The literal meaning of Istigfar or seeking virtue of asking for forgiveness is to ask for forgiveness from Allah Almighty and forgiveness means to avoid the evil of sins. Istigfar is of great importance and virtue in Islam. 

There are many verses in the Quran that tell about forgiveness. Some verses command about it, some about its demand, and some describe its definition. 

Sin is, in fact, the most serious and deadliest disease. Disobedience to Allah Almighty and sin is that which causes rust in the heart of man. The heart becomes black. And the best remedy for this is to repent and seek forgiveness from Allah Almighty. 

And it is as clear as day that man is prone to error. Making mistakes and sinning is part of his nature. But the best sinner is the one who sheds tears of remorse after his sins. And he should turn to Allah for what he has done and virtue of asking for forgiveness and resolve not to commit any sin in the future. Although, today we are drowning in a sea of ​​sins. We are disobeying Allah Almighty step by step. Our days and nights are full of sins. Trapped in the snare of the self and Shaitan, we are committing rebellion against our Merciful and Compassionate Lord. The pleasures of this world have kept us from the Hereafter.

Meaning of Istigfar: 

Fear of Allah Almighty, thought of the Hereafter and the feeling of presence in the Divine Court are disappearing completely. The result of which is in front of us. Disasters and calamities befell us because of our many sins. However, as mentioned earlier, no human being on earth is infallible except the prophets. Addressing every human being can lead to mistakes and sins. But the best sinner is the one who is ashamed of his mistake. Numerous verses of the Qur’an and hundreds of Hadiths explain the importance and virtue of repentance and asking virtue of asking for forgiveness.

Don’t let the servant be disappointed and upset after committing the sin. Rather, it has been clearly declared in the Holy Quran for the sinners that Do not despair of God’s mercy. Thus in Surah Al-Baqarah, there is good news for those who repent. 

Verily, Allah loves those who repent and He loves those who turn away from filth. Thus in Surah Al-Muzammil Allah commanded the believers about this and to ask the forgiveness of Allah, surely He is the Forgiving, the Merciful. 

Blessings of repentance :

If a person sincerely repents and confesses his sins before Allah Almighty, then his goodness and blessings are bestowed on him in both worlds. In a blessed hadith, the Holy Prophet said: 

“Whoever seeks forgiveness, Allah will make for his ease in every distress and distant from every sorrow. And We will provide  Rizq (food) for him from a place which he never imagined”. 

The Prophet said in another place: “On the Day of Resurrection, there is good news for the person who finds abundance virtue of asking for forgiveness in his book of deeds”. 

The act virtue of asking for forgiveness is very dear to Allah Almighty.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Allah stretches out His hand at night so that the sinner of the day may repent. Until the sun rises from its setting (That is, the Day of Judgment will come)”.

The Holy Prophet also drew the Ummah towards repentance and the virtue of asking for forgiveness through his blessed deeds  

He said in a hadith: “O people, repent before Allah. Indeed, I also repent a hundred times a day”. 

What is repentance?

In fact, the combination of the three things is called repentance:

1. one is shame and remorse from the heart for the sin that is committed.
2. The second is to forsake the sin immediately. 
3. The third is to be determined not to sin again.

When these three things are completed, repentance comes to completion. And the effects of goodness and blessings are formed in human life.

Repentance and Asking for Forgiveness are The Best Prayer

It is narrated from Hazrat Shaddad bin Aws that the Holy Prophet said: “O Allah, You are my Lord, there is no Master but You. You created me, I am Thy servant, and as far as I am able I will keep my promise to you I seek refuge in Thee from the evil of my deeds and character. I confess that Thou hast blessed me with blessings And I confess that I disobeyed and sinned O Lord and Creator of the universe, forgive me and forgive my sins There is no one who forgives sins except You”

The servant who sincerely prays to Allah in some part of the day with sincerity of heart and if death comes to him before day and night has begun, he will surely go to Paradise.

The way to atone for sins :

This quality of repentance leads a person to the highest state of success. This removes the black spot of the heart It is through this repentance that the most sinful and despairing people reach their destination. A number of great sinners came to the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) and you have relieved them of their despair, encouraged them, and given them glad tidings. 

Also Read: The reward of Alhamdulillah and its importance in English

Once a person came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allaah, I have committed so many sins in my life that these sins should be distributed among all the people of the world Then everyone will go to hell. O Messenger of Allah, is there any way to atone for these sins? He (peace be upon him) urged him to renew his faith and turn to Allah. 

There are such incidents in the hadiths that hearts full of sins became bright lamps. And they will have the good fortune to show the world the right path. 

The black spot of evil deeds:

It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurayrah that the Holy Prophet said:

“When a servant sins, a black spot appears on his heart Then if he turns away from this sin and asks for forgiveness, then this black spot disappears . But if he adds to this sin, the black spot increases . It even covers his whole heart”. 

The heart plays a vital role in shaping and perverting the human character. If the heart is pure and full of fear of God, then the character becomes the bearer of good deeds. And if the heart itself is devoid of the fear of Allah and devoid of piety, then the character becomes tainted. 

That is why the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: There is a lump of flesh in a human being, if it is right then the whole body is right but if it is bad then the whole body is bad. People, remember this piece of meat is the heart.

Abstract:

The important thing to understand is that you have already stated the three conditions of repentance :

1)Man should shame from the heart for sin. 

2)And let him repent for what he has done.

3)Be determined not to commit this sin again. 

Repentance will be incomplete even if it is less than one of these things. And secondly, these are the conditions when sin is related between the servant and the Lord But if that sin is related to a human being, then the fourth condition is that the right be returned to the rightful owner. May Allah Almighty grant us the ability to repent and seek forgiveness often. AMEEN SUM AMEEN