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Surah al ikhlaas
The Declaration of Allah's Perfection
This surah deals with the basic religious belief - unicity of Allah, and has the distinction of being referred to by the Holy Prophet as being equivalent to one third of the Holy Qur'an (Sahih Muslim). It is reported that before going to bed the Holy Prophet used to recite this and the last two surahs, at least thrice (Abu Dawood). This surah is entitled "Ikhlaas", (Sincerity) because its recitation and deliberation over its subject matter is claculated to foster in the reader a deep attachment to Allah leading to unwavering sincerity. Ikhlaas also means purification from impurity and as this chapter purifies the unity of Allah of all polytheism, it is called Al-Ikhlaas.
In view of the importance of its subject matter, the surah has come to be known by several names of which some are: al-Tawhid (Oneness of Allah), al-Ma'rifah (the Knowledge of the Realities), al-Samad (the Absolute), and al-Ikhlaas (the Sincerity).
Occasion of the revelation of this Surah
That this is one of the earliest Makkah Surahs is the view of Hasan, 'Ikkrama, and, above all, Ibn Masud (one of the earliest of the Prophet's companions). Ibn 'Abbas, though much younger than 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud, but regarded as one of the most learned companions, considers this surah to have been revealed at Madinah. In view of the divergent opinions of these two very respected companions of the holy Prophet, some commentators of the Quran are inclined to think that the surah was revealed twice, first at Makkah and then at Madinah.
A narration says that the pagans of Makkah asked a question about the identity of Allah in response to which this surah was revealed. In some narrations it is also said that later in Madinah the Christians of Najran asked the same question. There is no contradiction in these narrations because the questions may have been asked by all of them separately, which is in itself, an evidence of the extraordinary importance of this surah, answering the questions of different persons from various groups. Historic and contextual evidence however support the idea that this surah was revealed in Makkah, and that the holy Prophet also responded to the Christians of Najran by quoting this surah later in Madinah.
"Proclaim: He is Allah, the One and Only"
The word "Qul" here embodies a command to all Muslims to keep proclaiming "Allah is One". Thus the term "Qul" here, means "express the fact and tell others".
"Allah" (Lafz-ul-Jalaalah) is a proper noun par excellence. No plural can be derived from it and it is, according to the best authorities, without derivations. "Allah" is the distinctive name for the Supreme Being in the Qur'an. In the Arabic language, the word is never used for any single being. It is a personal name of God, neither attributive nor descriptive.
According to most correct opinions, Allah is the Being who exists necessarily by Himself, comprising all qualities of perfection. The word connotes all the attributes of supremacy, majesty, perfection and beauty in their infinitude and denotes none but the One and Unique God, the Absolute, Supreme, Perfect, Tender, Omniscient, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Gracious, Benign and Compassionate. The English word "God" which is the common Teutonic word for a personal object of religious worship, falls far short in conveying that which is intended by "ALLAH".
"Ahad" (the One) is an epithet applied to Allah alone and signifies, the One; the Sole; He Who has been and will ever be One and Alone; Who has no second to share in his Lordship, nor in His Essence. Allah is One; One in the sense of His Essential Existence, not only in the numerical sense of the word, (which has its second and third), but the One which has no second in an absolute sense. "One" beyond dimension, beyond measure and beyond categorization; absolute in essence and manifestation, Unicity of Allah.
"Allah, the Self-Existing, Eternal, Absolute"
The term "as-Samad" occurs in the Qur'an only once, and is applied to Allah alone. It comprises of the concepts of Primary Cause, Eternal, Independent Being, combined with the idea that everything existing or conceiveable goes back to Him as its source and is, therefore, dependent on Him for its being as well as for its continued existence. In fact, nothing in the universe is complete in itself, not even the smallest atom. Nothing is self-subsisting; everything depends on some other thing for its existence. Allah Alone is such a Being Who depends on no being or thing. He is above conception and conjecture. His attributes are beyond bound or limit. That is the meaning of as-Samad.
"He begets not, nor is He begotten"
The Arab pagans believed that angels were the children of Allah. "...And they falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters...", (Surah An'am Q6:100). There emitted nothing from Him - neither material things nor a child, nor other things that emit from creatures. The aspect of Divinity can never be reduced to human parenthood or progeny.
"And there is none comparable to Him"
The Holy Essence of Allah is free from qualities that creatures have; and free from all defects and limitations. This is the Unity of Attributes that corresponds to the Absolute Unicity of the Divine Being.
The fact that Allah is one and unique in every respect, without beginning and without ending, has its logical correlate in the statement that "there is nothing that could be compared with Him" - thus precluding any possibility of describing or defining Him. Consequently, the quality of His Being is so sacred that depicting Allah by means of figurative representations or even abstract symbols must be considered as a blasphemous denial of truth and reality.
True Monotheism
This surah points out the fundamental errors of many non monotheistic belief systems in its four brief verses:
The first verse proclaims the Unicity of the Divine Being and rejects categorically all forms of polytheism.
In the second verse, Allah is said to be "as-Samad", which the holy Prophet is reported to have explained as meaning, "the Lord to whom recourse is had in every need, so that all have need of Him and He has need of none".
The third verse points out the error of these ideologies which describe the Divine literally as Father, Son or Daughter, implying physical familial relationships between the Divine and any creation.
The fourth verse negates such beliefs as incarnation, or doctrines according to which mere human beings are likened to God.
