Surah Al-Nasr 110:3

فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَاسْتَغْفِرْهُ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ تَوَّابًا

110:3 Note that “glorification of the Lord with His praise” has been enjoined before seeking His protection and forgiveness. Glorification of the Lord points out His Jalâlîجلااي- Majestic Attribute and seeking His Protection draws our attention to His Jamâlîجمالي- lovable and amiable qualities. It is proper to first remind ourselves of Allâh’s praiseworthy Attributes before seeking a favour. The seven verses of Surah al-Fâtihah are also divided into its first three and a half verses of glorification and the remaining three and a half verses of seeking protections.

In the case of a sinful person, the injunction of seeking His protection and forgiveness - istighfâr means seeking the pardon of Allâh. On the part of a sinless person like the Holy Prophet (pbuh), who has already been purified by the Lord Himself, it means seeking further grace, greater blessings and protection from the satanic forces opposing his mission. The Holy Prophet (pbuh) is told here that since Islam has gained predominance in the land and his former enemies have become his devoted servants he should now ask Allâh to forgive them the grave wrongs they had done to him in the past. The Holy Prophet (pbuh) has also been enjoined to ask Allâh’s protection against weaknesses and shortcomings that might find their way into the Muslim community because of the lack of knowledge and training of the new Muslims. Beside this, he is also enjoined to ask that his followers may be saved by Allâh from deviating from Islamic principles and precepts. The verse should not be understood to mean that the Prophet (pbuh) is called to ask for forgiveness of sinful actions of his own part. According to the Holy Qur’ân he enjoyed complete immunity from every moral lapse or deviation from the right course. Moreover, asking forgiveness does not mean only remaining safe from the lapses that one has committed, but it also points to the reaching of that standard of moral excellence and of innocence where one becomes deserving of exercising the right of intercession for his community. Thus, even the most innocent stands in need of istighfârإستغفار. All Prophets of Allâh asked for istighfâr (cf. 38:24). The verse also indicates that if people should embrace Islam in hosts, a true believer ought not to grow self-complacent, but should rather become more humble and more conscious of his own failings.

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