Ali 'Imran · Madani · ayah 16 of 200

Ali 'Imran 3:16

ٱلَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَآ إِنَّنَآ ءَامَنَّا فَٱغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَقِنَا عَذَابَ ٱلنَّارِ

“Those who say, 'Our Lord, indeed we have believed, so forgive us our sins and protect us from the punishment of the Fire,' "”

Saheeh International

Essence

The people promised Paradise introduce themselves with one credential, their faith, and one request: forgive us.

A reflection

No list of achievements, only 'we believed'

A seven-year-old breaks a vase. She does not come to her mother with a list of the good things she did that week. She runs in, holds on, and says: I'm sorry, I'm yours.

The previous ayah promised gardens and Allah's approval to the mindful. Now we meet them, and the first thing we hear is their prayer. Rabbanā innanā āmannā fa-ghfir lanā dhunūbanā wa qinā ʿadhāba al-nār. Our Lord, we have believed, so forgive us our sins and guard us from the punishment of the Fire.

Notice the little word fa, so. Because we have believed, forgive us. One classical commentary reads it this way. By our faith in You and in what You have laid down for us, forgive our sins and our shortcomings, by Your grace. They present no record of deeds. Their only credential is that they trusted Him.

The word for forgiveness carried a picture. The mighfar was the hood of mail worn under an iron helmet, falling over the neck to guard it. Ghafara meant to cover: to put goods away in a bag, to cover grey hair with dye. So ighfir lanā is not only 'overlook it'. It is: cover it, and shield us from what it would bring.

This is how the mindful pray. Not as people who have arrived, but as people who know exactly how much they need covering. The ayah teaches a posture before it teaches any words.

Try praying this way once today. No list of what you did right. Just: our Lord, I believed in You, so cover what I did wrong.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.