The Ten Ways to Expiate Your Sins
If a believer falls into sin, it’s punishment would be repelled from him in ten ways:
1. He repents and therefore Allah would accept his repentance. The one who repents from a sin is as the one who hasn’t sinned.
2. He asks for forgiveness and he would therefore be forgiven.
3. He performs acts of righteousness that would erase his sins, for indeed righteous actions erase sins.
4. His brothers supplicate for him; that his sins be forgiven - while he is alive and after his death.
5. His brothers gift the reward of their actions to him so that Allah may benefit it him through them [Translator’s note: Not all actions can be gifted as reward, only those that were specified by the Qur'an and Sunnah].
6. That his Prophet Muhammad - صلى الله عليه وسلم - intercedes for him.
7. That Allah puts him through trials in the life of this world that would expiate his sins.
8. That Allah puts him through trials in the Barzakh and the Sa’iqah that would expiate his sins.
9. That Allah puts him through the trials of the Day of Resurrection and its horrors, that which would expiate his sins.
10. Or that the Most Merciful of the merciful has mercy over him.
Whoever lets these ten pass him by, then let him blame no one but himself, as Allaah the Elevated said in a Hadeeth that was narrated by His Messenger:
“O My servants, they are only your own deeds, I take them into account for you, and then give (their reward or punishment) back to you. So whoever finds good then let him praise Allah. And whoever finds other than that then let him blame no one but himself.”
[Collected by Muslim: #2577]
Author: Shaykhul Islaam ibn Taymiyyah
