How Much Have We Wronged Ourselves?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

How much have we wronged ourselves? But many don't have a clue or don't care, while many others don't have the drive to ask Allah’s forgiveness and Allah’s mercy.

Heedlessness towards sins is the cause of one's permanent ruin.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,

When a true believer falls in sin, a black dot appears on his heart. If, after that, he repents and seeks forgiveness from Allah, this dot disappears. If he does not repent, this dot keeps on increasing, so much so that it covers his whole heart.

In the Qur'an, the name given to this dot is 'rayn', as in كَلَّا ۖ بَلْ ۜ رَانَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ ﴿١٤ that is, their evil deeds have rusted their hearts. [Qur'an Al-Mutaffifin 83:14]

Narrated Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him: "I asked Allah’s Messenger, Allah bless him and grant him peace, to teach me an invocation so that I may invoke Allah with it in my prayer. He told me to say,

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي ظُلْمًا كَثِيرًا، وَلَا يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ. فَاغْفِرْ لِي مَغْفِرَةً مِنْ عِنْدِكَ، وَارْحَمْنِي إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ

Allahumma innee dhalamtu nafsi dhulman katheera
wala yaghfiruz zhunuba illa anta
faghfirlee maghfiratam min ‘indika
warhamni
innaka antal Ghafurur Raheem

O Allah, I have wronged myself abundantly
and no one forgive sins except You
so, forgive me
and have mercy on me
Verily You are Forgiving and Merciful

What is so special about this du'a? First, the one who requested the du'a is the best of all the companions of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, the one who has been promised Paradise, and the one who entertained the request is the the best of Allah's creation, the beloved of Allah. So this du'a was given to the best, by the best. Then, its content--"O Allah, I have wronged myself abundantly..."

If the best of creation, Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the other whose Iman is heavier than the Iman of the entire ummah combined, have wronged themselves and they were so adamant in seeking the forgiveness of Allah and begging for the mercy of Allah, then where do we stand? Why are we then not humbling ourselves by day and night, asking Allah for forgiveness?

You might think to yourself, "I don't remember the last time I ask Allah for forgiveness. Come to think of it, I don't even remember the last time I sinned." What do you tell yourself when these thoughts come to your mind?

You should be grateful that you are still alive and that it is not too late to ask for Allah's forgiveness.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, who necessarily sinless, turned towards Allah in repentance 100 (many) times a day. We have the more reason to do this because each and every one of us fall into sins by day and by night.

Nobody ever does what Allah deserves from them even the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace. One can only draw closer to Allah if one feels that there is something about oneself that one needs to change. If one feels that everything about one is just fine, then it is not possible to draw closer to the Lord because one is under no pressure to do anything.

The point of repentance and asking Allah for forgivenness is to drive one to Allah Most High. The opposite of repentance is self-satisfaction. Self-satisfaction is a tool that Shaytan uses to reduce one's religious practice. The general rule is that if one is not drawing close to Allah Most High, one is most likely getting farther away from Him.

True repentance comes from inculcating a sense of duty to the Lord. This is realized by training the heart to serve Allah, constantly asking at every juncture of one's life, "What does Allah want me to do right now?" and doing it even if one is inclined to do something else.

The point, then, is not to remember one's sins, but to feel repentant over not giving Allah what He deserves.

So, make lots of istighfar and beg Allah for forgiveness by day and by night. Don't feel shy with Allah on this.

Ibn Rajab Al Hanbali said,

It was said to Hasan Al Basri, "Shouldn’t one of us feel shy to ask his Lord to forgive his sin, then do it again, then ask for forgiveness, then do it again?” He said, "The Shaytan wishes that you would have this attitude, so do not tire of asking for forgiveness.

We ask Allah to forgive all our sins and have mercy on us. Ameen. Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam