9 Super Duas From The Ahlulbayt For Instant Forgiveness

Asking for forgiveness is part and parcel of Islam. It’s a way to cleanse oneself of sin and seek nearness to Allah (SWT). Reciting a dua for forgiveness was a practice of the Prophet (PBUH). He would ask for forgiveness 70 times a day! Narrated in Sahih Bukhari:

By God, I seek forgiveness from God and repent to Him more than seventy times a day.”

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What could the Prophet be asking for forgiveness for?!

Whilst we seek forgiveness for our sins, the sinless Prophet sought forgiveness out of the guilt of not being able to do more in service to Allah (SWT). More prayers, more fasts, more duas, etc.

The point is we all fall short of giving the service Allah (SWT) deserves. And that’s not entirely our fault. Allah (SWT) is the Infinite Creator whilst we are the finite creation. It’s impossible for the finite to give due service to the Infinite. That’s why we rely on the mercy of Allah (SWT) to envelop us.

Unlike the Prophet, we do sin. That’s why there is a greater need for us to ask for forgiveness.

The sunnah of repenting was passed down by the Prophet to his family members and progeny. That said, here are 9 duas to recite for instant forgiveness. To avail of instantaneous forgiveness, we must understand the words of the dua we are reciting, have a sincere intention whilst reciting them and feel genuine remorse.

Two Duas To Forgive All Sins

There are sins that we remember and other sins we cannot recall. This dua, recited by Imam Ali, is one we can recite for forgiveness for all sins.

Allahumma innee astaghfiruka likulli d’ambin jaraa bihee I’lmuka fiyya wa a’layya ilaa aakhiri u’mree bi-jamee-I d’unoobee li-awwalihaa wa aakhirihaa wa a’madihaa wa khat a-ihaa wa qaleelihaa wa katheerihaa wa daqeeqihaa wa jaleelihaa wa qadeemihaa wa h’adeethihaa wa sirrihaa wa a’laaniyatihaa wa jamee-I maa anaa mud’nibuhoo wa atoobu ilayka wa as-aluka an tus’alliya a’laa muh’ammadin wa aali muh’ammadin wa an taghfira lee jamee-a, maa ah’s’aytu mim maz’aalimil I’baadi qibalee fa-inna li-ibaadika a’layya h’uqooqan wa anaa murtahinum bihaa taghfiruhaa kayfa shi-ta wa annaa shia-ta yaa arh’amar raah’imeen

O Allah! I seek forgiveness of all those sins of which You have knowledge of either it is of my good deeds or evil deeds, knowledge of my whole life, or from first to last, knowingly or unknowingly or the knowledge of my sins which I have erred erroneously whether little or great, big or small, old and new, secret or open and those sins of which I am guilty of. And I ask forgiveness of You and request You to send blessings on Mohammad and the progeny of Mohammed and forgive all my excuses which I have done on Your creation and is in Your knowledge because their rights are incumbent on me and I am responsible of it. But You can forgive them as You desire O the Most Merciful of all the Merciful.”

Another dua to forgive all sins, old and new, also by Imam Ali:

Allaahumma innee as-aluka bi-anna lakal h’amdu laa laa ilaaha illaa antal mannaanu badee-u’s samaawaati wal arz’I d’ul jallaali wal ikraam innee s’aa-ilun faqeerun wa khaa-ifun mustajeerun wa taa-ibun mustaghfir allaahumma s’alli a’laa mohammadin wa aale mohammad wagfirli d’unoobee kullaahaa qadeemahaa wa h’adeethahaa wa kulla d’anbin ad’nabtoh allaahumma laa tajhad balaaa-ee wa laa tushmit bee a’-daaa-ee fa-innahoo laa daafi-a’wa laa maani-a illaa ant

O Allah! I ask You as all the praise belongs to You. There is no lord other than You, You are the one to bestow favours. You are the possessor of Honour and Majesty for the Heavens and the Earth. I am poor and indigent repent and seek forgiveness. O Allah send blessings on Mohammad and his progeny and forgive all my sins whether they are old or new. All those sins which I have performed. O Allah don’t make my problems, difficult for me and don’t give my enemies an opportunity to mock at me because there is no one other than You to ward off the difficulties and ease the hardships.”

Dua To Forgive Repetitive Sins

There might be some sins we repeatedly do, such as an addiction plaguing us. We can recite the below dua for such sins and for sins such as doing things with the wrong intention or misuse of Allah’s (SWT) bounties. This dua is also reported by Imam Ali.

Allahumma innee astaghfiruka min kulli maa tubtu ilayka minhu thumma u’dtu feehi wa astaghfiruka limaa aradtu bihee wajhaka fa-khaalat’anee feehi maa laysa laka wa astaghfiruka lin-na a’mil latee mananta bihaa a’layya fa taqawwaytu bihaa a’laa ma-a’as’eeka astaghfirul-laahal lad’ee laa ilaaha illaa huwal h’aayul qayyoomu a’alimul ghaybi wash saahaadatir rah’maanur rah’eem li kulli d’ambin ad’nabtuhoo wa bi-kulli ma’s’iyatin irtakabtuhaa allaahummar-zuqnee a’qlan kaamilan wa a’zman thaaqiban wa lubban raajih’an wa qalban d’akiyyan wa I’lman katheeran wa adaban baari-a’n waj-a’l d’aalika kullahoo lee wa laa taj-a’lhu a’layya bi-rah’matika yaa arh’amar rah’imeen

Then say 5 times :

Astaghfirullaahal lad’ee laa ilaaha illaa huwal h’ayyul qayyoomu wa atoobu ilayhi

O Allah I seek forgiveness from those things which I have repeated after repenting for it and I repent to You for those things which was intended for You but while doing it the intention was changed which was not for You. And I seek Your forgiveness from those bounties which was bestowed for You obedience but I used for Your disobedience and I repent for it that there is no one other than Allah, He is the living, the self existing, Knower of the unseen and present everywhere, the Beneficent the Merciful. I seek forgiveness for all those sins which I have committed and of all those sins which I have initiated. O Allah give me perfect intelligence and enlighten my wishes and intellect, clean heart, abundance knowledge, clear ethics, all these things which are beneficial to me and not harmful to me. O the one who is most Beneficial by Your mercy (then recite five times) “I seek refuge in Allah there is no lord except Him, the living, the self existent to Him do I repent.”

Then say 5 times

I seek forgiveness from Allah who is without a heir and is alive, and the supporter of the universe and I turn to Him in repentance.”

Dua For Forgiveness of Sins By Facial Organs

This short dua from Imam Ali can be used to ask for forgiveness for sins done by our facial organs, such as our eyes (watching inappropriate content), ears (listening to haram music) and tongue (gossiping, lying etc.).

Allaahummagh-fir lee maa anta a’lamu bihee minnee fa-in u’dtu fa-u’d lee bil-maghfirah allaahummagh-fir lee maa wa-a’dtu min nafsee wa lam tajid lahoo wafaa-an I’ndee allaahum-magh-fir lee ramazaatil alh’aaz’I wa saqat’aatil alfaaz’I wa sahawaatil jinnaani wa hafawaatil lisaani

O Allah forgive my sins of which You are aware and if I repeat it then forgive me again. O Allah! I couldn’t get an opportunity to fulfill the covenants done against my evil deeds, forgive these sins too. O Allah forgive the sins done by the action of eyes, mistake of the lips, negligence of the heart and by the movement of the tongue.”

Dua To Forgive Sins Done In Private

There are some sins we perform that nobody knows about – not even the closest people in our lives. These are sins that only Allah (SWT) is witness to. Imam Ali recommends the following dua for such sins:

Yaa man a’faa a’nnee wa a’mmaa khalawtu bihee minas saw-aati fee baytee wa ghayri bayti yaa mal lam yu-aakhid’nee birtikaabil ma-a’as’ee a’fwuka a’fwuka yaa kareemu a’fwuka

O the One (Lord) who has forgiven my those evil deeds which I have committed in my house or secretly in other houses. O Allah who did not punish me when I initiated the sin. Your forgiveness! Your forgiveness O Generous Your forgiveness.”

