The being that is above all whims and fancies.

The first verse speaks about Tawhid and contains the living explanation when it says, ‘There is nothing similar to Him.”

It is correct that the Oneness of Being is something that is above whims and fancies and it is impossible for us to comprehend His being because we can only imagine such things but the thing that has no similitude is not understood by us because we think of the things of which we have seen similarities, or we understand the unseen by the analyzing the things we have seen but a thing of which there is nothing similar is beyond our comprehension. All we know about this entity is that it is present and we try to understand Him through his attributes. The truth is no one including the apostles, Messengers and angels are not totally aware of His pure being.

This admission itself is the last stage of human recognition as is recorded in a very famous Hadith, “We have not recognized you the way we should have”(1) this statement by the Messenger is the highest level of human recognition. We have already discussed the proof that God is infinite and ever present so He cannot be understood through other sources while our thinking prowess is limited so how can we discern the infinite being?

The Kaf in the words “ there is none like Him” is extra (2) There is no being which is similar to God, yes, it may be possible that His sign may be manifest through His knowledge and might. But none can resemble Him in the entire universe.

Some Ulema who do find this “Kaf” to be extra have said, “The verse says that there is none like Him but this refers to His being. Like when we say, “One like you will not traverse this path” or that you should not do this. Some say that here “Like” here is about attributes and no one has the same attributes like God. In our discussion all the three explanations result the same because they reach the same meaning and purpose through different visions.

We should study this Hadith: One person came to the Messenger and asked, “What is the highest stage of knowledge?” the Messenger answered, “To recognize God the way He should be recognized.” (3) He then added, “Remember that He has none similar to Him or a replica, he is the Lord, uniquely one, creator, almighty, first, last, manifest and hidden. Nothing is similar to Him and this is what is called recognition of God the way He should be recognized. It should be remembered that this recognition is comparative for none can really understand Him.

The second speaks about those who say that God is a part of the Triad and calls them disbelievers. (4) The verse does not say that those who believe in the triad are disbelievers but says that those who say that God is one-third of the triad are disbelievers.

The commentators have tried to understand this verse through many ways. Some think that it means those who think of God as one third of the “Ab”, “Ibn” and “Holy spirit” and say that despite it He is one like the sun which has an existence, light and heat but it is one in existence. (5)

In another explanation this verse speaks of one ness in the Trinity and that even if gods are three they are One (this is incorrect because three cannot be equal to one but that one is reality and the other is symbolic)

Tafsir Qartabi says that this verse speaks about a special groups of Christians, the Malekites, the Jacobites, and Nestorians who believed the father, son and the Holy Ghost to be one entity(6) But this is just an assumption for all Christians believe in this triad. Allama Tabatabai says, “What they mean that each of the three is god and the word god is applicable to each one of them. The Father, the Son and Holy Spirit are three but are one (7)

Literally the verse means something else. The fact is that assuming God to be one of the three is disbelief. Considering God to be a part of some material existence; a third of triad or two consider Him as one but after which are two others is disbelief. (Reflect)

This is best explained through a statement by Amirul Mominin. During the Battle of Jamal a Bedouin came to Amirul Mominin and said, “O Caliph do you say that God is One?” He was suddenly set upon by the people who said, “O Bedu can’t you see that Amirul Mominin is busy with important problems and everything has a proper occasion.” But Amirul Mominin said, “Leave him! He is asking about that which I want to see in my enemies (It is the oneness of God that we are fighting for)” He then said, “O Bedu! When we say God is One we mean four things, two of them are incorrect and inapplicable about god and two are those that are proven and undeniable.”

The two meanings not justified with Him are that some says, “He is one” in the numerical sense. It is incorrect because that which has no similitude cannot be numbered and so giving it numbers like one or two in unnecessary and he who says God is one of the third is regarded by Qura’n as a disbeliever. Even if some one says He is one is a restrictive sense regarding being then even it is incorrect because there is no one like God and we cannot imagine a shape or form for Him. He is far above being considered to belong to any category of being.

The two meanings that are correct for Tawhid are one; if someone says, “He is One” for He has no similitude and Our God is like this. The second meaning which is compatible to Tawhid is that some one says, God is one in meaning and His being cannot be compartmentalized in whims, thoughts, intellect etc. Surely are God is like this. (8)

The third verse in this group is Surah Ikhlas and it describes God’s unique Oneness most beautifully. The verses in it are compact and at the same time refute the trinity of the Christian, the claim of the Zoroastrians about two gods and confront the various icons and gods of the idolaters with the Oneness of the One God. It begins by saying, “Say: God is uniquely one.” This explanation means that the Holy Messenger was repeatedly questioned about Oneness and he was commanded to answer them through this short Surah. The words are few but the meaning is vast or this short Surah is based on many issues and various proofs and arguments.

