Recognizing Al-Tawwab [2:37]

We have been talking about the topic of Tawba the last few days and today we will explore Allah [swt]’s attribute of Al-Tawwab. 

The first time the Quran uses the divine name al-Tawwāb it appears within the story of Adam (as): 

فَتَلَقَّى آدَمُ مِن رَّبِّهِ كَلِمَاتٍ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ إِنَّهُ هُوَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ 

[2:37] Then Adam received (some) words from his Lord, so He turned to him mercifully; surely He is al-Tawwāb, al-Rahīm.

The context of  this verse is this: After Iblis tempted Adam [as] and he was removed from the Garden, Adam [as] felt the full weight of what had happened. He had left behind a place of ease, beauty, and nearness to God and now found himself in a world of effort and hardship. So he turned repentent. With his whole heart and with genuine remorse, he turned back to his Lord.

At the same time, the Mercy of Allah [swt] was bestowed on him with 'kalimat’ ‘effective words' by the means of which Adam repented and He accepted his repentance mercifully. Why? Because He is Al-Tawwab and Al-Rahim. The  grammatical form of the name al-Tawwāb is an intensive form in Arabic. It means the One Who turns, and turns, and turns again: who is constantly, inexhaustibly turning. The Quran is telling us that this is not an act of grace that might be withdrawn. It is a permanent character of the All Merciful. 

According to hadiths transmitted through the Imams, the words Prophet Adam [as] was taught were the names of the Prophet Muhammad [saw] and the Ahlul Bayt [as]. In other words, names of those who would carry the fullest human turning toward God across all of time. Those who teach mankind the art of turning towards Allah [swt]. Adam [as]'s repentance was made through them, by means of a gift he received from above. According to some tafasir, it was this learning of the words that paved the way of the repenteance of Adam [as]

We have talked about the Tauba of human beings and what it means to turn or return to Allah [swt]. When ascribed to Allah [swt], scholars explain that His turning, His tauba and His attribute of being Al-Tawwab signifies that God returns or restores the servant to His grace and mercy, meaning that He accepts the turning of the person and forgives his sins. It is interesting to note that the Holy Attribute of Al-Tawwab is most often paired with Al-Rahim [the special Mercy that Allah [swt] shows His servants]. In other words, His turning and His mercy are not separate moments. They move together.

Allama Tabataba'i, commenting on this verse in his Al-Mizan, draws a distinction: when tawbah is attributed to the human being, it means a return from sin. When tawbah is attributed to Allah, it means something entirely different which is a return to mercy. The same word, the same root, but two realities. Adam [as]’s turning was a creature finding his way back from his own error. Allah [swt]'s turning was the Merciful Lord restoring what had been withheld and pouring His grace back in. The name Tawwāb belongs to both, but only one of them turns from love.

We come to tawbah carrying our record, our embarrassment, our incomplete understanding of what we have done and to whom. He receives us carrying something else entirely. As al-Jibouri explains in his commentary on the Divine Names, the initiation of repentance in all reality comes from Allah as He is the One Who enables it, He does not withhold the capacity from us, He concludes the movement with His acceptance. We respond to a turning that has already begun and was initiated by Al-Tawwab.

Scholars further explain that Tawba of man is flanked on both sides by two tawbas of God. Man can never do without the mercy of God. He needs help to turn away from sins; only then he may return to God, then again the mercy of God comes forward and his repentance is accepted. Therefore an acceted repentence of man issues forth from the Mercy of God and also ends on His Mercy. The Quran tells us in 9:118: then He returned to them [mercifully] so that they might return .

To put it very simply, the Divine Attribute of Al-Tawwab means:

1.    He is always turning towards us

2.    Gives us the taufiq and opportunity to turn towards Him

3.    He opens the door

4.    And He accepts the repentence with Mercy

Imam Ali (as), in his letter of counsel to his son Imam Hassan (as) [Letter 31 of Nahj al-Balagha] describes the character of this turning in intimate detail. The Imam speaks of a Lord who has already arranged the encounter with extreme generosity:

"He has not required you to get a mediator for you to Him. He does not hasten with punishment. He does not taunt you for repenting, nor does He humiliate you. He has not been harsh in accepting repentance. He does not severely question you about your sins. He does not disappoint you of His mercy. Rather, He regards abstention from sin as a virtue. He counts your one sin as one while He counts your one virtue as ten. He has opened for you the door of repentance." (Nahj al-Balagha, Letter 31, p. 53)

SubhanAllah! This is the character of the One we return to. The odds are weighted in our favour due to Him being Rahim. 

When Imam Zayn al-Abidin (as) addresses this Name in the Dua al-Tawbah of the Sahifa Sajjadiyya, he says: "Surely You are the Relenting One toward the sinners, and the Merciful to the erring ones who turn back." He then adds: "You commanded repentance and guaranteed acceptance, and You urged to supplication and promised response." The divine tawba is not contingent on the quality of our effort. It was guaranteed before we arrived.

As we have discussed previously, we have a Lord Who, when He turns, turns completely. He covers what needs to be covered, restores what needs to be restored, and loves where He accepts. The divine tawbah produces mahabbah and sitr: love and protective concealment. Both at once.

Every time we find ourselves hesitating from turning towards Him, let us remind ourselves that Al-Tawwab has already initiated the turning and is waiting to hear back so He can return to us in His Rahma. Let us be amongst the tawwabun so we can taste the Love, Mercy and Forgiveness of the Al-Tawwab. 

"O God, so here I am: I have come to You obeying Your command — for You have commanded supplication — and asking the fulfilment of Your promise — for You have promised to respond. You have said: Supplicate Me and I will respond to you (40:60). O God, so bless Muhammad and his Household, meet me with Your forgiveness just as I have met You with my confession, lift me up from the fatal infirmities of sins just as I have let myself down before You, and cover me with Your covering just as You have shown no haste to take vengeance on me."

Dua al-Tawbah (Sahifa Sajjadiyya, Dua 31)

PS: Did you know that this content is also available [in a bit more depth] as a podcast?

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/loving-and-living-the-quran/id1039955011