Seeking Forgiveness A Factor in Attracting God’s Love
One of the effects of Istighfar (seeking divine forgiveness) is to attract God’s love. In Surah Hud, we read:
“Ask the forgiveness of your Lord and turn to Him in repentance. Indeed, my Lord is the Most Merciful, Loving.” (Verse 90)
In addition to the fact that “Indeed, my Lord is the Most Merciful and Loving” is a nominal sentence, the word “Raheem” is a sighah mubalaghah (derivative of extremeness) of kindness and “Wadud” is sighah mubalaghah of love. This shows that God’s love and mercy are not momentary, but are continuous and have many effects and blessings.
Mentioning “Wadud” after “Raheem” indicates that not only does God, by His mercy, pay attention to the servants’ seeking forgiveness and repentance, but He also loves them very much. One of the purposes of referring to God’s kindness and love is to encourage people to seek forgiveness and repent. “Wad” is a special type of love that has obvious effects and consequences such as affection, companionship, and kindness.
As mentioned in the context of couples, affection is mentioned:
“And one of His signs is that He created mates for you from yourselves that you may find rest in them, and He put between you love and compassion; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect.” (Verse 21 of Surah Ar-Rum)
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If God Almighty is called affectionate, it is because He loves His servants and manifests the effects of His love by bestowing upon them His blessings, which no one can count:
“Even if you wanted to count up all of God's blessings, you would not be able to. God is All-forgiving and All-merciful.” (Verse 18 of Surah An-Nahl)
Some verses also indicate that a person realizes the mercy of Allah after seeking forgiveness:
“One who commits a sin or does wrong to himself and then seeks forgiveness from God, will find God All-forgiving and All-merciful.” (Verse 110 of Surah An-Nisa).
