Tafsir al-Sadi - Abd al-Rahman al-Sadi’ - (498)

Tafsir al-SadiAbd al-Rahman al-Sadi’

“Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that lies between them. So worship Him and patiently persevere in His worship. Do you know of anyone equal to Him?”

He then establishes His all-encompassing knowledge and freedom from forgetfulness on the grounds that He is the “Lord of the heavens and the earth.” His lordship over the heavens and the earth—and the fact that they exist according to the finest and most perfect order, with no negligence or neglect, aimlessness or futility—is decisive proof of His all-encompassing knowledge. Therefore, do not preoccupy yourself with that. Rather, devote yourself to what benefits you and brings you good: worshipping Him alone, without partner. “And patiently persevere in His worship”—that is, make yourself remain steadfast in it, strive against your lower self, uphold it fully, and perfect it to the best of your ability. Devoting oneself to the worship of Allah also provides the worshipper with solace from every attachment and desire. As Allah Most High says: “Do not let your eyes extend toward what We have given various groups of them to enjoy—the splendor of the life of this world—so that We may test them through it,” until He says: “Command your family to pray and patiently persevere in it,” to the end of the verse.

“Do you know of anyone equal to Him?” That is, do you know of any created being who is His peer, likeness, or equal? This is a rhetorical question intended as a negation—a truth established by reason. In other words, you know of no peer or likeness to Him, for He is the Lord, while all besides Him are under His lordship; He is the Creator, while all besides Him are created; He is self-sufficient in every respect, while all besides Him are intrinsically needy in every respect; and He is the Perfect One, possessing absolute perfection in every respect, while all besides Him are deficient and possess no perfection except what Allah Most High has granted them. This is decisive proof that Allah alone deserves to be worshipped, that worshipping Him is truth, and that worshipping anything besides Him is falsehood. For this reason, He commanded that He alone be worshipped and that one patiently persevere in worshipping Him, grounding this command in His perfection and His exclusive possession of grandeur and the most beautiful names.

﴿رَبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا فَاعْبُدْهُ وَاصْطَبِرْ لِعِبَادَتِهِ هَلْ تَعْلَمُ لَهُ سَمِيًّا﴾ . ثم علل إحاطة علمه، وعدم نسيانه، بأنه ﴿رَبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ﴾ فربوبيته للسماوات والأرض، وكونهما على أحسن نظام وأكمله، ليس فيه غفلة ولا إهمال، ولا سدى، ولا باطل، برهان قاطع على علمه الشامل، فلا تشغل نفسك بذلك، بل اشغلها بما ينفعك ويعود عليك طائله، وهو: عبادته وحده لا شريك له، ﴿وَاصْطَبِرْ لِعِبَادَتِهِ﴾ أي: اصبر نفسك عليها وجاهدها، وقم عليها أتم القيام وأكملها بحسب قدرتك، وفي الاشتغال بعبادة الله تسلية للعابد عن جميع التعلقات والمشتهيات، كما قال تعالى: ﴿وَلا تَمُدَّنَّ عَيْنَيْكَ إِلَى مَا مَتَّعْنَا بِهِ أَزْوَاجًا مِنْهُمْ زَهْرَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا لِنَفْتِنَهُمْ فِيهِ﴾ إلى أن قال: ﴿وَأْمُرْ أَهْلَكَ بِالصَّلاةِ وَاصْطَبِرْ عَلَيْهَا﴾ الآية. ﴿هَلْ تَعْلَمُ لَهُ سَمِيًّا﴾ أي: هل تعلم لله مساميا ومشابها ومماثلا من المخلوقين. وهذا استفهام بمعنى النفي، المعلوم بالعقل. أي: لا تعلم له مساميا ولا مشابها، لأنه الرب، وغيره مربوب، الخالق، وغيره مخلوق، الغني من جميع الوجوه، وغيره فقير بالذات من كل وجه، الكامل الذي له الكمال المطلق من جميع الوجوه، وغيره ناقص ليس فيه من الكمال إلا ما أعطاه الله تعالى، فهذا برهان قاطع على أن الله هو المستحق لإفراده بالعبودية، وأن عبادته حق، وعبادة ما سواه باطل، فلهذا أمر بعبادته وحده، والاصطبار لها، وعلل ذلك بكماله وانفراده بالعظمة والأسماء الحسنى.