How Istighfar Affects Worldly Life

IQNA – Believing in the impact of spirituality on life is never meant to undermine the role of material causes, but rather it means that alongside material elements, there are also spiritual factors, such as Istighfar (seeking God’s forgiveness), that have an effect.

Istighfar has numerous effects on the worldly life and hereafter. The spiritual effects of Istighfar are almost clear, but the effect of Istighfar on worldly life needs explanation. Human behavior can have three effects: direct, indirect, and unseen.

In the Islamic worldview, all phenomena are traced back to their Creator (Verse 109 of Surah Al-Imran; Verse 18 of Surah Fatir) and are created by His will and through “causes”. These causes are not limited to natural causes, but there are also spiritual factors that are beyond the realm of human observation and knowledge and can only be discovered through revelation teachings.

According to the verses of the Quran, there is a special relationship between human actions and the system of creation; in such a way that whenever human society acts, in belief and action, based on its Fitri (natural) requirements, the doors of blessings are opened for it, and if they corrupt, it will lead them to ruin (Verse 41 of Surah Rum; Verse 96 of Surah Al-A’raf; Verse 11 of Surah Ar-Ra’d: and Verse 30 of Surah Ash-Shura).

A large part of these connections is understandable while some of it is beyond the scope of human knowledge. In a sacred Hadith, God Almighty swears by His honor and glory: “There is no servant who prefers My wish to his own desire except that I place in his soul self-sufficiency, and I make him think of the Hereafter, and I make the heavens and the earth his guarantors of sustenance, and I am his partner in trade with every merchant.”

The final phrase in this Hadith conveys that trade is not lawless, and there is a system that governs the market, which, if God wills, will make it beneficial to the merchant.

 

Therefore, the effect of Istighfar on economic growth (Verses 10-12 of Surah Nuh) is twofold; first, true Istighfar is not only in seeking forgiveness verbally, but most of it is a practical request to be free from moral and behavioral corruption; hence, part of the economic effects of Istighfar are due to this reform of his attitude, which attracts customers. But religious texts indicate that its unseen effect is much deeper.