The third is turning from the nafs (the lower self) to the Ḥaqq (the Real, i.e., God). (Hujwīrī, 354)
Dhu’l-Nūn al-Miṣrī says: Tawba (repentance) is of two kinds: tawbat al-ināba (repentance of return) and tawbat al-isticāba (repentance of response). The tawba of ināba is when a servant repents out of fear of Allah’s punishment; the tawba of isticāba is when a servant repents out of shyness before Allah’s generosity.
Ḥawf (fear) arises from the unveiling of majesty (jalāl). Ḥayāʾ (shame/modesty) arises from the witnessing of beauty (jamāl). Thus, one is burning in the majesty due to the fire of his fear, while the other is shining in the beauty due to the light of his shame. Therefore, one is in the intoxication (sakr) of it, and the other is in the awe (dahsha) of it. The people of ḥayāʾ are in sakr; the people of ḥawf are in ṣaḥw (sobriety). (Hujwīrī, 356-357)
Tawba is the turning from maʿṣiyya (disobedience) to ṭāʿa (obedience), from the nafs to the Ḥaqq. The sinner repents. The sin of the servants is to oppose the command; the fault of the friends (awliyāʾ) is to oppose the divine will. Again, the sin of the servants is to commit sin, while the sin of the friends is to see their own existence. One who turns from error to rightness is called tāʾib (penitent); one who turns from rightness to esvebe (from the right to the more right) is called āyib (possessor of evbe). (Hujwīrī, 474)
Allah the Exalted says: "But whoever does not repent – then those are the wrongdoers." (al-Ḥujurāt 49:11) In this state, the name of wrongdoing is lifted from the one who repents. Tawba is only valid after the recognition (maʿrifa) of the sin. The recognition of sin is to consider three things: at the time of committing the sin, that it causes you to lose the attribute of innocence; the comfort you feel when you succeed in sinning; and your persistence in the sin while under the gaze of the Ḥaqq.
The conditions of tawba consist of three things: remorse, seeking pardon, and abandoning (bad actions). The ḥaqīqa (inner reality) of tawba is also threefold: to see the committed offense as grave, to accuse the nafs during tawba, and to seek pardon from the creatures whose rights have been violated.
Three things constitute the secrets of the realities of tawba: distinguishing between trustworthy actions and delusions, forgetting one’s offense, and repenting even from one’s repentance (never returning to an action that would require repentance, and even repenting for having repented, as if one had never sinned). For the tāʾib (penitent) is entirely included in Allah’s statement: "And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers." (al-Nūr 24:31) Thus, Allah commands even the penitent to repent. The subtleties in the secrets of tawba are three: the first is to look at one’s offense and the event related to it. Thus, when Allah causes him to desist from sin at the very moment of committing it, he understands Allah’s will in this matter.
Thus, Allah leaves His servant before sin for two reasons: first, so that the servant may understand His honor in decree, His kindness in covering (the sin), His forbearance in granting respite when the servant attempts sin, His generosity in accepting the servant’s excuse for sin, and His grace in enabling the servant to recognize the sin.
The second subtlety is that the servant knows it is impossible for a true supporter to wish for an evil that would wipe out all his good deeds and leave none. For in doing so, the supporter would be acting with gratitude on one hand, and on the other, desiring deficiency in the nafs and action, which is impossible.
The third subtlety is this: the servant’s witnessing of ḥikma (wisdoms), as he rises to the meanings of all wisdoms, so that he no longer finds good deeds beautiful nor evil deeds ugly.
The repentance of the common people is from seeing their acts of obedience as excessive. This (error) leads to three things: denying the blessing of having one’s sin covered and being given respite to repent; seeing oneself as having a right over Allah due to one’s good deeds; and istiġnāʾ (self-sufficiency, not seeing one’s need for Allah), which is the very ceberūt (tyranny) and rebellion against Allah.
The repentance of the middle people (awsaṭ) is from belittling disobedience. This is pure audacity and mujādala (contention), consisting only of stubbornness and continued enmity.
The repentance of the elect (khawāṣṣ) is due to wasting time. This leads to deficiency, extinguishes the light of murāqaba (spiritual vigilance), and causes turbidity in the pool of companionship (sohba).
