43 – SECOND VOLUME, 66th LETTER This letter, written in Arabic to Khân-i Khânân ‘rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaih’ the (time’s) governor of India, explains tawba inâbat, wara’ and taqwâ: I begin my letter with the Basmala. That is, to be able to write this letter, I trust myself to Allâhu ta’âlâ, who is so merciful and bounteous, and I rely on Him. Every hamd, every thanks, belongs to Him by right. I send my salâm to the good people whom He chooses and loves. Our valuable lives are passing in committing sins, making mistakes, and doing what is wrong. Therefore, it will be pleasant for us to converse on tawba, on hanging the head in shame towards Allâhu ta’âlâ, and to talk about wara’ and taqwâ. Allâhu ta’âlâ declares in the thirty-first âyat of Sûrat-un-Nûr: “O Believers! Make tawba and ask Allah’s pardon, you all! You can be saved only if you make tawba.” He declares in the eighth âyat of Sûrat-ut-Tahrîm, which is at the end of the twenty-eighth juz’ (section) of the Qur’ân: “O, you, chosen people who have îmân! Return to Allâhu ta’âlâ! Repent sincerely! That is, do not break your repentance! If you repent in this manner, maybe your Allah will forgive you and will put you into Paradise, where there are trees and villas beneath which water flows.” He declares in the hundred and twentieth âyat of Sûrat-ul-An’âm: “Avoid sins, whether they are evident or secret.” It is fard-i ’ayn[1] for everybody to repent for their sins. Nobody can escape tawba. How can anyone ever escape it, despite the fact that all Prophets ‘’alaihimussalawâtu watteslîmât’ used to make tawba? Muhammad ‘’alaihi wa ’alaihimussalawât’, who was the final and the greatest of all, stated: “A curtain [that prevents divine lights from coming] gets drawn across my heart. Therefore, I say istighfâr[2] seventy times each day.” If there are no human rights in the sin which is committed, if it is only between Allah and oneself, e.g. committing adultery, having alcoholic drinks, listening to musical instruments, looking at nâ-mahram women, holding the Qur’ân without having an ’abdast (ritual ablution), getting stuck in corrupt beliefs, such as Râfidî, Wahhabi, and others, one can make tawba by regretting [what one has done], by saying istighfâr, and [1] Actions, words, and thoughts which Allâhu ta’âlâ clearly commands in the Qur’ân are called farz (or fard). Fard-i-’ayn means a fard which is obligatory for every Muslim. Every Muslims has to carry out the fard-i-’ayn. [2] To ask Allah’s pardon. To entreat Him for His forgiveness.
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