“al-Samad” indicates that the perfection denoted by this name belongs exclusively to Him.

We have already explained the meaning of al-Samad and how it encompasses every attribute of perfection, as the scholars transmitted from Ibn Abī Talha’s account of Ibn ʿAbbās’s explanation. Ibn Jarīr, Ibn Abī Hātim, al-Bayhaqī and others cited it. Explaining His word “al-Samad,” he says:

“The Master whose mastery is perfect; the Noble One whose nobility is perfect; the Great One whose greatness is perfect; the Wise One whose wisdom is perfect; the All-Knowing One whose knowledge is perfect; and the Forbearing One whose forbearance is perfect. He is perfect in every aspect of nobility and mastery. Such is His description—glorified be He—and it befits Him alone. He has no equal, and there is nothing like Him. Glorified be He, the One, the All-Subduing.”

Likewise, it is established through the narration of al-Aʿmash from Abū Wāʾil, cited by al-Bukhārī in his Sahīh and transmitted by many scholars in their books, that he said:

“Al-Samad is the Master whose mastery has reached its utmost perfection.”

Several of the early generations, including Ibn Masʿūd, Ibn ʿAbbās and others, also said:

“Al-Samad is the One who has no hollow interior.”

Both explanations are true and accord with the Arabic language, as has been explained at length in its proper place. That al-samad means “the master” is well known; the other meaning is also recognized in the language. Al-Jawharī and others mentioned that al-samad is a variant of al-samt (that which is solid, without a hollow interior). This is not a case of substituting the letter t for d, as some have supposed; rather, the forms samada, yasmudu, samadan themselves indicate this meaning.

The point here is that attributes of perfection pertain only to things that exist