The maqām (spiritual station) of tawba is only completed by repenting from everything other than the Ḥaqq, then seeing the defect in this repentance, and then repenting even from seeing that defect. (Manāzil, 7)
Allah has said: "Return to your Lord!" Ināba (return) is of three kinds: (A person) returns to the Ḥaqq as he returns from his error by seeking pardon; as he returns to Him by making a covenant, so he returns by fulfilling his covenant; and as he returns to Him by responding, so he returns to Him in his state (turning to Him inwardly and outwardly in full orientation).
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Returning to Him by entering the path of rectification is divided into three: abandoning every evil deed one has followed, feeling pain for one’s stumblings, and making up for past losses.
Returning to Him by fulfilling one’s covenant is also threefold: turning from the pleasure of sin to loyalty with ikhlas (sincerity); turning to loyalty by abandoning disdain for the heedless, even while hoping for one’s own nafs, out of fear for them; and turning to loyalty by examining one’s shortcomings in service for the Ḥaqq.
Returning to Him in one’s state is also threefold: despairing of one’s own deeds; seeing oneself as compelled (not fully free) in performing actions; and awaiting the flashes of His grace. (Manāzil, 8)
Tawba is a meaning that arises from the combination and order of three things: knowledge, ḥāl (spiritual state), and action. First comes knowledge, then ḥāl, then action. The first necessitates the second, and the second the third; this is the unchanging sunnah of Allah in His dominion and kingdom.
Knowledge is to know the grave harm of sin, that it is a veil between the servant and what he loves. When this is known with certainty in the heart, one feels pain for losing what one loves. For the heart that loses its beloved is pitied. If the fault is his own, the pain increases. The pain felt for the act that caused the loss of the beloved is called nadāma (remorse).
When this pain fills the heart, a new state arises. This is called ḥāl (state), which is to will and intend an act related to the past, present, and future. Its relation to the present is to immediately abandon the fault committed. Its relation to the future is to resolve never to commit again the evil that separated him from his beloved. Its relation to the past is to try to make up for what was missed, if possible.
Thus, knowledge, remorse, and resolve are three concepts that lead one to abandon things related to the present and future and to make up for the past, following one another. All of these together are called tawba. Often, only remorse is called tawba, with knowledge as its prelude and abandonment as its result. (Iḥyāʾ, IV, 4)
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Tawba is abandoning sin. Abandonment is only possible after recognition. If tawba is obligatory, it is only attained through what is obligatory. Thus, recognizing sins is also obligatory. Sin, whether by commission or omission, is anything contrary to Allah’s command. (Iḥyāʾ, IV, 20)
Maʿāṣī (sins): A person must scrutinize his seven organs every morning. Then he must examine his whole body. Has it been soiled by sins? If so, he must abandon them. Did he commit sin yesterday? Then he must remove it by abandoning or regretting it. (Iḥyāʾ, 167)
O seeker! You must worship. May Allah grant you success in tawba! This is for two reasons: First, you must repent to be enabled for obedience. Surely, the evil of sins brings deprivation, followed by excess. Sins prevent one from walking in obedience to Allah and serving Him. The weight of sins hinders one from striving for good and being eager for acts of obedience. Persisting in sins darkens the heart. Thus, you find your heart in darkness and kaswa (hardness). There is no salvation, purity, delight, or sweetness there. If Allah does not show mercy, the owner of such a heart may fall into kufr (disbelief). How strange! How can one succeed in obedience in such a wretched and hardened state? How can one claim to serve while persisting in disobedience and wrongdoing? How can one approach munājāt (intimate supplication) while immersed in every disgrace and filth?
Second, you must repent for your worship to be accepted. Surely, the Lord of the religion does not accept a gift. Thus, repenting from maʿṣiyya and gaining the riḍā (contentment) of those wronged is obligatory. Most intended acts of worship are supererogatory. If you have failed to fulfill any command of the religion, how can your (supererogatory) gift be accepted? Therefore, while persisting in forbidden acts, how can you abandon lawful and permitted acts? Allah forbid! How can you supplicate to Him or praise Him while He is angry with you? This is the clear state of those who persist in maʿṣiyya and rebellion... Tawba is one of the states of the qalb (the heart). According to the scholars, tawba is to purify the heart from sin. Our shaykh (Abū ʿAlī Fārmadī?) defines tawba as: Tawba is to abandon the desire to commit past sins, out of veneration for Allah and fear of His wrath, to such a degree that no trace of the former desire remains.
