Quran Academy

How do you feel after committing a sin? Do you shrug it off, or your heart becomes uneasy and you start to wonder how you can wipe your sins in the sight of Allah (swt)?

We all commit sins, but as stated in the Hadith, the best of sinners are those who repent. And our Lord has been merciful enough that there are so many ways through which we can sincerely repent to Him with the hopes that our repentance will be accepted and our sins will be wiped off.

I have selected some of the easiest ways of wiping our sins, if Allah (swt) wills. Ways that you can simply incorporate into your daily life and have them serve as a means of wiping sins for even those sins that you did not realize that you had committed.

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Performing wuduh (ablution)

‘Amr bn ‘Abasah narrated: “The Messenger of Allah said: ‘When a person performs ablution and washes his hands, his sins exit through his hands. When he washes his face, his sins exit through his face. When he washes his forearms and wipes his head, his sins exit though his forearms and head. When he washes his feet, his sins exit through his feet.” (Sunan Ibn Majah)

Imagine how many times we perform ablution for salah in a day. Each time we perform ablution is an opportunity for us to have our sins wiped off if Allah wills. This should be another motivation for us to hasten to perform ablution whenever we leave the house, read the Qur’an, go to bed or prepare for salah.

Performing salah

If ablution is a way to have our sins wiped off, we should know that observing our salah at the right time, and in the proper manner, is another way to have our sins wiped off.

In a hadith narrated by Abu Huraira, the holy Prophet (saw) said: “Do you think that is there was a river by the door of any one of you, and he bathed in it five times each day, would there be any trace of dirt left on him?” They said: “No trace of dirt would be left on him.” He said: “That is the likeness of the five daily prayers. By means of them, Allah erases sins.” (Sunan an-Nasa’i)

That is an opportunity to have our sins forgiven at least five times a day, and it should encourage us to hasten towards performing our prayers.

Walking to the Masjid

For a lot of people, it’s easier to pray at home, or in an empty office space. Maybe because of the distance it takes to get to their nearest masjid, or because they prefer to pray in privacy. But several ahadith have shown that it is most beneficial for us (especially men) to observe our prayers in a masjid and that it can even be an action that wipes our sins.

The holy Prophet said: “Shall I not tell you of that by means of which Allah erases sins and raises (people) in status? Doing Wudu’ properly even when it is inconvenient, taking a lot of steps to the Masjid, and waiting for one Salah after another…” (Sunan an-Nasa’i)

Reciting the Tasbih (Subhan-Allah)

Allah’s Messenger (saw) said, “Whoever says, ‘Subhan Allah wa bi Hamdi hi,’ one hundred times a day, will be forgiven all his sins even if they were as much as the foam of the sea.” (Bukhari)

How many tasbihs can you recite in a day? Challenge yourself and see how often you can say this in a day, as a means of wiping off your sins, if Allah (swt) wills.

Sending Praises Upon the Holy Prophet (SAW)

One of the simplest ways to earn rewards or forgiveness of sin for us Muslims is our daily supplications. And among these supplications is sending salutations upon the Prophet (saw).

اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَى آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ، كَمَا صَلَّيْتَ عَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَعَلَى آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ، اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَى آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ، كَمَا بَارَكْتَ عَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ، وَعَلَى آلِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ ‏”‏‏.‏

“O, Allah! Send Your Mercy on Muhammad and on the family of Muhammad, as You sent Your Mercy on Abraham and on the family of Abraham, for You are the Most Praise-worthy, the Most Glorious. O, Allah! Send Your Blessings on Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You sent your Blessings on Abraham and on the family of Abraham, for You are the Most Praise-worthy, the Most Glorious.”

How does this prayer wipe our sin?

Prophet Muhammad (saw) said: “Whoever sends salah upon me once, Allah (swt) will send salah upon him tenfold, and will erase ten sins from him, and will raise him ten degrees in status.” (Sunan an-Nasa’i)

That’s it!

Giving Charity

Giving charity is a good deed that wipes away our sins, and it comes in different forms. To a lot of people, giving charity means donating money to relief organizations, giving food to the poor, or giving out your clothes to the less privileged.

But really, a lot of our daily activities fall under charity if they are good deeds that we do for other people. So, the next time you smile at a stranger or offer the salaam first to someone, remember that these are acts of charity that may just wipe your sins in the eyes of Allah (swt).

Find something good every day to do for someone, no matter how little, with sincerity, and without expecting anything except the mercy and forgiveness of Allah (swt).

Repentance

All the actions that we have mentioned are good for wiping our sins, especially as we go around every day unaware of the sins that we may have committed. But of all these actions, it is important for us to know that saying istigfar as a form of repentance every day is necessary.

“O Son of Adam, as long as you invoke Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O Son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and you then asked forgiveness from Me, I would forgive you.” (An-Nawawi)

The best of Muslims are those who constantly turn to their Lord in sincere repentance, and we should strive to be one of those Muslims so that we can have our sins wiped off by Allah (swt).

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