قُلْ هُوَ اللهُ أَحَدٌ ۞ اللهُ الصَّمَدُ ۞ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ ۞ وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ”
“Say He is Allah (the) One. The Self-Sufficient Master, Whom all creatures need, He does not beget, nor was He begotten, and there is none equal to Him”
Surah Al-Ikhlas [112]
To be recited 3 times
Brief Commentary
- This surah is included in the morning and evening supplications as the prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said that reciting this surah along with surah Al-Falaq [113] and Al-Naas [114] three times every morning and evening will suffice a person for protection from everything [1]
- This surah is called Al-Ikhlas (Purity) as it centres exclusively on Allah’s attributes. It is also named such owing to its meaning which propels/drives a person to have a pure, unadulterated belief in Allah
- It is reported that this surah descended from the heavens when Quraysh challenged the messenger of Allah (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) to provide Allah’s lineage. This surah was the answer/reply [2]
- The surah begins by affirming that Allah is “One” in terms of His Lordship, His [deserving of] Worship, and His names and attributes
- The Arabic word used in the surah to affirm that Allah is “One” also carries the meaning of “only” i.e. His oneness is unique, and there is none like Him
- The second ayah of this surah doesn’t only inform us that He is “The Self-Sufficient Master”, rather it also means that we are all dependent on Him, therefore He is Self-Sufficient as well as the whole creation needing Him and depending on Him
- The people of Quraysh wanted to know the lineage of Allah, so He clarified to them in this surah that He does not have a father or son. When one has a father, this shows they needed someone to cause them to be brought into existence, and when one has a son, this shows they need someone to assist them or to carry their lineage, and that this person is similar to His father. Since all of these points contradict the quality of being “Self-Sufficient”, it is only befitting that Allah is free from them
- The last verse is a summary of the previous verses in that there is none like Allah, and that He has the most perfect and complete qualities
- Though we may have a quality that Allah has e.g. mercy; His quality is in the most perfect and complete form, whereas our quality is deficient and is therefore incomparable to His, Hence, “there is none equal to Him”
Benefits & Action Points
- As with Ayatul Kursi, this surah deals with the greatness of Allah so it is included in the morning and evening supplications so that a person begins to appreciate the greatness of Allah, and therefore is more attentive and optimistic when reciting the remainder of the supplications
- The prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) informed us that this surah is equivalent to a third of the Qur’an [3]
- The prophet (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said to a companion who loved this surah and used to recite it in every rakah, “your love for it will cause you to enter Jannah” [4]
- This surah affirms that we are all in need of Allah, and that He can see to all of our needs, so ensure you reflect over this when reciting this surah to set yourself in the right frame of mind for making further supplications
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- Hadith, reported by Abu Dawud, hadith number 5082, Al-Tirmidhi, hadith number 3575, and Al-Nasaa’I, hadith number 5428
- Hadith, reported by Al-Tirmidhi, hadith number 3364
- Hadith, reported by Sahih Bukhari, hadith number 5015
- Hadith, reported by Al-Tirmidhi, hadith number 2901
Hadith Commentary 