Salat al-Tawbah - The Repentance Prayer After Sin

1. 1Stop the sin immediately and make wudu.
2. 2Pray two voluntary rakahs with presence.
3. 3Recite istighfar with the four pillars (abandon, remorse, resolve, restore rights).
4. 4Hide the sin, repeat as needed, never despair of mercy.

The method

“No servant commits a sin, then purifies himself, prays two rakahs and seeks Allah’s forgiveness except that Allah forgives him” (Abu Dawud/Tirmidhi, graded good) - then recite Quran 3:135. Pray anytime except the three disliked windows (sunrise, zawal, sunset); nights are best for tearful privacy.

Follow with Sayyidul-Istighfar or the great istighfar (both on our dua pages) and a firm resolve: name the sin, feel remorse, abandon it now, resolve never to return - the four pillars of tawbah.

Conditions, rights and major sins

Tawbah needs: abandoning the sin, remorse, resolve, and - for sins against people - restoring rights (return money, seek forgiveness, correct slander where safe). Allah forgives all sins including major ones (39:53) except dying on shirk; no sin is “too big”, no sinner “too far”.

Repeat tawbah for repeated slips without despair - the Prophet ﷺ sought forgiveness 100 times daily sinless; persistence in returning beats one dramatic repentance followed by relapse. Hide your sins: publicizing them forfeits the covering Allah gave.