STATEMENTS REGARDING ÒWHERE IS ALLAH?Ó

 

Abu Haneefah (rahimahullah) said: ÒWhoever says, `I do not know whether my Lord is above the sky, or in the earth,' then he has indeed disbelieved. Likewise, whoever says that He is above the Throne, `And I do not know whether the Throne is in the sky, or in the earth.ÕÓ[1]

 

A woman asked Abu Haneefah (rahimahullah), `Where is your Lord whom you worship' So he said, "Verily Allaah the Exalted is above the sky (fis-samaa`), not in the earth." So a man said to him, `Have you seen the statement of Allaah the Exalted, "And He is with you." [Sooratul-Hadeed 57:4] He said, "He is as you are when you write to a man, `Verily I am with you,' whilst you are absent from him.Ó[2]

 

Aboo Nu'aym relates from Ja'far Ibn 'Abdullaah who said, `We were with Maalik Ibn Anas, so a man came, so he said, "O Abaa 'Abdullaah, "The Most Merciful has ascended above His Throne," lSoorah Taa Haa 20:5] How has He ascended?' So anger came over Maalik, such that no affair like this had ever caused to come over him. So he looked towards the earth and scratched with his cane in his hand, until he raised his hand and wiped the sweat from his forehead, tossed the cane aside, and said, 'The modality (kayf) of it cannot be comprehended by the intellect, and al-istiwaa' (ascent) is not unknown, and having faith in it is obligatory, and the question concerning it is an innovation. And I think that you are a person of innovation,' and he commanded him to leave."[3]

 

Ibnul-Qayyim mentions in Ijtimaa'ul-Juyoosh from ash-Shaafi'ee that he said, "The statement concerning the Sunnah, which I am upon and which I have seen our companions, the people of hadeeth, to be upon, those whom I have seen and taken from like Sufyaan and Maalik and other than these two is the affirmation of the testimony that there is no deity worthy of worship besides Allaah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah; and that Allaah the Exalted is above His Throne, above the sky (fis-sama) He draws close to His creation how ever He wishes, and that Allaah the Exalted descends to the lowest heaven how ever He wishes.Ó[4]

 

Ibn Taymiyyah mentions in ad-Dar' that Imaam Ahmad said, "We believe that Allaah is above His Throne however He wishes and as He wishes, without a limit (hadd), nor an Attribute that the describer can comprehend, nor a limit which the describer can place. So the Attributes of Allaah are from Him and for Him, and He is as He described Himself, He cannot be encompassed (in vision) by the eyes."[5]

 

Imaam at-Tirmidhee (d. 279H) said: "It has been stated by more than one person from the People of Knowledge about such ahaadeeth, that there is no tashbeeh (resemblance) to the Attributes of Allaah, and our Lord - the Blessed and Most High - descends to the lowest heaven every night. So they say: "Affirm these narrations, have eemaan (faith) in them, do not deny them, nor ask how." The likes of this has been related from Maalik ibn Anas, Sufyaan ath-Thawree, Ibn Uyainah and Abdullaah ibn al-Mubaarak, who all said about such ahaadeeth: "Leave them as they are, without asking how." Such is the saying of the People of Knowledge from the Ahl us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah. However, the Jahmiyyah oppose these narrations and say: This is tashbeeh! However, Allaah the Most High, has mentioned in various places in His Book, the Attribute of al-Yad (Hand), as-Sama' (Hearing), and al-Basr (Seeing) - but the Jahmiyyah make ta'weel of these aayaat, explaining them in a way, other than how they are explained by the People of Knowledge. They say: "Allaah did not create Aadam with His own Hand" - they say that Hand means the Power of Allaah."[6]

 

From Imaam BukhaariÕs Khalq Af'aalul Ibaad:

 

[Point no.6] Wahb bin Jareer said, 'The Jahmiyyah are heretics, they think that He has not risen over His Throne.'

 

[Point no.13] Ibn al-Mubaarak said, 'we do nat say as the Jahmiyyah say that Allaah is on the earth, rather He has risen over His Throne.'

