Tafsir al-Sadi - Abd al-Rahman al-Sadi’ - (77)

Tafsir al-SadiAbd al-Rahman al-Sadi’

(163) “Your God is One God. There is no deity except Him, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.”

The Exalted informs us—and He is the truest of speakers—that He is “One God”; that is, He is uniquely one and alone in His Essence, His names, His attributes, and His acts. He has no partner in His Essence, none comparable to Him, no equal, no likeness, and no peer; nor is there any creator or governor besides Him. Since this is so, He alone deserves to be worshiped as God with every form of worship, and no created being is to be associated with Him. For He is “the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful,” possessed of immense mercy unmatched by the mercy of anyone else. It encompasses all things and extends to every living being. Through His mercy, created beings came into existence; through His mercy, they attained every kind of perfection; through His mercy, every affliction was averted from them; and through His mercy, He made Himself known to His servants through His attributes and blessings. He also made clear to them everything they require for the welfare of their religion and worldly lives by sending the messengers and revealing the scriptures.

Once it is known that every blessing enjoyed by Allah’s servants comes from Him and that no created being can bring benefit to anyone, it becomes clear that Allah alone deserves every form of worship and must be singled out for love, fear, hope, veneration, reliance, and all other acts of obedience.

Among the most grievous injustices and vilest evils is to turn from worshiping Him to worshiping servants; to associate a creature (1) made of dust with the Lord of all lords; or to worship, alongside the Creator and Governor of all affairs—the all-powerful and mighty One—a created being who is himself governed and utterly helpless in every respect. He has subdued all things, and everything submits to Him.

Thus, this verse affirms the Creator’s oneness and divinity. It establishes this by denying divinity to all other created beings and explains the foundational proof for it: the affirmation of His mercy, among whose effects are the existence of all blessings and the averting of [all] afflictions. This is a general proof of His exalted oneness.

(1) In manuscript B: “created beings.”

﴿١٦٣﴾ ﴿وَإِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ لا إِلَهَ إِلا هُوَ الرَّحْمَنُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾ . يخبر تعالى - وهو أصدق القائلين - أنه ﴿إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ﴾ أي: متوحد منفرد في ذاته، وأسمائه، وصفاته، وأفعاله، فليس له ⦗٧٨⦘ شريك في ذاته، ولا سمي له ولا كفو له، ولا مثل، ولا نظير، ولا خالق، ولا مدبر غيره، فإذا كان كذلك، فهو المستحق لأن يؤله ويعبد بجميع أنواع العبادة، ولا يشرك به أحد من خلقه، لأنه ﴿الرَّحْمَنُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾ المتصف بالرحمة العظيمة، التي لا يماثلها رحمة أحد، فقد وسعت كل شيء وعمت كل حي، فبرحمته وجدت المخلوقات، وبرحمته حصلت لها أنواع الكمالات، وبرحمته اندفع عنها كل نقمة، وبرحمته عرّف عباده نفسه بصفاته وآلائه، وبيَّن لهم كل ما يحتاجون إليه من مصالح دينهم ودنياهم، بإرسال الرسل، وإنزال الكتب. فإذا علم أن ما بالعباد من نعمة، فمن الله، وأن أحدا من المخلوقين، لا ينفع أحدا، علم أن الله هو المستحق لجميع أنواع العبادة، وأن يفرد بالمحبة والخوف، والرجاء، والتعظيم، والتوكل، وغير ذلك من أنواع الطاعات. وأن من أظلم الظلم، وأقبح القبيح، أن يعدل عن عبادته إلى عبادة العبيد، وأن يشرك المخلوق (١) من تراب، برب الأرباب، أو يعبد المخلوق المدبر العاجز من جميع الوجوه، مع الخالق المدبر القادر القوي، الذي قد قهر كل شيء ودان له كل شيء. ففي هذه الآية، إثبات وحدانية الباري وإلهيته، وتقريرها بنفيها عن غيره من المخلوقين وبيان أصل الدليل على ذلك وهو إثبات رحمته التي من آثارها وجود جميع النعم، واندفاع [جميع] النقم، فهذا دليل إجمالي على وحدانيته تعالى.

(١) في ب: المخلوقين.