Tawbah Naṣūḥ

Sincere repentance — drawn from the Quranic command 'Turn to Allah in sincere repentance' (66:8). The word nasuh shares a root with sincerity and counsel — it is repentance so complete that it transforms the person who makes it, not merely adjusting behaviour but reorienting the heart. The classical scholars defined its four conditions: cessation of the sin, genuine regret for having committed it, firm resolve never to return to it, and restoration of any wrongfully taken rights. Al-Dhahabi presents tawbah nasuh throughout the book as the available and genuine response to every sin he names — a mercy that makes the book's catalogue of grave sins a guide toward transformation rather than a record of condemnation.

As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Dhahabī and the scholars of his school.