What Is Al-Istighfār?
Al-Istighfār (الاستغفار) means seeking forgiveness from Allah for one’s sins, shortcomings, and mistakes. It is one of the most beautiful and essential acts of worship in Islam — an act that cleanses the heart, humbles the soul, and brings the servant closer to the mercy of Allah.
The word Istighfār comes from the Arabic root غ-ف-ر (gh-f-r), meaning to cover, forgive, or protect. Thus, when a Muslim says “Astaghfirullāh”, they are literally asking, “O Allah, forgive me, conceal my faults, and protect me from the consequences of my sins.”
Repentance (Tawbah) and Istighfār go hand in hand — for while Istighfār is the verbal plea for forgiveness, Tawbah is the heartfelt return to Allah through sincere remorse, abandonment of sin, and firm resolve not to return to it.
The Command to Seek Forgiveness in the Qur’an
Allah ﷻ repeatedly commands believers to seek His forgiveness, showing that it is a path to mercy, blessings, and success.
1. Surah Nūḥ (71:10-12)
فَقُلْتُ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ غَفَّارًا يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُم مِّدْرَارًا وَيُمْدِدْكُم بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ أَنْهَارًا
“And I said: ‘Seek forgiveness of your Lord. Indeed, He is ever a Perpetual Forgiver. He will send [rain from] the sky upon you in abundance, and He will strengthen you with wealth and children and provide for you gardens and rivers.’”
— [Qur’an 71:10-12]
2. Surah Āl-ʿImrān (3:135)
وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا۟ فَـٰحِشَةً أَوْ ظَلَمُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ فَٱسْتَغْفَرُوا۟ لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَن يَغْفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا ٱللَّهُ وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا۟ عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلُوا۟ وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ
“And those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression], remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins — and who can forgive sins except Allah? — and do not persist in what they have done while they know.”
— [Qur’an 3:135]
3. Surah Al-Baqarah (2:199)
ثُمَّ أَفِيضُوا۟ مِنْ حَيْثُ أَفَاضَ ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱسْتَغْفِرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌۭ رَّحِيمٌۭ
“Then depart from the place from where all the people depart and ask forgiveness of Allah. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.”
— [Qur’an 2:199]
The Prophet ﷺ and Istighfār in the Sunnah
1. Frequency of Istighfār
Abu Hurairah (رضي الله عنه) reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying:
وَاللَّهِ إِنِّي لَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ، وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْهِ، فِي الْيَوْمِ، أَكْثَرَ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّةً
“By Allah, I seek forgiveness and repent to Him more than seventy times a day.”
— [Al-Bukhari]
Al-Agharr ibn Yaasir Al-Muzani (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ وَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ، فَإِنِّي أَتُوبُ فِي الْيَوْمِ مِائَةَ مَرَّةٍ
“O people! Turn in repentance to Allah and beg pardon of Him. I turn to Him in repentance a hundred times a day.”
— [Muslim]
Explanation-
As is known, the more evidence a thing has, then that surely strengthens and emphasizes the thing being mentioned. So the first of these two supporting narrations is that of Abu Hurairah, and regarding it we say: it explains how the Prophet ﷺ acted (seeking Allah’s forgiveness) even though Allah, the Exalted had forgiven all his past and future sins.
In these two narrations is a proof for the following:
A clear indication of the obligation of repentance, and that is found in the Prophet’s ﷺ saying:
“O People! Turn in repentance to Allah!”
One acquires the two following benefits when he repents to Allah:
The First Benefit:
Complying with and obeying the commandments of Allah, the Exalted, and His Prophet (Muhammad) ﷺ undoubtedly leads to much good — good that is found both in this life and in the Hereafter.
The Second Benefit:
Imitating and following the noble and exemplary character of the Prophet ﷺ — who used to repent to Allah a hundred times a day — is achieved by saying:
أَتُوبُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ
“I turn to You (O Allah) in repentance; I turn to You in repentance.”
Repentance must be done with sincerity, and the repentant person is required to give up the wrongdoing he is committing. If repentance is merely uttered while the heart still yearns to commit that sin, then it is nothing but mockery of Allah, the Exalted, and such repentance is outright rejected.
And in these two narrations is proof indicating that the Prophet (Muhammad) ﷺ was the most devout of all people in his worship of Allah ﷻ, as well as the most God-fearing, the most pious, and the most knowledgeable of people regarding Him.
And also, from these narrations is proof that the Prophet ﷺ did not teach merely through clarification; rather, he taught through his actions as well. He ﷺ used to seek Allah’s forgiveness in order to be a role model for the people to follow, and he would command them to do the same. From this, we see how he advised his Ummah. Knowing this, it becomes incumbent upon us to follow in his ﷺ footsteps and to be the first to actualize whatever he commanded. Likewise, whenever the Prophet ﷺ forbade something, we should be among the first to refrain from it, for this is among the best ways of calling people back to Allah — that we ourselves are the first to fulfill His commandments. This was the way of the Prophet ﷺ: he would command the people to repent, and at the same time, he himself would repent to Allah. (End quote — Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen رحمه الله, Riyadh as-Saaliheen.)
