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What is the ruling on the following: 1. The feeling that repentance is not sincere despite its constant renewal, and how can a person achieve satisfaction with their repentance? 2. Is it true that whoever drinks alcohol or commits adultery in this world will be deprived of the wine of the Hereafter and the Houris? 3. How to make up for missed prayers and fasting, and is it necessary to specify their number, given the difficulty in doing so? 4. Solving the problem of debts that cannot be specified or returned to their owners. 5. Will a person be held accountable for the thoughts that cross their mind, especially those related to women?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

A servant's repentance is preceded by God's repentance through His enabling of it. Repentance has conditions, the most important of which is returning rights to their owners, or giving charity on their behalf if their identification is impossible. Whoever repents with sincere repentance will not be subject to the specific warnings (threats of punishment) associated with sins, nor will they be deprived of the Hur al-'Ain (beautiful companions of Paradise). Scholars have differed regarding the make-up prayers for a repentant person who abandoned prayer, and the more cautious opinion is to make them up. If the number is unknown, one should investigate and make up what they believe is most likely to clear their conscience. Evil thoughts are not held accountable unless they turn into actions, and they should be resisted. Marriage or fasting is recommended for whoever fears for their self.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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