Thus, it must have four conditions. The first is to abandon the desire for sin. This means that the abandonment is firmly established in the heart and one resolves never to return to that sin. If one still feels the inclination or is undecided, then it is inevitable that one will occasionally commit the sin, and thus cannot be considered to have truly repented.
Second, one must repent from a sin similar to one previously committed. For if one had never committed such a sin before, one would not be a tāʾib (penitent), but a muttaqī (God-fearing). Do you not see that the view that the Prophet was protected from kufr is sound, but the view that he repented from kufr is not? Thus, the Prophet never committed kufr. As for ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, since he was previously in kufr, it is correct to say he repented from kufr.
Third, the thing previously done must be similar in degree and rank, not merely in form, to the sin one is abandoning. For example, an old man who previously committed adultery or highway robbery, when he wishes to repent, repentance is valid for him, for he has no other recourse. The door of repentance is not closed to him, but he may not have the power to abandon the desire for adultery or robbery. He may not be able to commit them now, but he also cannot abandon the desire for them. Thus, he cannot be described as one who abandons and avoids the act, for he is simply incapable. However, he does have the power to commit similar acts such as lying, slander, or backbiting. Though each sin differs in degree, all are maʿṣiyya. These subsidiary sins are all of the same degree, below the degree of bidʿa (innovation), which is below that of kufr. Therefore, it is valid for such a person to repent from adultery, robbery, and other sins he cannot now commit in form.
The fourth is to abandon the desire for sin not for worldly motives, fear of people, desire for praise, attainment of position, weakness of the nafs, or poverty, but solely out of veneration for Allah, fear of His anger and the burning of His punishment. (Minhāj, 9)
Tawba has three preliminaries: first, to recall the utmost ugliness of sins; second, to recall that Allah’s punishment and anger at sin are unbearably painful; third, to recall one’s weakness and lack of ḥayāʾ (shame). If one cannot bear the heat of the sun, the slap of a policeman, or the bite of an ant, how will one bear the heat of Hellfire, the lashes of the zabāniya (angels of punishment), the bites of snakes, or the stings of scorpions?! (Minhāj, 10)
Linguistically, tawba means to return. Tāba fulānun min kadhā (So-and-so repented from such-and-such) means he returned from that thing. In the sharʿī (legal/religious) sense, tawba is to turn from blameworthy acts to praiseworthy acts; to know that sins and maʿṣiyya are deadly and distance one from Allah and His Paradise; and to abandon them to draw near to Allah and His Paradise. (Ghunya, I, 116)
Tawba has three conditions: first, to feel remorse for sins committed in opposition to the religion. The Prophet said, "Tawba is remorse," expressing this. The sign of true remorse is tenderness of the heart and abundant tears.
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Second, to abandon all faults at all times and in all states.
Third, to resolve and decide never to return to any sin or fault, not even to anything similar. This is the meaning of the answer given by Abū Bakr al-Wāsiṭī when asked about tawbat al-naṣūḥ (sincere repentance): that no trace or effect of the sin, whether hidden or manifest, remains in its possessor. One who possesses tawbat al-naṣūḥ does not care how he spends his days and nights. Remorse gives rise to resolve and orientation. Resolve is never to return to the sins committed. For the penitent, through remorse, attains knowledge that sins are a veil between him and his Lord, and between love of the world and a sound afterlife. (Ghunya, I, 122)
Tawba is of two kinds: one concerns the rights of others, ...the second concerns matters between you and Allah. This is realized by seeking istiġfār (forgiveness) with the tongue, feeling remorse in the heart, and resolving never to commit the sin again.
One who repents from wrongdoing should strive with kemāl (perfection) to increase his good deeds, so that when his rewards are taken and placed on the scale of those he wronged on the Day of Judgment, enough remains for himself! Let him increase his good deeds according to the amount of his wrongdoing! Otherwise, he will be ruined by the sins of others. Even if his life is long in wrongdoing, this will cause him to spend his whole life in good deeds. But how can this be? Death is ever watchful. Sometimes death comes before he attains what he hoped for.
It is said: Sincerity in action, correction of intention, and the lawfulness of one’s food... One must strive for these and exert great effort. One should write down all these and the names of those wronged, travel to their towns and cities to seek them out and reconcile, and fulfill their rights. If they cannot be found, their rights should be given to their heirs.
