It is reported that Talq b. Habîb – Allâh have mercy on him – said, “The right of Allâh is too great and heavy for the creation to fulfill and the blessings of Allâh are too many to enumerate, but you should remain repentant, morning and evening.” [Ibn Abî Al-Dunyâ, Al-Tawbah article 62.]
The prophet (sallalahu `alayhi wa sallam) said : "Glad tidings to those who find a lot of seeking forgiveness in the record of their deeds"
[Ref: Sunan Ibn Majah 3818, Hasan]
WILL ALLAH FORGIVE OUR SINS? EVEN IF THEY ARE TOO MANY?
From Ibn Abbas -Radhi Allaahu anhu- said who said that the Messenger of Allaah -sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam- said: that Allaah Azza wa Jal said:
من علم أني ذو قدرة على مغفرة الذنوب غفرت له و لا أبالي ما لم يشرك بي شيئا
‘Whoever knows that I have the capability to forgive sins, then I will forgive him and not care, as long as he did not associate anything with Me.’
[Collected by Tabrani and Albaani declared it to be Hasan in Saheeh al-Jamia no. 4330]
Ibn Mas'ud narrated that the Prophet said:
“Indeed, Allah is more happy with the repentance of His slave than a man who stops in a barren, desolate land; with him he has his riding animal. He then goes to sleep. When he wakes up, [he realizes that] his mount is gone. He searches for it until he is on the verge of dying. He then says, ‘I will return to the place wherein I lost it, and I will die there.’ He went to that place, and he was then overcome by sleep. When he woke up, his mount was [standing] right beside his head: on it was his food, his drink, his provisions, and the things he neded. Allah is more happy with the repentance of his believing slave than the aforementioned man when he finds his mount and his provisions.”
[Ref: al-Bukhaari: 6308 ; Muslim: 2744]
Anas (RA) said that he heard the Prophet (peace be upon him) say: “ALLAH the Exalted said: “O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me, and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam were you to come to me with sins nearly as great as the earth, and were you then to face me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as it (earth).’
[Ref: Hadith e Qudsi recorded in Al-Tirmidhi, Book 45, Hadith number 3540]
“and My Mercy embraces all things” [al-A’raaf 7:156]
{Say: O My slaves (humankind) who have transgressed against themselves! Despair not of the mercy of Allah Who forgives all sins. Lo! He is the Forgiving, the Merciful} (Az-Zumar 39:53)
The Prophet said, "When Allah created the creatures, He wrote in the Book, which is with Him over His Throne: "Verily, My Mercy prevailed over My Wrath." (Al-Bukhari)
In Saheeh Muslim it is narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Allaah has one hundred parts of mercy, of which He sent down one between the jinn, mankind, the animals and the insects, by means of which they are compassionate and merciful to one another, and by means of which wild animals are kind to their offspring. And Allaah has kept back ninety-nine parts of mercy with which to be merciful to His slaves of the Day of Resurrection.” [Muslim, al-Tawbah, 6908.]
It was narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab said: “Some prisoners were brought to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and there was a woman among the prisoners who was searching (for her child). When she found her child she embraced him and put him to her breast. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to us, ‘Do you think that this woman would throw her child in the fire?’ We said, ‘No, by Allaah, not if she is able not to.’ The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, ‘Allaah is more merciful to His slaves than this woman is to her child.’” [Agreed upon. Al-Bukhaari, 5653; Muslim, 6912.]
It is reported that a man came to ʿAlī – Allāh be pleased with him – and asked, "What do you think about a man who committed a sin?" He replied, "He must seek Allāh’s forgiveness and repent to Him." [The man] said, "He did that, but then sinned again?" [ʿAlī] said, "He must seek Allāh’s forgiveness and repent to Him." The man again said, "He did that, but returned to sin". [ʿAlī] said, "He must seek Allāh’s forgiveness and repent to Him." The man said for the fourth time, "He did, but then sinned again." ʿAlī then said, "Until when?" Then he said, "He must seek Allāh’s forgiveness and repent to Him; and not give up until it is Shayṭān who is defeated [overcome]."
[Ref: Hunād b. Al-Sarī, Kitāb Al-Zuhd article 910]
`Ataa reported from Mu`aadh bin Jabl that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: “(O people!) Keep your duty to Allaah and fear him as much as you can. And remember Allaah عز وجل near every stone and tree (i.e. remember Allaah much). And if you committed a sin, follow it up with repentance – a secret (mistake to be repented) secretly; and an open (mistake to be repented) publicly.”
[Reported by Imaam Ahmad in “al-Zuhd” (26) and Tabaraanee in “al-Mu`jam al-Kabeer” (20/159/331). Shaikh al-Albaanee said in al-Saheehah (3320): “the narrators of this narration are reliable, they are the narrators of al-Bukhaaree and Muslim; except for Shareek (one of the narrators) who is weak, and the chain is Mursal (broken) as `Ataa did not meet Mu`aadh.” This Hadeeth also has supporting chain which takes it to the level of “Hasan li ghairihee”, see al-Silsilah (1475) ]
It is narrated on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas:
When this verse:" Whether you disclose that which is in your mind or conceal it, Allah will call you to account according to it" (ii 284), there entered in their (sahaabas) minds something (of that fear) such as had never entered their hearts (before). The Apostle (may peace be upon him) observed: Say: We have heard and obeyed and submitted ourselves. He (the reporter) said: Allah instilled faith in their hearts and He revealed this verse:" Allah burdens not a soul beyond its capacity. It gets every good that it earns and it suffers every ill that it earns. Our Lord, call us not to account if we forget or make a mistake. He the (Lord) said: I indeed did it (i.e accepted this supplication). Our Lord! do not lay on us a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us. He (our Lord) said: I indeed did it. And pardon us, have mercy on us. Thou art our Protector" (ii. 286). He said: I indeed did it.
[Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 229]
Allaah سبحانه و تعالى says: {Except those who repent and believe (in Islaamic Monotheism), and do righteous deeds; for those, Allaah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allaah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. And whosoever repents and does righteous good deeds; then verily, he repents towards Allaahwith true repentance.} [Surah al-Furqaan (25): 70-71]
Abu Sirma reported: When death approached Abu-Ayyub Ansari, he said: I was concealing something from you. I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, say, “If you did not commit sins, Allah would create people who would sin and He would forgive them.”
[Sahih Muslim, Book 37, Number 6620]
Ibn Abbas reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Whoever continuously seeks Allah’s forgiveness, then Allah will make a way out for him from every hardship, from every anxiety, and will provide him with sustenance from where he does not expect.”
[Sunan Abu Dawud, Book of Prayer, Number 1518, Hasan fil Matan]
Abu Musa reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Verily, Allah the Exalted stretches out His Hand by night for those who repent until the coming of the day, and He stretches out His Hand by day for those who repent until the coming of the night; this is until the sun rises from the west.”
[Sahih Muslim, Book 37, Number 6644]
He (s.a.w) said " To feel remorse (for one's evil act) is (a form of) repentance
[Ref: Collected by Ibn Mājah in his Sunan (no. 4234) and Aḥmad in his Musnad (no. 3597) on the authority of ‘Abd Allah ibn Mas’ūd. It has been authenticated by al-Albānī in Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Mājah (3/4328)]
A quick summary - 10 pointers on how to have our sins forgiven
Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah (rahimahullaah) stated as occurs in Majmu' al-Fatawa (7/487-501):
دلت نصوص الكتاب والسنة على أن عقوبة الذنوب تزول عن العبد بنحو عشرة أسباب : أحدها : التوبة ، وهذا متفق عليه بين المسلمين ، السبب الثاني : الاستغفــار ، السبب الثالث : الحسنات الماحية السبب الرابع : الدافـع للعقاب ، دعاء المؤمنين للمؤمن مثل صلاتهم على جنازته ، السبب الخامس : ما يعمل للميت من أعمال البر ، كالصدقة ونحوها ، السبب السادس : شفاعـة النبي (صلى الله عليه وسلم) وغيره في أهل الذنـوب يوم القيامة ، السبب السابع : المصائب التي يكفر الله بها الخطايا في الدنيا ، السبب الثامن : ما يحصل في القبر من الفتنة والضغطة والروعة ، السبب التاسع : أهوال يوم القيامة وكربها وشدائدها ، السبب العاشر : رحمة الله وعفوه ومغفرته بلا سبب من العباد.................................
The texts of the Book and the Sunnah have indicated that the punishment (due) for sins can be removed from the servant by around ten causes.
The first: Repentance, and this is agreed upon amongst the Muslims.
The second cause: Seeking forgiveness.
The third cause: Good deeds which wipe out (evil deeds).
The fourth cause: That which repels punishment, the supplication of the believers for a believer, such as praying over his funeral.
The fifth cause: What is done for the dead of righteous deeds such as charity and its likes.
The sixth cause: The intercession of the Prophet (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) and others for the sinners on the Day of Judgement.
The seventh cause: Calamities by which Allaah expiates sins in the life of this world.
The eighth cause: What occurs in the grave of tribulation, compression and fear.
The ninth cause: The terrors of the Day of Judgement and the severity of its hardships.
The tenth: The mercy of Allaah, His pardon and forgiveness without any reason (necessitating that) from the servant. Comment
Note that three affairs come from a servant himself (repentance, seeking forgiveness, good deeds). Three affairs come from other than the servant (supplication, deeds of others which reach the dead and intercession). And three affairs are from the calamities (of life, the barzakh and the day of judgement) that expiate the sins. And after these nine matters, there is left but the pure mercy of Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic. In this is a refutation of the Kharijites who hold a person who dies with major sins (not having repented) is a disbeliever in the Fire forever, since expiation of sins can take place through other than repentance and seeking forgiveness, and exhausting those other means (which come from other than the servant himself), there still remains the pure mercy of Allaah, the Exalted. And this in itself indicates the great mercy of Allaah, the Sublime and Exalted in that He did not restrict and limit the causes of forgiveness to the servant himself.
A servant [of Allâh's] committed a sin and said: O Allâh, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them. Then he sinned again and said: O Lord, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them. Then he sinned again and said: O Lord, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for sins. Do what you wish, for I have forgiven you. [Hadîth Qudsi]
O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great at it. [ [Ref: Hadith e Qudsi recorded in Al-Tirmidhi, Book 45, Hadith number 3540]
