The divine attribute, Ghaffar (forgiver), as well as others like Rahim (Merciful) and Wadud (loving), imply that God forgives the sins and gives His mercy to people. According to a [[hadith]], istighfar cleans the effects of the sins from one’s soul.

According to the Quran, 71:11-12, istighfar has as an effect the abundance of rains, removes poverty and helps increase one’s livelihood. According to hadiths, istighfar leads to the increase of one’s children.

Istighfar helps one achieve a good life and wealth, well fare, security, and respect. According to the Quran, “ask forgiveness of your Lord, then turn to Him; He will provide you with a goodly provision to an appointed term and bestow His grace on every one endowed with grace”. The ‘good provision’ in the verse has been interpreted as wealth and good material life. However, some people interpreted it as longevity, satisfaction, and turning away from people to God. According to a report, by an appeal to the above Quranic verse, [[Hasan al-Basri]] advised people who suffer from drought, poverty, and lack of children to ask for divine forgiveness.

* According to some Quranic verses, it is permissible, and even recommended, to resort to people who are close to God in asking for God’s forgiveness (e.g. 5:35).

* Some verses (12:97-98) imply that it is permissible to resort to others (such as prophets or Imams) to ask for divine forgiveness, because when the Prophet [[Ya’qub (a)]]’s children asked him to ask God to forgive them, he promised them to ask Him so in the future.

Since prophets are [[Infallibles]], their istighfar does not mean asking God to forgive their sins. According to Shiites and many jurisprudents from the schools of [[Malik]], [[Abu Hanifa]], and [[Shafi’i]], all prophets are infallibles and they never commit even minor sins, since all people are commissioned to follow their lead, which is incompatible with their being fallible. Moreover, the Quran has described prophets as “mukhlasun”. According to the Quran, 38:82-83, there is no way for the Satan to tempt and deceive “mukhlasun”. Thus istighfar in the case of prophets (a) should be explained in different ways.

* The prophets’ missions had effects that seemed wrong to many people. Thus they asked God to cover those effects from people. For example, people of [[Mecca]] thought that the Prophet (s) was an aggressive person who overlooked the traditions. However, after the [[Hudaybiyya peace treaty]] and the [[conquest of Mecca]], they learned the truth. And about the Prophet [[Musa (a)]], the Quran, 26:14 says: “they hold a sin against me”, although it was not a sin for Musa (a) to kill the man from Copts, since it counted as a case of helping an oppressed person. However, it was considered by people as a sin, and thus Musa (a) asked God to forgive him, in the sense of covering the deed from people so that they no longer consider him as sinful. Likewise, according to the Quran, 7:129, “they [that is, [[Israelites]]] replied: 'we were hurt before you came to us, and after you came to us.'” Thus they blamed Musa (a) for their troubles.

These interpretations of istighfar by prophets also apply to that by [[Imams (a)]] and other [[Infallibles (a)]], since they also asked for God’s forgiveness, such as [[Imam ‘Ali (a)]] in the [[Supplication of Kumayl]] and [[Imam Sajjad (a)]] in the [[Supplication of Abu Hamza Thumali]].

===Ibrahim (a)’s istighfar for Azar===

After prohibiting istighfar for polytheists, the Quran refers to why the prophet [[Ibrahim (a)]] asked God to forgive [[Azar]]; according to the verse (9:114), he asked God for Azar’s forgiveness only when he still hoped that Azar would believe in God; thus he promised him to asked for his forgiveness. However, when he realized that Azar was an enemy of God, he dissociated himself from him.