How were Adam (as) and eve forgiven? Why did allah forgive prophet adam?
After violating the command of Allah and succumbing to the temptation of the devil, Adam and Eve (as) were removed from paradise and sent to earth. Angels took Adam (as) to the Island of Ceylon south of India and Eve to an area off the Red Sea, where the city of Jeddah is today. For a long time, they were separated from each other. In the meantime, both continued repenting tirelessly, but for a while, to no avail. Finally, they said:
“Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers.” (Al-Araf, 7: 23) It is also narrated that they mentioned the name ‘Muhammed’ (saw) in their prayers and sought intercession in his spirituality. Through that, they were finally forgiven. The Prophet (saw) explains:
“After Adam (as) committed the error that expelled him from paradise, he understood his mistake and prayed:
‘I ask you to forgive me, Lord, for the sake of Muhammed’.
Allah (jj) said, ‘How do you know Muhammed when I have not even created him?’[1]
Adam (as) replied, ‘Lord, when You created me and breathed into me Your spirit, I lifted my head; and I saw these words inscribed on top of the pillars of Your throne: There is no god but Allah and Muhammed is His messenger. I knew there and then that he would have to be the best of creation to be mentioned in the same breath as Your name!’
‘You have spoken the truth’, Allah (jj) said. ‘Muhammed is the best of my creation. Pray to me for his sake. Since you have, I have forgiven you. I would not have created you, if it was not for Muhammed.’” (Hakim, al-Mustadrak, II, 672)
So, Adam (as) recalled the honor of the Prophet Muhammed (saw) in Allah’s sight and prayed that he be forgiven for his sake. The Almighty pardoned him and sent him an angel to guide him to Mecca. Another angel was sent to Eve, who started making her way to Mecca from Jeddah. The two were reunited late afternoon (Asr) on the ninth of Dhul’hijjah. They broke down in tears and repented once more.
The love and attraction Adam and Eve felt for each other stems from the fact that Eve was created from Adam’s own flesh.
Not only did the Almighty forgive them both in His Eternal mercy and grace, He has also extended that pardon to all those who pray at that very spot of reunion each year, on the same date and hour. That is the reason why pilgrims ascend Mount Arafat each year and pray for forgiveness.
[1]. In pre-eternity, there was only God. Because He wanted to be known by humans and jinn, as much as they could grasp Him, He created the masiwa, which is everything apart from Him. And the first substance He created was the Light of Muhammed; hence, the Prophet’s (saw) words that he was already a messenger when Adam (as) was still between spirit and the flesh (Al-Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 1). That means that while the Prophet’s (saw) essence that is known as the Light of Muhammad was the first substance ever created, his birth on earth is complementarily the last of all prophets; and brings the prophetic chain full circle. What is referred to in the above hadith is therefore not the spirit of the Prophet (saw) but the Prophet (saw) in the flesh.
Source: The History of Prophets in Light of The Qur’an, THE CHAIN OF PROPHETS, Osman Nuri TOPBAŞ, Erkam Publications