The word “Ahad” was actually “Wahad” and its origin was “Wahda”. The “Wau’ transformed into “Hamza” and it became “Ahad” from Wahid’. This is why the Ulema take “Wahid” and Ahad to mean the same. According to some traditions their meaning is a being that has no similitude. (10)

But some people have differentiated between “Wahid” and “Ahad” and said, “Ahad” is a special attribute of God and is not used for humans or anything else. Some say that “Wahid’ is used in the negative and the positive sense but “Ahad” is spoken only in the negative sense.

Some say that “Ahad” denotes the oneness in being and “Wahid” denotes oneness in attributes. “Ahad” is used for that being that does not accept multiplication and the mind does not imagine it to be anything but one and so it cannot be counted. But ‘Wahid” can be followed by the second and the third. It is also said that “Ahad” is the proof of that entity being infinite and free from components or restrictions of time and space while “Wahid” proves it to be unparallel, unique and incomparable. There is no proof for any of the four e.g. Sunday is called “Yom-ol-Ahad” and Qura’n is called “Allah Wahid” (Baqarah verse 163).

 In the same way “Ahad” has been used as a confirmation in the positive sense as in this and other verses of the Qura’n. (10)

The right explanation is that ‘Ahad” and “Wahid” both have the same meaning. Some commentators feel that “Allah Ahad” is the best for the recognition of God that can be accepted by the human mind because “Ala” points towards a being that includes all the attributes of proof and ‘Ahad’ refutes all negatives from this pure being. (11)

Qura’n gores further and says that God is an existence in His own. He is above all needs and every needy begs Him.

According to Maqayis-ol-Loghata “Samad’ includes two things, to be complete, have the intention, the solidity and when it used for God then it means complete above all needs because all the needy turn to Him and it means God is the necessary being and a complete entity with no needs.

The two things may have the same base and may mean His being which has solidity and an existence entirely on His own and in this way He is above all needs and the needy turn to Him. “Samad” points towards all His positive attributes and this is why many meanings have been attributed to “Samad” each one pointing to a certain attribute of God. (12)

The connection of this verse with the first one is not hidden which speaks about God’ unique oneness because the necessary being will be above all needs and it is imperative that all the needy turn to Him and so His being must be unique and alone,.

The next verse too stresses upon Oneness because it denies the Christian belief of the father, son and the Holy Spirit. .

It refutes the Jewish claim of Ezra being the son of god and condemns and refutes the claim of the polytheists that the angels were the daughters of God. The Book after refuting these and other frivolous claims says, “He begets not nor was He begotten”

It is an established fact that any being that has a son or a father will have a similitude and replica because similarity between the father and son cannot be denied. Such a being cannot be unique and unparalleled. This is the reason God now says, “There is none equal or comparable to Him.”

The arrangement of the verses repeatedly stresses that God is unique, unparalleled, and incomparable, without similitude and one. Each verse of this Surah is an explanation of the earlier verse and compositely illustrates the tree of oneness and all its branches.

(1) Behar-ol-Anwar Vol.3 Page 14

(2) Tafsir Ruhul Ma’ani says some commentators feel the word “Misl” in this verse is extra but Abu Hayyan has denied this and said, “Name is never extra in Arabic Logha”

(3) Behar-ol-Anwar Vol.3 Page 13v

(4): Aqnum” means the real and the entity and the plural is “Aqanim” This is what the Christians present as the proof of trinity.

(5) Tafsir Kabeer Vol.12 Page 60.

(6) Tafsir Qartabi Vol.4 Page 2246 and the same meaning is there in Ruhul Bayan and Al Minar.

(7) Tafsir Al Mizan Vol. 6 page 73.

(8) Behar-ol-Anwar Vol.3 Page 206 Hadith 1

(9) Behar-ol-Anwar Vol, 3, Page 222.

(10) Verse 6 of Surah Tuba, 43 of Surah Nisaa, 26 of Surah Maryam, 180 of Surah Baqarah and 19 of Surah Kahf.

(11) Tafsir Kabeer Vol.32 Page 180

(12) Tafsir Namuna Vol.27 the word “Samad” in Surah Ikhlas.