Obstacles that Prevent YOU from making REPENTANCE

DISREGARDING ONES SINS

From the things that prevent one from making Tawbah (repentance), is paying little concern with the sins one commits, belittling the sins one falls into, thinking one does not have to make repentance from them, considering they carry a light punishment. And this is a sign of one being mislead and astray, and we ask Allah for health and strength.

Anas said: “You indulge in (bad) actions, which are significant to you than a hair while we considered them at the time of the messenger to be great destroying sins.”

[Bukhaari /6492) Musnad of Imam Ahmed 3/ 285 and Aboo Ya’laa 7/212(4207) 1213(4314) Al-Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan 5/454(7208)]

So is it not befitting for the one who has belief in Allah and his messenger to underrate his sins, which he commits, but rather he should consider them to be great and this will enable him to make Tawbah (repentance) and become remorseful over whatever sin he commits.

Al- ‘Awzaa’ee used to say: “the major sins are the sins one commits then consider it to be small/underrates it. And also he used to say, a man persisting upon a sin is sign he considers it to be small sin.”[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/429.]

Ibn ‘Abbaas said: Any sin a person persists upon is a big sin, and no sin a person repents from is not a big sin.[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/428]

Ka’ab said: “The slave commits a small sin and belittles it, feeling no remorse of neither repenting from it. And it becomes something considered great in Allah sight, and the slave can commit a sin and show great remorse for it and repents greatly from it and in Allah sight deems it to be small and by which he forgives him for it.” [Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/428]

Fudayl bin ‘Iyyad said: “Depending on how much one underrates a sin will depend how great it is with Allah. And any sin one deems to be great/a destroying sin, will be deemed in Allah’s sight be a small sin.”[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/428]

REASONS WHY ONE UNDERRATES HIS SINS

– Weak understanding of Allah’s Greatness Power and Lordship.
– Being Heedless of Allah and Punishment.
– Weak Eemaan and lack of Taqwa (consciousness) of Allah.
– Having a sick and corrupt heart.
– Forgetting ones sins and lack of Tawbah (repentance).

As’ sari said: “True Tawbah (repentance), is not to forget your sins. “[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/428]

One of the ways the lead to destruction is that one forgets his sins. Bilaal ibn Sa’eed said: “Don’t look at any sin as being insignificant, rather, Look at the greatness of the one you disobeyed.” [Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/430]

And this is the difference between a true believer and a weak sinner. “The true believer looks at his sins, as though they were mountain about to fall on top of him. But the weak inner looks at his sins as though they were a fly on his nose, and he just waves them off with his hand.”[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/411]

So, if the slave underrates his sins and belittles them, he will never have remorse over what sins he commits. For a person to recognize the greatness of his sin, three thing must occur, Firstly, him knowing the greatness of the affair, Secondly, knowing the greatness of the one who lays down the order and who he is disobeying, And lastly, belief one being held to account for what one does whether good or bad. [Ibn Qayyim in Madaarij-us-Saalikeen, 1/203]

HAVING MANY EXPECTATIONS (Having many hopes, which will make one think he’ll have ample time to make tawbah and do righteous deeds.)

Yahya ibn Mu’ath: “The thing that prevents the people from making Tawbah (repentance): many expectations.”[The Dispraise of Al-Hawaa (desires) by Ibn Qayyim 1/216-217]

Shaytaan always strives to discourage the believer by saying to him: take you time with regards to this, what is the rush, you have all the time in world, so Shaytaan, deceives and makes him procrastinate, so the slave dies while sinning. [Tablees Iblees, p.486 by Ibn Qayyim.]

It’s narrated that Ibn ‘Abbaas said with regards to this verse:

The Hypocrites) will call to the believers:’ were we not with you?’’ The believers will reply:’’ Yes! But you lead yourselves in to temptations; you looked forward for our destruction.” {Sooratul-Hadeed-14}

“But you lead yourselves in to temptations”

Said means: with desires.

Says, with regards to tawbah, the statement of Allah:

“And you were deceived by false desires.”

Means, you procrastinated, with regards to righteous deeds.

“Allah Till the Command of comes to pass”.

Says Means: till Death over took you.

“And the chief deceiver deceived you in respect of Allah.”

Means: Shaytaan.

[Bayhaqi in Shu’bul-Eemaan, 5/462-463]

So the steadfast, upright believer should make good use of his time, and not procrastinate and turn away from living a life of longing and hoping and expecting so much in the future. Some of the salaf used to say: be weary or procrastinating always, delaying and putting off things, for indeed it is some thing from Shaytaan and his forces. So this is the example of the steadfast believer who lives a life minimizing his expectations and hopes, and his example, is that of a group of traverses, upon there travels, and they arrive at a town, and settle to prepare, requiring what they need, then they move on to there next destination. And this is the example of the believer in this world; he is only just passing through, so he only takes from it what he will need for his journey and has no time to do too much procrastinating and delaying ever opportunity that passes his way. [Tablees Ibless by Ibn Jawzi, p.486]

[By: ‘Shaykhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah|Extracted from: Obstacle That Prevent One from Making Repentance]