As-Samad
As-Samad is the Eternal Refuge — the One all creation turns to in need, who Himself needs no one.
Name 68 of 99
الصَّمَدُ
As-Samad
The Eternal Refuge
- In Arabic
- الصَّمَدُ
- Transliteration
- As-Samad
- Position in the list
- Name 68 of 99
As-Samad — The Eternal Refuge
What the name means
The early scholars gave two readings, and both are sound: the One to whom all turn with their needs, and the One who is solid — without hollow, without hunger, without dependency.
Together they explain why He alone can be relied on: what has needs of its own cannot carry yours.
Living by this name
It is the second verse of Surah al-Ikhlas, placed immediately after oneness. Being one is not enough for a deity; being sufficient is what makes the one worth turning to.
Its response is to bring the whole need, not the part you think is reasonable. See also Al-Ahad and Al-Ghaniyy.
As-Samad in the Quran
The verse below contains this name. Each reference is checked against the Arabic text of the Quran before it is published, so As-Samad really is in the verse it is cited from.
ٱللَّهُ ٱلصَّمَدُ
Allah, the Eternal Refuge.
Surah Al-Ikhlas 112:2Read the full surah →
How reliable is the list of ninety-nine?
That Allah has ninety-nine names is established in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, and both are agreed upon. The specific enumeration — this list of ninety-nine — comes from a narration in Jami' at-Tirmidhi that at-Tirmidhi himself called gharib, and which many hadith scholars grade weak; several held that a narrator compiled the names by searching the Quran and Sunnah. Classical scholars including al-Khattabi, Ibn Hazm, al-Qurtubi and al-Ghazali compiled lists of their own that differ from it. None of this touches the names themselves, every one of which is established elsewhere; it means the count of exactly these ninety-nine is a scholarly arrangement rather than a revealed roster, and Allah's names are not limited to them.
Questions about As-Samad
As-Samad (الصَّمَدُ) means "The Eternal Refuge". Like every one of the ninety-nine names, it describes an attribute of Allah rather than serving as a label — the names are how the Quran teaches who Allah is.
Yes. This page cites 1 verse containing As-Samad, each checked against the Arabic text before publishing.
Address Allah with "Ya" before the name — "Ya Samad" — and ask for what that attribute gives. The Quran instructs it directly: "To Allah belong the most beautiful names, so call upon Him by them" (7:180).
It is number 68 in the well-known list. The order comes from the narration of at-Tirmidhi and is a scholarly arrangement, so numbering can differ slightly between printed lists — the names themselves do not.