One of the important signs of compassion is for a person to be able to be forgiving. This is how Allah calls upon His servants to be forgiving in the Qur'an:
Make allowances for people, command what is right, and turn away from the ignorant. (Surat al A'raf: 199)
This is something that people may find difficult, but is an attitude that will be well rewarded in the sight of Allah. People may well be caught up in anger and refuse to forgive a mistake. But Allah has revealed to the faithful that it is better to forgive, and has recommended this morality to them:
The repayment of a bad action is one equivalent to it.But if someone pardons and puts things right, his reward is with Allah... (Surat ash-Shura: 40)
In another verse, Allah reveals that "But if someone is steadfast and forgives,that is the most resolute course to follow." (Surat ash-Shura: 43) and emphasizes that this is a very superior form of morality. In the words "Those of you possessing affluence and ample wealth should not make oaths that they will not give to their relatives and the very poor and those who have made hijra in the way of Allah. They should rather pardon and overlook. Would you not love Allah to forgive you? Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (Surat an-Nur: 22) Allah encourages the faithful to consider their own position when it comes to being forgiving. That is because everyone wants Allah to forgive and protect and show him mercy. In the same way, we all hope that other people will excuse and forgive us if we make a mistake. Allah has thus commanded the faithful to treat others in the same way that they would like to be treated themselves. That is an important responsibility, and one that encourages the faithful to be forgiving towards one another. Our Prophet encouraged the faithful to be forgiving in the words, 'Allah has not failed to exalt any man who has forgiven unfairness or cruelty.' (Ahmad)
Since believers know that they may make a mistake at any moment, they behave tolerantly towards others. That is because those verses in the Qur'an that deal with repentance make it clear that the important thing is not making a mistake but rather being determined not to repeat a mistake as soon as one realizes one has done so. One of these verses reads:
Allah only accepts the tawba of those who do evil in ignorance and then quickly make tawba after doing it. Allah turns towards such people. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. (Surat an-Nisa': 17)
Under these conditions, that reveal the sincerity of the individual, the faithful behave most forgivingly and compassionately towards one another. If someone who has committed an error sincerely repents having done so, then they cannot judge that person for his past deeds. Furthermore, even if the faithful are totally in the right and the other side completely in the wrong, they still have no compunction about forgiveness. That is because Allah recommends such behaviour as an example of proper morality, "Those who give in times of both ease and hardship, those who control their rage and pardon other people - Allah loves the good-doers - " (Surah Al 'Imran: 134)
When it comes to forgiveness, the faithful do not distinguish between great and small errors, and do not tailor their view of forgiveness accordingly. Someone may have committed an error and led to great loss of life or great financial loss, thus inflicting severe harm on others. Yet the faithful know that everything that happens does so by the permission of Allah and as part of His destiny, and therefore place themselves in the hands of Allah when it comes to such things, and feel no personal anger.
Alternatively, someone may have transgressed this Qur'anic rule and exceeded the bounds set by Allah. Yet it is only Allah who can judge that person's behaviour. That means that it is never up to the faithful to judge or refuse to forgive anybody on any matter. If a person is truly sorry and repentant then he will have his reward only in the sight of Allah. In fact, Allah has revealed in many verses that apart from 'ascribing partners to Him,' he will forgive the errors of the faithful if they sincerely repent. Since the faithful cannot know that, they simply forgive in the manner revealed to them By Allah, and if the Qur'an has anything to say on a particular subject they treat the person who has committed an error in the light of that.
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