What Does Istighfar Mean?

Istighfar means asking Allah for forgiveness: to conceal the sin, pardon it, and protect the servant from its punishment. When you say, "I seek Allah's forgiveness," you are asking Him to forgive you, not declaring that you have become free of sins.

Is Seeking Forgiveness With the Tongue Enough?

Seeking forgiveness and repentance are closely connected, but merely asking for forgiveness with the tongue is not repentance that fulfills all its conditions. Repenting from a sin requires stopping it, regretting having committed it, and sincerely resolving not to return to it. If another person's rights are involved, those rights must be restored or their pardon sought, as appropriate to the kind of right involved. Someone who has taken another person's money does not discharge that obligation merely by repeating words of forgiveness while keeping the money.

Repentance must be sincerely for Allah and take place while it can still be accepted: before the death rattle, meaning before the soul reaches the throat at death, and before the sun rises from the west. Acceptance of repentance before the death rattle is mentioned in at-Tirmidhi (3537), which he described as hasan gharib, and the limit concerning the sun rising from the west is established in Sahih Muslim (2703). A Muslim should not delay repentance, relying on the idea that they will repent at the end of their life.

Someone who struggles against their desires but sometimes falters should neither stop seeking forgiveness nor despair. They should combine asking for forgiveness with working to abandon the sin. They can consult How to Repent to Allah to learn about the conditions of repentance and dealing with other people's rights.

A Quality of the People of Taqwa

{وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ}

Allah says, describing the people of taqwa: "Those who, when they commit an indecency or wrong themselves, remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins - and who forgives sins except Allah? - and do not knowingly persist in what they have done." [Al Imran: 135].

This verse does not describe people who never make mistakes. Rather, it describes their return to Allah when they sin and their refusal to persist in what they have done. It also teaches that forgiveness of sins belongs to Allah alone, so a Muslim asks Him directly and hopes for His mercy.

A Means of Provision and Blessing

Nuh, peace be upon him, said to his people:

{فَقُلْتُ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ غَفَّارًا . يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِدْرَارًا . وَيُمْدِدْكُمْ بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ وَيَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ وَيَجْعَلْ لَكُمْ أَنْهَارًا}

"I said: Seek your Lord's forgiveness; surely He is Ever-Forgiving. He will send abundant rain upon you, supply you with wealth and children, provide you with gardens, and provide you with rivers." [Nuh: 10-12].

He called them to return to Allah and explained the good that would follow. Seeking forgiveness is a means of provision and blessing, but it is not a formula that guarantees a sum of money, marriage, or a child by a deadline a person sets. A Muslim worships their Lord hoping for His forgiveness, pursues permissible practical means, and does not measure the acceptance of their worship by the worldly results they receive.

A Means of Averting Punishment

{وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَأَنْتَ فِيهِمْ وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ مُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَهُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ}

Allah says: "Allah would not punish them while you were among them, nor would Allah punish them while they sought forgiveness." [Al-Anfal: 33].

The verse shows the great importance of seeking forgiveness in averting punishment. It does not mean that someone who seeks forgiveness will never experience illness, poverty, or a trial. It is therefore not correct to assert that every misfortune is a punishment, or that a Muslim's experience of it proves their seeking of forgiveness is insincere.

An Act of Worship Before Dawn

{وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ}

Allah says: "And in the hours before dawn they would seek forgiveness." [Adh-Dhariyat: 18].

{الصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالْقَانِتِينَ وَالْمُنْفِقِينَ وَالْمُسْتَغْفِرِينَ بِالْأَسْحَارِ}

He also says: "The patient, the truthful, the devoutly obedient, those who spend, and those who seek forgiveness in the hours before dawn." [Al Imran: 17].

The time referred to as sahar is the final part of the night before Fajr. Whoever wakes then for prayer or supplication should set aside some time to seek forgiveness.

The Prophet's Frequent Seeking of Forgiveness, Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him

وَاللَّهِ إِنِّي لَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْهِ فِي الْيَوْمِ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّةً

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "By Allah, I seek Allah's forgiveness and turn to Him in repentance more than seventy times a day." Narrated by al-Bukhari (6307).

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ فَإِنِّي أَتُوبُ فِي الْيَوْمِ إِلَيْهِ مِائَةَ مَرَّةٍ

He also said, peace and blessings be upon him: "O people, turn to Allah in repentance, for I turn to Him in repentance one hundred times a day." Narrated by Muslim (2702).

Frequently seeking forgiveness is a Sunnah, not something limited to those who have committed a major sin. One hundred is not an upper limit. Rather, a Muslim follows the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in frequently returning to Allah, while paying attention to what they say.

When Should a Muslim Seek Forgiveness?

A Muslim seeks forgiveness when they sin and does not delay repentance until the end of the day or a particular season. They also seek forgiveness three times after the obligatory prayer, in the hours before dawn, and throughout the day. They maintain Sayyid al-Istighfar as part of Morning Adhkar and Evening Adhkar.

Among the established remembrances when leaving a gathering in which there has been much idle talk is:

سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ، أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ، أَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْكَ

"Glory be to You, O Allah, and all praise is Yours. I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped except You. I seek Your forgiveness and turn to You in repentance."

At-Tirmidhi (3433) narrated it and described it as hasan gharib sahih. This formula is called Kaffarat al-Majlis, the expiation for a gathering. It should not be made a substitute for restoring rights if the conversation involved wronging someone.

If a person is troubled, they may supplicate and seek forgiveness, but they should not attribute a particular number or guaranteed outcome to the Sunnah without evidence. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, did not require the community to combine all these formulas every day.

Common Mistakes in Seeking Forgiveness

It is a mistake to turn seeking forgiveness into words recited while deliberately neglecting repentance, or to circulate a formula or number with a promise of special reward that has not been established. It is also a mistake to stop seeking forgiveness after acts of obedience, to think it is prescribed only after major sins, or to abandon it because of many sins and despair of forgiveness.

A Muslim should strive to understand the formula they say and work to keep their heart attentive. If they become distracted and then notice it, they return to remembrance rather than making their lack of attentiveness a reason to abandon it.