 

[Point no.14] And it was said to him, 'how should we know our Lord?' He said, 'above the Heavens, over ('alaa) His Throne'

 

[Point no.64] Sadqa said, 'I heard Sulaiman at-Taimi saying, 'if I were asked, "where is Allaah?" I would say, "above (fee) the heaven". And if it said, "where was the Throne before the Heaven?" I would say, "over the water." And if it is said, "where was the Throne before the water?" I would say, "I do not know."' And Imaam Bukhaaree said, 'and that (i.e. his answer) was because of the saying of Allaah, "and they cannot encompass anything of His Knowledge except what He wills." i.e. except what He explains.'

 

[Point no.66] Muhammad bin Yusuf said (one of the teachers of Bukhaaree), 'the one who says that Allaah is not over ('alaa) His Throne is a kaafir. And the one who thinks that Allaah did not speak to Moses is a kaafir.'

 

[Point no.103] Ibn Mas'ud  said about His saying, "then He rose over His Throne", - 'the Throne is over the water, and Allaah is above (fawqa) the Throne, and He knows what you are upon.'

 

 

From Al-Lalikaa'ees Sharh Usool il-Itiqaad:

 

[Point no.660] Adullaah bin Abbaas  said, 'Verily Allaah was above His Throne before He created anything, then He created the creation and decreed what was to exist until the Day of Judgement.' (pg.396)

 

[Point no.662] Bashr bin Umar said, 'I heard more then one of the Mufassir say about the verse, "The Most Merciful istawaa upon the Throne" - istiwaa means rose above.' (pg.397)

 

[Point no.665] Rabee' (one of the teachers of Maalik) was asked about the verse, "The Most Merciful rose over His Throne" - 'how did He rise?' He replied, 'al-istiwaa (rising) is known, and the how is not comprehensible, and from Allaah is the message, and upon the Messenger is the preaching, and upon us is believing.' (pg.397)

 

[Point no.670] Maqaatil bin Huyaan said about His saying, "and there is no secret discourse of 3 people except He is the fourth, or of 5 people and He is the sixth" - 'He is above His Throne, and nothing is hidden from His knowledge.' (pg.400)

 

[Point no.673] Imaam Ahmad was asked, 'Allaah is above the seventh heaven, above His Throne because that is from His creation, and His power and knowledge are in every place?' And he replied, 'yes, above the Throne and His knowledge is in every place.' (pg.401)

 

[Point no.675] Imaam Ahmad was asked about the verse, "and He is with you wheresover you are", and the verse, "there is no secret discourse of 3 people except that he is the fourth.." - and he said, '(meaning) His Knowledge, He is the Knower of the seen and the unseen, His knowledge encompasses everything, and our Lord is above the Throne without setting limits and giving description, and His Kursi is as the expanse of the heavens and the earth with His Knowledge. ' (pg.402)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



[1] Al-Fiqhul-Akbar (p. 40) And the likes of this wording was quoted by Shaykliul-Islaain Ibn Taymiyyah in Majmoo'ul-Fataawaa (5/48), and Ibnul-Qayyitn in Ijtimaa'ul-Juyooshil Islaamiyyah (p. 139), and adh-Dhahabee in al'Uluww (p. 101-102), and Ibn Qudaarnah in al-'Uluww (p. 116) and In Abil-'Izz in Sharhut -Tahaawiyyah (p. 301).

[2] Al-Asmaa` was-Sifaat (2/170)

[3] Related in al-Hilyah (6/325 -326), and it is also related by as-Saaboonee in 'Aqeedatus-Salaf wa Ashaabul-Hadeeth (p. 17-18)

by way of Ja'far Ibn 'Abdullaah from Maalik, and Ibn 'Abdul-Barr in at-Tamheed (7/151) by way of 'Abdullaah Ibn Naafi' from Maalik, and al-Bayhaqee al-Asmaa' was-Sifaat (p. 408) by way of 'Abdullaah Ibn Wahb from Maalik. Ibn Hajar said in FathulBaaree (13/406- 407) that its isnaad (chain of narrators) is hasan (good). And it was authenticated by adh-Dhahabee in al-Uluww (p. 103).

[4] Ijtimaa'ul-Juyooshil-Islaamiyyah (p. 165), Ithbaat Sifatul-Uluww (p. 124), and refer to Majmoo'ul-Fataawaa (4/181-183) and al-'Uluww (p. 120) of adh-Dhahabee, and it's Mukhtasar (p. 77).

[5] Dar'ut-Ta'aanidul-Aql wan-Naql (2/30)

[6] Sunan at-Tirmidhee (3/24)