Anas reported God’s messenger as stating that God has said, “Son of Adam, as long as you supplicate me and hope in me I will pardon you in spite of what you have done, and I do not care. Son of Adam, if your sins were so numerous as to reach the lofty regions of the sky, then you asked my forgiveness, I would forgive you, and I do not care. Son of Adam, if you were to meet me with enough sins to fill the earth, then met me not associating anything with me, I would bring you as much pardon as would fill the earth.”
Tirmidhi transmitted it, and Ahmad and Darimi transmitted it from Abu Dharr. Tirmidhi said this is a hasan gharib tradition.
Shaddad b. Aus reported God’s messenger as saying that the best manner of asking pardon is to say, “O God, Thou art my Lord. There is no god but Thee. Thou hast created me, and I am Thy servant and hold to Thy covenant and promise as much as I can. I seek refuge in Thee from the evil of what I have done. I acknowledge Thy favour to me, and I acknowledge my sin. Pardon me, for none but Thee pardons sins.” He said that if anyone says it during the day-time with firm belief in it and dies that day before evening, he will be one of those who go to paradise; and if anyone says it during the night with firm belief in it and dies before morning, he will be one of those who go to paradise.
Ibn ‘Abbas reported God’s messenger as stating that God has said, “If anyone knows that I have power to forgive sins I will pardon him and not care, so long as he associatesi nothing with me.”
Jundub said that God’s messenger told of a man saying, “I swear by God that God will not forgive so and so,” whereupon God most high said, “Who is this who swears that I will not forgive so and so? For I have forgiven so and so and have made your deeds to come to nothing”, or words to that effect.
