The Book of Repentance

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The Book of Repentance : New,
[A5] Paperback - 109 pages,
by Shaykh Mitwally ash Sharawi [d.1419h],
by Imam Ibn Asakir [d.571h],
by Imam Ibn Rajib al-Hanbali [d.795h],
Transl. by Zaid Yousef.

Description :

At a time when people are encouraged to flaunt and take ‘pride’ in their sins, it seems more relevant than ever to raise awareness regarding the concept of tawbah, or repentance. It is from Allah’s immense mercy to His servants ﷺ that the doors of repentance are kept open right up to our final breaths. Our Creator, the Most Subtle ﷺ, is aware that we will inevitably err and sin.

This short book compiles sections of Shaykh Muḥammad Metwally ash-Shaʿrāwī’s lectures that discuss the various facets of repentance to help us realise its reality and necessity. It also includes discussions centred around Allah’s infinite mercy ﷺ so that we never tire from repentance.

We deemed it appropriate to have these sections accompanied by Ibn ʿAsākir’s Kitāb at-Tawbah and Ibn Rajab’s Asbāb al-Maghfirah. The combination of these works on repentance, Allah’s mercy and His forgiveness ﷺ will no doubt prove an invaluable source for our eternal good fortune bi-idhni ’llāh.

Shaykh Muhammad Mitwalli ash-Sha’rawi was born in a middle class family in the village of Daqadus in Egypt. Educated at the famous Al Azhar University where scholars such contributed Shaykh Ahmad Yusuf Nagati, Shaykh Ahmad `Imara, Shaykh Ibrahim Hamrush, Saykh Muhammad Mustafa al-Maragh. His speeches in Qur'an interpretation (Tafsir) attracted a massive audience that is probably unparalleled by any contemporary Azharite.

About Ibn Asakir : He is `Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Hibat Allah ibn `Abd Allah, Thiqat al-Din, Abu al-Qasim, known as Ibn `Asakir al-Dimashqi al-Shafi`i al-Ash`ari (499-571), the Imam of hadith masters in his time and historian of Damascus.

Ibn al-Najjar said : "He is the imam of hadith scholars in his time and the chief leader in memorisation, meticulous verification, thorough knowledge in the sciences of hadith, trustworthiness, nobility, and excellence in writing and beautiful recitation. He is the seal of this science."

After 533h he sat teaching hadith in a corner of the Umayyad mosque in Damascus, then in the Dar al-Sunna school (subsequenty renamed Dar al-Hadith) built for him by al-Malik al-`Adil Nur al-Din Mahmud ibn Zanki. He shunned all kinds of material possessions and turned down the office of head preacher, concentrating on teaching, writing, and worshipping. His most famous student was the sultan Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, who attended his funeral behind the imam al-Qutb al-Naysaburi.

Ibn `Asakir authored over a hundred books and epistles and narrated under five hundred hadith lessons.

Imam Abd al-Rahman ibn Ahmad Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (1335-1393) was born in Iraq to a scholarly family. During his youth, his family spent time living in a number of the major centers of knowledge in the Muslim world, including Baghdad, Damascus, Jerusalem, Egypt, and Makkah.

He studied under many of the greatest scholars of his era, including al-Subki, Hafiz al-Iraqi, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, and many others. Among his best-known works are Jami' al-Ulum wa al-Hikam, one of the most important commentaries on the Arba'in of Imam al-Nawawi, and Fath al-Bari, an unfinished commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari that lent its name to Ibn Hajar's complete commentary some decades later.

He returned to Allah in Damascus and is buried in the famous Bab as-Saghir cemetery.