اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
اَعُوْذُبِااللّٰہِ مِنَ الشَّیْطٰنِ الرَّجِيْم
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
*_Today’s Thought for the day is from Surah An-Nahl Ayah 119_*
*ثُمَّ اِنَّ رَبَّكَ لِلَّذِيۡنَ عَمِلُوا السُّوۡۤءَ بِجَهَالَةٍ ثُمَّ تَابُوۡا مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِ ذٰ لِكَ وَاَصۡلَحُوۡۤا ۙ اِنَّ رَبَّكَ مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِهَا لَغَفُوۡرٌ رَّحِيۡمٌ.(119)*
*_Then verily your Lord, to those who do evil in ignorance then repent and mend their ways – verily your Lord, after that, is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.(119)_*
پھر جن لوگوں نے نادانی سے برا کام کیا۔ پھر اس کے بعد توبہ کی اور نیکوکار ہوگئے تو تمہارا پروردگار (ان کو) توبہ کرنے اور نیکوکار ہوجانے کے بعد بخشنے والا اور ان پر رحمت کرنے والا ہے.(119)
Here Allah Subhanahu wa taa’la encourages HIS slaves to repent and calls them to turn to HIM.‼️ While Islam prescribes punishment, it does not slam the door in the face of sinners, should they want to return to society after having realised their guilt. *Indeed, Islam encourages them and opens the way for them to repent and purify themselves*. The encouragement is so emphatic that Allah makes acceptance of repentance, once it is genuine and sincere, a duty which HE SWT in HIS glory imposes on Himself by HIS Own free will. In this, HIS grace is more than anyone can expect.
_The sentence *….”those who do evil out of ignorance”….* means deviation from Divine guidance, whether for a long or short period, as long as it does not continue until one is in the throes of death. The Companions Radi AllahAnhum were unanimous that every sin, whether intentional or unintentional, falls under *jahalah* of the original here; and hence, many have said that so long as a man continues in his sin, he is a *jahil,* until he gives it up._
*_Act of the Day is:_* to understand that We have to remember that Allah — limitless is HE in HIS glory — has no need for HIS servants or their repentance. *When they repent, they benefit only themselves*. It is their lives and the life of the community in which they live that improve and become happy. Hence, the way is open for all of us to return to the true path at any time before our last breath.
–To understand that
“Repentance has its elements:they are – (i) enlightenment of the heart, (ii) detestation of the sin, (iii) a resolve to avoid it in future, (iv) an earnest crying for Allah’s forgiveness.”‼️
*True repentance* which Allah Azzawajal, out of HIS Grace, has bound Himself to accept is the one which is deeply felt by the repenter and which indicates that he or she has undergone a total transformation. *It means that past mistakes are sincerely regretted, and that regret has prompted a total change of attitude when the person concerned still enjoys good health, and still aspires to a brighter future.* _Such repentance is normally accompanied by a genuine desire for self-purification and a resolve to follow a different way of life._
*_May Allah Subhanahu wa taa’la grant us the ability to repent and turn to HIM with sincerity and gain HIS forgiveness and pleasure. Aa’meen Ya’Rabbul Aa’lameen._*
JazaK Allâhu khair!