“There is no compulsion in religion.” Qur'an 2:256
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Day 2 of 30 · Who is Allah?

Allah is One

Before you read

Surah Al-Ikhlas is four lines long, yet the Prophet Muhammad described it as equal to a third of the Qur'an, because it sums up who Allah is. The second passage, known as the Verse of the Throne, describes Allah, who never tires, never sleeps and knows everything.

Sahih al-Bukhari 5013: Al-Ikhlas equals a third of the Qur'an · Sahih Muslim 810: the Verse of the Throne is the greatest verse

Al-Ikhlas 112:1–4

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قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ

112:1Say, “The truth is that Allah is One.

ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ

112:2Allah is Besought of all, needing none.

لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ

112:3He neither begot anyone, nor was he begotten.

وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُۥ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌۢ

112:4And equal to Him has never been any one.”

Al-Baqarah 2:255

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ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌ وَلَا نَوْمٌ ۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ

2:255Allah: There is no god but He, the Living, the All-Sustaining. Neither dozing overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth. Who can intercede with Him without His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them; while they encompass nothing of His knowledge, except what He wills. His Kursiyy (Chair) extends to the Heavens and to the Earth, and it does not weary Him to look after them. He is the All-High, the Supreme.

English translation: Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, The Meanings of the Noble Qur'an, via Quran.com. Arabic: Uthmani script.

What does it change if Allah needs nothing from us?