1. Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims
  2. Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims

Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims

92 Questions

If someone committed one of the major sins knowingly time after time but then stops it and repents sincerely and promises God not to do it again, will he be forgiven?
Abbas Di Palma

as salam alaikum

Indeed Allah is the Doer of whatever He wills (11:107). At the same time He has taken upon Himself mercy (6:12). If repentance is done sincerely and with remorse, and the promise to God not to sin again is accompanied with true resolution, Allah is the All-Forgiver.

However if some duty has been missed (like prayer or fasting) or if the rights of some people has been violated (like in the case of stealing or backbiting), the person should also make-up for those errors and/or adjust what has been violated.

With prayers for your success.
Is there any way of knowing if a person has been forgiven by Allah, and if not then why so? Is there any sin that He doesn't forgive?
Sayed Mohammad Saleh Qazwini

Allah has promised to forgive all sins with the exception of associating a partner with Him (shirk). The only condition for a sin to be forgiven is sincerity. If a person is sincere in their repentance, meaning that they do not go back to the same sin, then that is a sign that Allah has forgiven them. Allah knows best. 
How should I gain sincerity in asking forgiveness from God?
Abbas Di Palma

as salam alaikum

sincerity stems from the heart and it is not something conventional that can be obtained by merely verbal expressions or symbolic acts. The servants should first look at the greatness of Allah, the bounties he has received from Him, and the gravity of his sins. Then he should see where he stands in front of Him and where he is aiming vis-á-vis His will.  So he will feel remorseful for his past errors and he will intend to rectify himself to please Allah.

There is no specific actions to be performed to gain sincerity in asking forgiveness from Allah, rather actions would follow the awareness of the heart and the penitent soul who realized his mistakes and to Who he has disobeyed.

With prayers for your success.
Does any spiritual leader in Islam have the right to tell his followers that he has forgiven all their sins?
Amina Inloes

A similar question has been answered here, but I'm sure there is no harm if others want to add more answers! https://www.al-islam.org/ask/can-any-spiritual-leader-claim-that-he-has-the-authority-to-forgive-the-sins-of-a-person

It seems as if you may have a specific spiritual leader in mind. Anyway, I don't know who it is, but no, they don't have the authority to forgive even one sin of a person let alone all of their sins. It sounds like they are playing psychological games or perhaps they are genuinely confused. Sometimes people who go heavily into mysticism become a little deluded or psychologically unbalanced and believe things about themself or their spiritual capabilities that are not true, this is not to say it is bad to go into mysticism and 'irfan but just that there are some dangers associated with it that it is good to be on the lookout for with respect to one's self and those one looks to for spiritual guidance. You should not trust wholeheartedly someone who claims to be able to forgive peoples' sins. 

Also as a general rule it is always wise to keep one's eyes open around spiritual guides (as you are doing), there is no harm in taking the good from them and benefitting from whatever good they have to offer, but some people treat their spiritual guides as if they are walking gods and infallibles and no human being, except the prophets and Imams, can live up to that. Unless someone is in a complete state of denial, it often leads to a letdown, abuse, or loss of faith, because they are human beings. Anyway this may be veering off topic, wishing you the best in your spiritual pursuits.