Meaning :
The All Hearing.
In Quran :
“And to Him belongs whatever dwells in the night and in the day, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing“ (Quran, 6:13).
Description :
Al-Samee‘ is the One and Only One Who listens to everything in existence without the use of a faculty for hearing or a hearing aid. Allah hears each and every sound and voice even if it is hidden from us.
His hearing encompasses everything: He hears the pleas of those who are in distress; He responds to the supplications of those in need; He helps those who are desperate for help; He hears the praising of those who praise Him, so He rewards them for it, and the supplication of those who plead to Him, so He responds to them.
He hears the sound of the black ant walking on a solid rock in the darkest night; and He hears what the hearts contemplate and what scruples penetrate the conscience. His response to the supplication of one person does not distract Him from responding to another; He knows where the vision trespasses and what the breasts conceal; He hears every silent plea; He hears you and me. Nothing on earth or in the heavens can ever be hidden from Him.
“Al-Samee`“ is derived from “sam`“. It conveys the fact that Allah, the Most High, realizes the truth about each and every sound even if it is, to our limited ability, quite silent. He, Glory to Him, realizes and distinguishes sounds as well as colors just as He realizes and distinguishes everything else.
“Sam`“ may mean: acceptance of and a favorable response to. It exists, for example, in a tradition wherein the Messenger of Allah says, “Lord! I seek refuge with you against a statement which is not heard,“ meaning a supplication which does not receive His favorable response. It is also similar to one Muslims pronounce during their obligatory daily prayers: “Sami`a Allahu liman amidah,“ that is, Allah responds favorably to the pleas of those who praise Him.
The Almighty has said,
Surely I am with you both: I do hear and see. (20:46) or do they think that we do not hear what they conceal and their secret discourses? Aye! And our messengers (angels) are with them writing (everything) down. (43:80) Allah has indeed heard the plea of the [woman] who pleads to you about her husband. (58:1) And if they resolve to divorce, Allah is surely Hearing, Knowing. (2:227)
One who comes to realize that Allah knows everything will safeguard his tongue against uttering falsehood. He will always say what is right. One who realizes that Allah hears even our thoughts will adopt the manners of one who watches over his conduct and who always holds himself accountable for what he contemplates, says, or does. A servant of Allah ought to know that Allah did not create the hearing faculty for him except so that he would listen to the speech of Allah which He revealed unto His Prophet in order to benefit from it and to be guided by it.
If a servant of Allah seeks to be close to his Lord by offering nawfil (optional acts of adoration), he will be loved by Allah Who will then pour over his hearing of His divine light, thus making his insight very sharp, so much so that such a person will be able to see beyond the world of matter. If a servant of Allah remains straightforward in his worship of Allah, continuously seeking to please Him, Allah will surely provide him with goodness from Him and with divine light.