Thus four kinds of Shirk are rejected here: a belief in the plurality of gods (v.1), a belief that other things possess the perfect attributes of the Divine Being (v.2), a belief that God is either a Father or a Son (v.3), and a belief that others can do that which is ascribable only to Allah or that anything is comparable to Him (v.4). [/color][/b]
The Declaration of Allah's Perfection
This surah deals with the basic religious belief - unicity of Allah, and has the distinction of being referred to by the Holy Prophet as being equivalent to one third of the Holy Qur'an (Sahih Muslim). It is reported that before going to bed the Holy Prophet used to recite this and the last two surahs, at least thrice (Abu Dawood). This surah is entitled "Ikhlaas", (Sincerity) because its recitation and deliberation over its subject matter is claculated to foster in the reader a deep attachment to Allah leading to unwavering sincerity. Ikhlaas also means purification from impurity and as this chapter purifies the unity of Allah of all polytheism, it is called Al-Ikhlaas.
In view of the importance of its subject matter, the surah has come to be known by several names of which some are: al-Tawhid (Oneness of Allah), al-Ma'rifah (the Knowledge of the Realities), al-Samad (the Absolute), and al-Ikhlaas (the Sincerity).
Occasion of the revelation of this Surah
That this is one of the earliest Makkah Surahs is the view of Hasan, 'Ikkrama, and, above all, Ibn Masud (one of the earliest of the Prophet's companions). Ibn 'Abbas, though much younger than 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud, but regarded as one of the most learned companions, considers this surah to have been revealed at Madinah. In view of the divergent opinions of these two very respected companions of the holy Prophet, some commentators of the Quran are inclined to think that the surah was revealed twice, first at Makkah and then at Madinah.
A narration says that the pagans of Makkah asked a question about the identity of Allah in response to which this surah was revealed. In some narrations it is also said that later in Madinah the Christians of Najran asked the same question. There is no contradiction in these narrations because the questions may have been asked by all of them separately, which is in itself, an evidence of the extraordinary importance of this surah, answering the questions of different persons from various groups. Historic and contextual evidence however support the idea that this surah was revealed in Makkah, and that the holy Prophet also responded to the Christians of Najran by quoting this surah later in Madinah.
"Proclaim: He is Allah, the One and Only"
The word "Qul" here embodies a command to all Muslims to keep proclaiming "Allah is One". Thus the term "Qul" here, means "express the fact and tell others".
"Allah" (Lafz-ul-Jalaalah) is a proper noun par excellence. No plural can be derived from it and it is, according to the best authorities, without derivations. "Allah" is the distinctive name for the Supreme Being in the Qur'an. In the Arabic language, the word is never used for any single being. It is a personal name of God, neither attributive nor descriptive.
According to most correct opinions, Allah is the Being who exists necessarily by Himself, comprising all qualities of perfection. The word connotes all the attributes of supremacy, majesty, perfection and beauty in their infinitude and denotes none but the One and Unique God, the Absolute, Supreme, Perfect, Tender, Omniscient, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Gracious, Benign and Compassionate. The English word "God" which is the common Teutonic word for a personal object of religious worship, falls far short in conveying that which is intended by "ALLAH".
"Ahad" (the One) is an epithet applied to Allah alone and signifies, the One; the Sole; He Who has been and will ever be One and Alone; Who has no second to share in his Lordship, nor in His Essence. Allah is One; One in the sense of His Essential Existence, not only in the numerical sense of the word, (which has its second and third), but the One which has no second in an absolute sense. "One" beyond dimension, beyond measure and beyond categorization; absolute in essence and manifestation, Unicity of Allah.
"Allah, the Self-Existing, Eternal, Absolute"
The term "as-Samad" occurs in the Qur'an only once, and is applied to Allah alone. It comprises of the concepts of Primary Cause, Eternal, Independent Being, combined with the idea that everything existing or conceiveable goes back to Him as its source and is, therefore, dependent on Him for its being as well as for its continued existence. In fact, nothing in the universe is complete in itself, not even the smallest atom. Nothing is self-subsisting; everything depends on some other thing for its existence. Allah Alone is such a Being Who depends on no being or thing. He is above conception and conjecture. His attributes are beyond bound or limit. That is the meaning of as-Samad.
"He begets not, nor is He begotten"
The Arab pagans believed that angels were the children of Allah. "...And they falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters...", (Surah An'am Q6:100). There emitted nothing from Him - neither material things nor a child, nor other things that emit from creatures. The aspect of Divinity can never be reduced to human parenthood or progeny.
"And there is none comparable to Him"
The Holy Essence of Allah is free from qualities that creatures have; and free from all defects and limitations. This is the Unity of Attributes that corresponds to the Absolute Unicity of the Divine Being.
The fact that Allah is one and unique in every respect, without beginning and without ending, has its logical correlate in the statement that "there is nothing that could be compared with Him" - thus precluding any possibility of describing or defining Him. Consequently, the quality of His Being is so sacred that depicting Allah by means of figurative representations or even abstract symbols must be considered as a blasphemous denial of truth and reality.
True Monotheism
This surah points out the fundamental errors of many non monotheistic belief systems in its four brief verses:
The first verse proclaims the Unicity of the Divine Being and rejects categorically all forms of polytheism.
In the second verse, Allah is said to be "as-Samad", which the holy Prophet is reported to have explained as meaning, "the Lord to whom recourse is had in every need, so that all have need of Him and He has need of none".
The third verse points out the error of these ideologies which describe the Divine literally as Father, Son or Daughter, implying physical familial relationships between the Divine and any creation.
The fourth verse negates such beliefs as incarnation, or doctrines according to which mere human beings are likened to God.
Thus four kinds of Shirk are rejected here: a belief in the plurality of gods (v.1), a belief that other things possess the perfect attributes of the Divine Being (v.2), a belief that God is either a Father or a Son (v.3), and a belief that others can do that which is ascribable only to Allah or that anything is comparable to Him (v.4). [/color][/b]