Seeking Forgiveness Before Dawn

The patient, the true, the obedient, those who spend, and those who seek forgiveness before dawn. (3:17)

In the name of the Most Compassionate, Most Merciful Allah.

Did you ever feel happy, genuinely happy 🌸 and light, after doing something good? Maybe you walked 🛣️ towards Allah and He ran towards you. Maybe you did a Tawbah (repentance) and Allah accepted it from you. Maybe you sought forgiveness 🤲🏼 and He forgave you.


فَغَفَرْنَا لَهُ ذَٰلِكَ ۖ وَإِنَّ لَهُ عِندَنَا لَزُلْفَىٰ وَحُسْنَ مَآبٍ

So We forgave him that; and indeed, for him is nearness to Us and a good place of return. (38:25)

Yet life gets to us. We become neglectful of Allah and our hearts become hard 🪨, our eyes become dry, and we suffer from the accumulation of sins ⚫.


ثُمَّ قَسَتْ قُلُوبُكُم مِّن بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ فَهِيَ كَالْحِجَارَةِ أَوْ أَشَدُّ قَسْوَةً

Then your hearts became hardened after that, being like stones or even harder. (2:74)


We should as such genuinely return back to Allah constantly and seek pardon. Allah says:


الصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالْقَانِتِينَ وَالْمُنفِقِينَ وَالْمُسْتَغْفِرِينَ بِالْأَسْحَارِ

The patient, the true, the obedient, those who spend, and those who seek forgiveness before dawn. (3:17)

Seeking forgiveness in the latter portion of the night 🌕 is a special and virtuous act. The Prophet ﷺ said:


يَتَنَزَّلُ رَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا حِينَ يَبْقَى ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الآخِرُ يَقُولُ مَنْ يَدْعُونِي فَأَسْتَجِيبَ لَهُ، مَنْ يَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ، وَمَنْ يَسْتَغْفِرُنِي فَأَغْفِرَ لَهُ?


When remains a third of the night (last third of night), our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, descends every night to the heaven of the world and says,
‘Is there anyone who invokes Me (make dua to Me), that I may respond to him;
Is there anyone who asks Me that I may give (it to) him;
Is there anyone who asks My forgiveness that I may forgive him? (Bukhari 6321)

Such is the last portion of the night. When mankind are sound asleep, spouses are together, the bed 🛏️ is comfortable and lying down is most pleasing to the soul, some people lift up their blankets and proceed to seek forgiveness for their sins.


تَتَجَافَىٰ جُنُوبُهُمْ عَنِ الْمَضَاجِعِ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُمْ خَوْفًا وَطَمَعًا وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ

Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and longing, and they spend out of what We have provided them. (32:16)

When their eyes open, they remember Allah the Exalted. They stand when mankind rest, but their hearts are at rest 💝.


التَّائِبُونَ الْعَابِدُونَ الْحَامِدُونَ السَّائِحُونَ الرَّاكِعُونَ السَّاجِدُونَ الْآمِرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَالنَّاهُونَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَالْحَافِظُونَ لِحُدُودِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَبَشِّرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ

The repentant, the worshippers, the praisers [of Allah ], the travelers [for His cause], those who bow and prostrate [in prayer], those who enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, and those who observe the limits [set by] Allah . And give good tidings to the believers. (9:112)