CHAPTER 112: AL-IKHLAS (THE SINCERITY / THE PURITY)

It was revealed in the Mecca period. It consists of four verses. It is the surah that is the essence of the Qur’an and Islam. For this reason, it is called by this name. (H. T. FEYIZLI 1/604)

Upon the pagans saying to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh), "Tell us the lineage of your Lord," Almighty Allah revealed this surah to introduce Himself. (From Ahmed b. Hanbel 5/133, 134; O. CELIK, 5/656)

Hadith: "I swear by Allah, in whose hand of power my soul is, that this surah is equivalent to one-third of the Qur’an." (From Bukhari, Tawhid 1; Muslim, Musafirin 259; O. CELIK, 5/655)

Some of the scholars who interpreted the above hadith regarding Surah Al-Ikhlas being equivalent to one-third of the Qur’an evaluated this equivalence in terms of the reward for reciting the surah, while others evaluated it in terms of its subject matter and meaning. According to the second view, the surah is related to monotheism (tawhid), which is the first of the three basic subjects of the Qur’an; a person who thoroughly understands the meaning of this surah and forms his creed in the direction of the teaching of this surah will have understood and adopted the monotheism and creed (akaid) section of the Qur’an as well. (QUR’AN WAY 5/716)

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

112/1-4 THERE IS NONE COMPARABLE TO HIM

Translation

1- (O my Prophet!) Say: “He is Allah, (who is) One.” (He has no partner or likeness.)

2- Allah is the Samad (every being is in need of Him, but He is in need of nothing; He is the only being to be resorted to and asked for help).

3- 4- He neither begets (He did not become a father) nor is He born. 4- And there is nothing comparable (and similar) to Him.

Commentary

(1) Say: 'He is Allah, One.’

Allah the Almighty is one, unique. He is not like what the Christians, who believe in the trinity of "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit," say. Nor is He like what the pagans, who believe in the existence of many deities, believe. (O. CELIK, 5/657)

There are three meanings for Allah being characterized as "One," and each is true regarding Almighty Allah: (a) "He is one" means there is no second deity besides Him. This expresses that He is "not one in the sense of number." In fact, the purpose of this surah is to inform the pagans, as an answer, that Allah has no partner. (b) "He is unique," He has no likeness or partner. Indeed, when it is said, "Such a person is unique in his age," it means he has no equal. (c) "Allah is one," He cannot be divided or separated into parts. (O. CELIK, 5/657)

(2) ‘Allah is Samad.’

The word "Samad" means "the one to whom everyone presents their needs, but who himself is in need of no one" (Raghib al-Isfahani). According to its context in the surah, Samad means the "Necessary Being" (Wajib al-Wujud) who is not in need of anyone for His existence, and to whom everything owes its existence and continuity.

Accordingly, the word Samad is directly an explanation of the name Ahad (the One); the following verse, meaning "He has not begotten and is not born," is also an explanation of the name Samad. Tabari defined Samad as "the only deity worthy of worship besides whom no one else should be worshipped." The name Samad, which appears only here in the Holy Qur’an, is also included in some hadiths, primarily in the "Hadith of Asma-i Husna" (Tirmidhi, Deavat 83). (From Bukhari, Tafsir 112; Tirmidhi, Deavat 64; QUR’AN WAY 5/715, 716)

(3) ‘He neither begets!

Allah has not begotten; therefore, He has not adopted any children. He has neither a son nor a daughter. Just as Allah is characterized by all attributes of perfection, He is also far from attributes of deficiency. As can be seen, this part of the verse rejects all those who attribute children to Allah. For example, it rejects the Jews who say, "Ezra is the son of Allah" (cf. Tawbah 9/30); the Christians who say, "The Messiah is the son of Allah" (cf. Tawbah 9/30); and the Arab pagans who claim, "The angels are the daughters of Allah" (cf. Saffat 37/150, 153; Zukhruf 43/16). Almighty Allah does not accept any of these, informing us that He has no child. (O. CELIK, 5/659)

‘Nor is He begotten ’

Allah is not born either. He was not the child of either a father or a mother. Because everything that is born comes into existence later. Almighty Allah, however, is eternal (Qadim) and pre-eternal (Azali); He has no beginning. It is not possible for Him to have been born or to have a father. With this verse, everything related to lineage and ancestry is negated from Almighty Allah in all its aspects. (O. CELIK, 5/659)

(4) ‘And there is none comparable (and similar) to Him.’

Neither in His essence, nor in His attributes, nor in His actions does any of His creatures resemble Him. Because He is the sole owner and creator of everything. In that case, it is not possible for there to be a likeness among His creations that could rise to His level or approach Him. He is infinitely exalted and far from this. It is stated in a verse: "...There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing." (Shura 42/11; O. CELIK, 5/660)