al-Tawba al-Tawba qabl al-Hasarat
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al-Tawba al-Tawba qabl al-Hasarat (Repentance, Repentance Before Regrets) is an Islamic devotional treatise on repentance by Azhari Ahmad Mahmoud. Written as an exhortation to Muslims, the work addresses the spiritual necessity of immediate repentance, warns against procrastination, and outlines the conditions, virtues, and practical steps required to attain sincere repentance.
Content and Structure
The treatise is organized into thematic sections structured around Quranic verses, prophetic traditions, and sayings of early Muslim figures:
- The Reality and Necessity of Repentance (Haqiqat al-Tawba wa-Daruratuha): Defines repentance as turning away from sin, abandoning wrongdoing, and feeling remorse for past misdeeds. Drawing on definitions from Ibn al-Qayyim and al-Qurtubi, the author stresses that repentance is an enduring obligation for every believer, referencing Umar ibn al-Khattab and al-Hasan al-Basri regarding the necessity of regular self-reckoning.
- The Open Gate of Repentance (Bab al-Tawba Maftuh): Emphasizes that God's mercy encompasses all transgressions and that no sinner should despair. Citing Ibn Abbas and Ibn Taymiyya, it underscores that the opportunity to repent remains accessible until the soul reaches the throat at death or until the sun rises from the west.
- Procrastination in Repentance (al-Taswif fi al-Tawba): Warns against postponing repentance through prolonged hopes (tul al-amal) and reliance on youthful vigor or good health. It includes warnings from Yahya ibn Mu'adh and Abu Bakr al-Wasiti on how sudden death catches those who defer their return to God.
- Conditions of Repentance (Shurut al-Tawba): Enumerates seven key conditions for valid repentance: sincere devotion to God (al-ikhlas), immediate abandonment of the sin (al-iqla'), remorse over past actions (al-nadam), firm resolve never to return to the sin (al-'azm 'ala 'adam al-'awda), non-persistence in disobedience ('adam al-israr), consistent adherence to righteous deeds (mulazamat al-'amal al-salih), and repenting within the acceptable timeframe before death arrives.
- Sincere Repentance (al-Tawba al-Nasuh): Analyzes the linguistic and spiritual dimensions of sincere repentance, compiling explanations from Companions and successors including Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab, Qatada ibn Di'ama, Mujahid ibn Jabr, Muhammad ibn Ka'b al-Qurazi, Shaqiq al-Balkhi, and Abu Bakr al-Daqqaq.
- Virtues of Repentance (Fada'il al-Tawba): Discusses the spiritual benefits of repentance, including God's joy over the penitent, the expiation of sins, attaining true success (falah), the descent of material and spiritual blessings, gaining God's love, and defeating Satan's stratagems.
- Signs of the Penitent's Sincerity ('Alamat Sidq al-Ta'ib): Identifies indicators of genuine repentance, such as forsaking the sin, persistent remorse, improved conduct compared to the pre-repentance state, determination to make up for neglected acts of worship, cultivating love for God, His Messenger, and the believers, and constant remembrance of death.
- The Path to Repentance (al-Tariq ila al-Tawba): Offers practical guidelines to support the penitent, including spiritual striving against the lower self (mujahadat al-nafs), shortening worldly hopes, frequent reflection on mortality, prompt self-accounting, avoiding environments associated with sin, abandoning corrupt companionship in favor of righteous company, and engaging in persistent supplication.
The book concludes with a selected compilation of morning and evening prophetic invocations (adhkar al-sabah wa-l-masa'), including the Master Supplication for Forgiveness (Sayyid al-Istighfar).
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