Dua To Seek Forgiveness For Wronging Others

Allah (SWT) will only forgive us for wronging others, provided the person wronged does the same. Where possible and practical, try and approach the person you have wronged and ask for forgiveness. InshaAllah, they will forgive you. If you are finding it difficult to remove the feeling of guilt even after they have forgiven you, recite this dua by Imam Ali ibn Hussain:

Wa kaana min dua’aa-ihee a’lay-his-salaamu feelia’-tid’aari min tabia’ati ali’baadwa minat-taq-s’eeri fee h’uqooqihim-wafee fakaaki raqabatihee minan-naar. Al-laahum-ma in-neee aa’-tad’iru ilay-ka. Mim-maz’-loomin z’ulima bih’az”-ratee falam ans’ur-h. Wa mim-maa’-roofin us-deea ilay-ya falam ash-kur-h. Wa mim-musee-in aa’-tad’ara ilay-ya falam aa’-d’ir-h. Wa min d’ee faaqatin saalanee falam oo-thir-h. Wa min h’aq-qi d’ee h’aq-qil-lazimanee limoo-minin falam uwaf-fir-h. Wa min a’y-bi moo-minin z’ahara lee falam as-tur-h. Wa min kul-li ith-min a’raz”a lee falam ah-jur-h. Aa’-tad’iru ilay-ka yaaa ilaahee min-hun-na wamin-naz’aaa-irihin. Aa’-tid’aara nadaamatee-yakoonu waai’z’al-limaa bay-na yaday-ya min ash-baahihin. Fas’al-li a’laa muh’am-madiw-wa aaalih waj-a’l. Nadaamatee a’laa maa waqaa’-tu feehee minaz-zal-laat. Wa a’z-mee a’laa tar-ki maa yaa’-riz”u lee minas-say-yi-aat. Taw-batan toojibu lee mah’ab-bataka. Yaa muh’ib-bat-taw-waabeen

O God, I ask pardon from Thee for the person wronged in my presence whom I did not help, the favour conferred upon me for which I returned no thanks, the evildoer who asked pardon from me and whom I did not pardon, the needy person who asked from me and whom I preferred not over myself, the right of a believer who possesses a right incumbent upon me which I did not fulfil, the fault of a believer which became evident to me and which I did not conceal, and every sin which presented itself to me and which I failed to avoid. I ask pardon, my God, for all of these and their likes, with an asking of pardon in remorse which may act as an admonisher against similar things ahead of me. So bless Muhammad and his Household and make my remorse for the slips into which I have fallen and my determination to refrain from the evil deeds which present themselves to me a repentance which will make Thy love for me obligatory O lover of those who repent!”

Dua For Immediate Erasure of Sin

Imam Sadiq has stated that when one performs an evil deed, he/she has one hour to seek forgiveness before the angel records it on his/her parchment of evil deeds. This is a grace period offered by Allah (SWT). If repentance is made within the hour, it’s as if the sin was never committed. Imam Sadiq recommends we recite the following dua in that grace period:

Astaghfirul-laahal lad’ee laa ilaaha illaa huwa a’alimul ghaybi wash shahadaatil a’zeezul h’akeemul ghafoorul rah’eem d’ul jalaali wal ikraami wa atoobu ilayhi.

I seek forgiveness of Allah who is: “There is no god save He, the knower of the unknown and the known, the mighty, the wise, the oft-forgiving, the merciful, the owner of glory and grace”; and I turn repentant unto Him.”

A Dua To Resist Sin

Prevention is better than cure! It’s better to have not sinned than to sin and seek forgiveness, and there’s a dua for that. This dua, recommended by Imam Ali, is recommended to be recited after fajr but before maghrib at least three times. InshaAllah it will strengthen our willpower to resist sins.

Fa-subh’aanallaahi h’eena tumsoona wa h’eena tus’bih’oon. Wa lahul h’amdu fis samaawaati wal arz’I wa a’shiyyaw wa h’eena tuz’hiroon

So glory be to Allah when you enter the evening and when you enter the morning. For His is the praise in the heavens and the earth-at the sun’s decline and when you enter the noon.”