The most superior way of asking for forgiveness from Allah is Syed-ul-Istighfar (syed ul istighfar).
Hazrat Shaddad bin Aus, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
“The most superior way of asking for forgiveness from Allah is:
‘Allahumma anta Rabbi la ilaha illa anta, Khalaqtani wa ana ‘abduka, wa ana ‘ala ‘ahdika wa wa‘dika mastata‘tu, a‘udhu bika min sharri ma sana‘tu, abu-u laka bini‘matika ‘alaiyya, wa abu‘u laka bidhanbi faghfirli, fa-innahu la yaghfirudh-dhunuba illa anta.”
اللّٰهُمَّ أَنْتَ رَبِّي، لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ، خَلَقْتَنِيْ وَأَنَا عَبْدُكَ، وَأَنَا عَلَى عَهْدِكَ وَوَعْدِكَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ، أَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا صَنَعْتُ، أَبُوءُ لَكَ بِنِعْمَتِكَ عَلَىَّ وَأَبُوءُ لَكَ بِذَنْبِيْ، فَاغْفِرْ لِيْ، فَإِنَّهُ لَا يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوْبَ إِلَّاأَنْتَ۔
8 More prayers to seek forgiveness Reality of Sins and Repentance
“O Allah, You are my Lord; there is no god except You. You created me and I am Your servant. And I abide by Your oath and promise [that I may honour it] to the best of my ability. I seek refuge with You from every evil I have committed. I acknowledge Your favour upon me and I acknowledge my sin, so forgive me, for surely there is no one who can forgive sins except You.”[link]
Benefits of Syed-ul-Istighfar
- If one makes it a habit to recite Istighfar every day, and recites it once after every prayer, then Allah will forgive all his sins.
- If One recites Sayyidul istighfar, his heart inclined towards good deeds, his heart will be pleased with the worship of Allah.
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sayyidul istighfar hadith
The Holy Prophetsa added: “If somebody recites it during the day with firm faith in it, and dies on the same day before the evening, they will be from the people of Paradise; and if somebody recites it at night with firm faith in it, and dies before the morning, they will be from the people of Paradise.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab al-Da‘wat)
Learning how much of forgiving Allah is, gives huge hope to anyone seeking forgiveness. It is also important to understand the correct way to do Istighfar.