Thus the messengers described Him as the Living One, exalted above death; the All-Knowing, exalted above ignorance; the All-Powerful, the Strong, the Mighty, exalted above incapacity, weakness, humiliation, or weariness; the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, exalted above deafness and blindness; the Self-Sufficient, exalted above need; the Generous, exalted above miserliness; the Wise and Forbearing, exalted above foolishness; the Truthful, exalted above falsehood—indeed, with every other attribute of perfection, such as describing Him as the Most Loving, the Most Merciful, the Most Subtle.

Allah the Exalted has said:

“Say: He is Allah, the One;
Allah, al-Ṣamad (the Ever-Sufficient);
He neither begets nor is begotten;
and none is comparable to Him.”
(Qur’an 112: 1–4)

The name al-Ṣamad encompasses both the affirmation of every attribute of perfection and the negation of every deficiency. He is the All-Knowing whose knowledge is perfect, the All-Powerful whose power is perfect, the All-Wise whose wisdom is perfect.

We have authored a detailed treatise on the commentary of this surah, and another demonstrating that it equals one-third of the Qur’an, wherein we cited the statements of Muslim scholars from the Companions and the Followers concerning the meaning of “al-Ṣamad,” showing that the majority of what they said is correct, such as the statement of those who said