2. Sayyid al-Istighfār (The Master Supplication for Forgiveness)
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“The best (most superior) way of seeking forgiveness is to say:
اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّي، لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ، خَلَقْتَنِي وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ، وَأَنَا عَلَى عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ، أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ، أَبُوءُ لَكَ بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَىَّ وَأَبُوءُ لَكَ بِذَنْبِي، فَاغْفِرْ لِي، فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ.
(Allahumma anta rabbī, lā ilāha illā anta, khalaqtanī wa anā ʿabduka, wa anā ʿalā ʿahdika wa waʿdika mā istaṭaʿt, aʿūdhu bika min sharri mā ṣanaʿt, abūʾu laka biniʿmatika ʿalayya, wa abūʾu laka bidhambī, faghfir lī, fa-innahu lā yaghfiru-dh-dhunūba illā anta.)
“O Allah, You are my Lord; there is no god but You. You created me, and I am Your servant. I am faithful to my covenant and promise as best I can. I seek refuge in You from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge Your favor upon me and confess my sins. So forgive me, for none forgives sins except You.”
— [Sahih al-Bukhari, 6306]
The Prophet ﷺ also said:
“Whoever recites this in the morning with firm faith and dies before evening will enter Paradise. Whoever recites it at night with firm faith and dies before morning will enter Paradise.”
— [Sahih al-Bukhari]
Sayings from the Scholars on the Merits of Al-Istighfār
1. Imām Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله)
Imām Ibn al-Qayyim said:
“Istighfār is not merely the utterance of the tongue, but the repentance of the heart that abandons sin and regrets its occurrence. True Istighfār erases the trace of the sin and cleanses the heart of its effects.”
— [Madarij al-Sālikīn, vol. 1, p. 308]
He also wrote:
“The most beneficial medicine for the heart is Istighfār and remembrance of Allah. When sins accumulate, they weaken the heart and distance it from Allah, and there is no remedy for that except sincere repentance and Istighfār.”
— [Al-Wābil al-Ṣayyib]
2. Imām Ibn Taymiyyah (رحمه الله)
Sheikh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah said:
“The servant is always in need of Istighfār, whether he is doing good or committing sin. If he does good, Istighfār perfects it; and if he sins, Istighfār wipes it away.”
— [Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā, 10/88]
He also stated:
“Istighfār is to the heart as water is to a fish. What is the state of a fish when separated from water?”
— [Reported by Ibn al-Qayyim in Al-Wābil al-Ṣayyib]
3. Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (رحمه الله)
Imām al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī said:
“Ask for forgiveness frequently — in your homes, at your tables, on the roads, in the markets, in your gatherings, and wherever you are. For you do not know when forgiveness will descend.”
— [Ḥilyat al-Awliyā’, vol. 2, p. 147]
He also said when people came to him with various complaints:
A man complained to him about drought, and he said: “Seek forgiveness from Allah.”
Another complained of poverty, and he said: “Seek forgiveness from Allah.”
Another complained of not having children, and he said: “Seek forgiveness from Allah.”Then he recited:
فَقُلْتُ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّهُ كَانَ غَفَّارًا يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُم مِّدْرَارًا وَيُمْدِدْكُم بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ
“Seek forgiveness of your Lord; indeed, He is ever a Perpetual Forgiver. He will send rain from the sky upon you in abundance, and increase you in wealth and children.”
— [Qur’an 71:10–12, Tafsīr al-Qurtubī]
4. Imām an-Nawawī (رحمه الله)
Imām an-Nawawī said:
“It is recommended to seek forgiveness abundantly at all times, for it is among the greatest forms of remembrance and one of the easiest acts of worship. It carries tremendous reward and expiation for sins.”
— [Riyāḍ as-Ṣāliḥīn, Commentary]
5. Imām adh-Dhahabī (رحمه الله)
Imām adh-Dhahabī advised:
“Do not tire of Istighfār, for the door of repentance is always open until the soul reaches the throat. Whoever frequently seeks forgiveness will find doors of mercy opened for him from where he did not expect.”
— [Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalā’, vol. 3]
Summary
The scholars agreed that Al-Istighfār:
- Softens the heart and purifies it from sin.
- Brings peace and relief in times of distress.
- Opens doors of sustenance and divine help.
- Is a constant means of drawing closer to Allah ﷻ.
Their wisdom echoes the timeless Qur’anic truth:
وَمَا كَانَ اللّٰهُ مُعَذِّبَهُمۡ وَهُمۡ يَسۡتَغۡفِرُوۡنَ
“And Allah would not punish them while they seek forgiveness.”
— [Qur’an 8:33]
May Allah ﷻ forgive us.
Aameen!
The Enduring Good Deeds 
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