Such a person fears Allah’s punishment and hopes for His mercy. He repents from everything his Lord dislikes, strives to obey Him with all his being, and seeks His riḍā (contentment). If death overtakes him in this state, the reward is with Allah. (Ghunya, I, 127-128)
You can recognize the tawba of the penitent by four things: first, guarding his tongue from idle talk, backbiting, gossip, and lying;
second, finding no envy or enmity in his heart toward anyone;
third, separating from companions who would distract him from his purpose and weaken his resolve, which can only be achieved by striving for constant presence (mushāhada). The servant’s inclination toward tawba increases as a result of this striving, and his feelings that strengthen his ḥawf (fear) and rajāʾ (hope) multiply. At this point, the knot of persistence in ugly deeds is untied from his heart. He restrains his nafs from forbidden acts, taking its reins and distancing it from following desires. Thus, he distances himself from error in his present state and sharpens his resolve never to return to such errors in the future.
Fourth, being prepared for death by seeking forgiveness for past sins and striving in obedience to his Lord. (Ghunya, I, 140)
Abū ʿAlī al-Daqqāq said: Tawba is threefold: its beginning is tawba, its middle is ināba, and its end is evbe. Tawba is the beginning, ināba is the intermediary, and evbe is the end. One who repents out of fear of punishment is the possessor of tawba; one who repents out of hope for reward or fear of reckoning is the possessor of ināba; one who repents not for reward or fear of punishment, but simply to fulfill the command, is the possessor of evbe. (Ghunya, I, 141)
Maqāmāt (spiritual stations) are the servant’s spiritual standing before Allah in acts of worship. As Allah says: "And there is not one of us but has a known station." (al-Ṣāffāt 37:164) The first is intibāh (awakening), which is to shake off heedlessness. Then comes tawba, which is to return to Allah after much istiġfār (seeking forgiveness) and nadāma (remorse) after falling into error. After tawba comes ināba, which is to return from heedlessness to dhikr (remembrance). It is said: Tawba is fear, ināba is hope and longing. It is also said: Tawba is outward, ināba is inward... (Adāb, 21)
Tawba is the foundation and support of all stations, the key to every state. It is the first station and is like the ground for a building. Without ground, there is no building. Without tawba, there is no state or station.
Ināba is to return from Allah to Allah, not from anything else. One who returns from something else to Allah has lost one of the two characteristics of ināba. The munīb (possessor of ināba) is always upon the truth, having no place to turn except from Allah to Allah. Then he returns even from this return, becoming absorbed in the ocean of the Divine Essence in a state of jamʿ (gathering), seeing his deficiencies and opposition to his nafs in the presence of the Ḥaqq. He remains as a mere shadow or phantom, with no attribute left. This state arises after mujāhada (spiritual struggle), riʿāya (observance), and mujādala (contention).
The reality of sabr (patient endurance) is the tranquility of the nafs; its tranquility is through the purification of the nafs; and the purification of the nafs is achieved through tawba. When the nafs is purified by tawbat al-naṣūḥ (sincere repentance), all its natural filth is removed. The lack of sabr is due to the filth within the nafs, which causes it to turn away from what is right and to rebel.
Tawbat al-naṣūḥ softens the nafs and removes it from its filthy nature, leading it to gentleness. For the nafs is clarified through muḥāsaba (self-examination) and murāqaba (spiritual vigilance), and its burning fire is extinguished by following desires. Again, the nafs, in the state of itmiʾnān (tranquility), reaches the station of riḍā (contentment) and becomes content with the flow of destiny.
When Ḥasan Maghāzilī was asked what tawba is, he said: "Are you asking about the tawba of ināba or the tawba of isticāba?" When the questioner asked, "What is the tawba of ināba?" he replied, "It is to fear Allah by sensing the greatness of His power over you." When asked, "What is the tawba of isticāba?" he replied, "It is to feel shame before Allah by sensing His nearness to you in your heart." When the tawba of isticāba is realized in a servant, he seeks forgiveness for everything that distracts him from Allah while praying. This tawba is necessary for the inner selves of the people of proximity (ahl al-qurb). (ʿAwārif, 283)
When (Abū Yaʿqūb) al-Sūsī was asked what tawba is, he said: Tawba is ...