Repentance from Zina
Salaam, I sent you a question regarding repentance from zina. But i need a clarification. I understood from the response that for committing fornication, lashes as a punishment is Not a must to get forgiveness from Allah.But i need to know, if one repented from zina and then repeated sins of similar nature, is the door open for forgiveness?? And if i confided in some people about this sin in the past, or others may have an idea, if people know about it in my past, will Allah still forgive me? I understand now that i should bury my sin and not tell anyone, but what about what i have shared before? Does Allah's forgiveness depend on whether people know??Also i got married a while ago and in our country, we had a proper Nikah administered by a Maulvi and Mahr was exchanged. On the form, there were 3 options listed whether bride is virgin, divorced or widowed and virgin was marked for me. I was obviously in no position to reveal to anyone/ family/ or my future husband otherwise for that would ruin my future or any chance of redemption. Im scared to ask this but i need to know, if my Nikah was carried out properly as per the norm but 'virgin' was marked on the form for me, is my marriage valid? Im terrified to have this thought even occur to me, but for my peace of mind i need to know that i have closed this dark chapter and can move ahead.Also, on repeating similar acts after repenting from fornication, if i repent now, will Allah forgive me and wipe my sins? I am ashamed of my sins and i wish i could undo my past but i cant. Im 31 yrs old, is there hope for me?I read somewhere that if a non Muslim converts to Islam his previous sins are wiped out. If being a Muslim i repent from my past mistakes even if they are as ho rrible as fornication, will Allah accept my repentance and wipe away my sins?Pls keep my questions confidential and put them through to a reliable Islamic scholar and guide me pls.Rgrdsa