First published on: The 99 Names of God – 6th: The Eternal Refuge (As-Samad)


Jehad Adel

Our Heroine

Her facial expressions suddenly changed by ending the call…” Why they call me only when they need something?” She asked her friend. Unexpectedly, her friend replied: Because Allah( only One God) loves you. Our heroine seemed not to understand, so her friend continued: Don’t you know that Allah is the Eternal Refuge (As-Samad?) He loves those who apply according to His Attributes. It seems like a gift for you that Allah enables you to be a refuge for people. The friend realized  that the subject seems new for the heroine, so she decided to illustrate more…

Meaning

  In Arabic, the root for As-Samad is the verb (samad.) It means to turn your attention to someone, or to to demand from him to fulfill what you need. Islam conveys these meanings also. Muslim scholars define As-Samad as the One who can satisfy each need in a way He knows that is best, while He is without any need. Moreover, He is the One upon whom all of the creation depend, while He depends on no one. There is no faults in Him. Adding to that, when you make someone your ultimate goal, then he must be As-Samad!

Sincerity

According to the previous meanings, if you try to put anyone but Allah in this position you will lose. Your natural position calls you to accept this truth. Also the incidents in this life do the same! How many times  you make any false god, even your ego, as your ultimate goal and then you fail? Because of this strong relation between sincerity (ikhlas in Arabic), This Name of Allah (As-Samad) is mentioned in the noble Quran in the chapter of al-Ikhlas (sincerity.) Allah says:

 Say, He is Allah, [who is ] One, Allah, the Eternal Refuge,” Qur’an(112:1-2)

In fact, this meaning is the essence of Islam. The noble Quran conveys this meaning in different ways. For example, Allah reminds humans of their reaction towards hardships and their need for The Creator. He also reminds them of their negligence after being rescued to let them reconsider the matter before the time out. This fact is mentioned in a chapter called ( al-An’am[ the Grazing Livestock]); a significance that those who don’t pay attention to this issue are like the grazing livestock!

Allah says:

  Say,”Who rescues you from the darknesses of the land and sea [when] you call upon Him imploring [aloud] and privately, ‘If He should save us from this [crisis], we will surely be among the thankful.'” (63).Say, “It is Allah who saves you from it and from every distress; then you [still] associate others with Him,” Qur’an(6:64)


Application

After this new prospect, our heroine came to new views. She thanked her friend& decided:

_ To rely and depend on As-Samad only & to turn to Him in times of hardships & ease

_ To read the Quran,  to understand its meanings, & to apply as possible

_ To be happy to help others because Allah enables her to do this, not everyone has this gift.