The Revelation Is The Basis And The Sound Mind Is A Witness To It

Precious gems about clearing Allāh from being attributed with residing in a place and a direction.

Allāh revealed that there is nothing similar to Him in any way.  Therefore Allāh The Exalted does not resemble anything among His creations in any way.  So this verse contains negating resemblance and similarity therefore Allāh does not need a place to reside in nor a direction to dwell in, rather, the matter is as our master ^Aliyy may Allāh raise his rank said “Allāh existed eternally without a place and He is existing now as He eternally existed.”  Narrated by the Imām Abū Mansour Al-Baghdādiyy

This verse contains a proof for Ahlus-sunnah that Allāh does not resemble the creations in any way whatsoever.

The intellectual proof that Allāh does not resemble any of His creations is that had he resembled anything he would be susceptible to what the creations are susceptible to like change and development and had that been possible for him to be attributed with then He would be in need of the one who changes Him and the one who is in need of someone else would not be God, therefore it is confirmed that Allāh does not resemble anything.

Among what points to that is the verse revealed by Allāh that commands us not to draw similars to Allāh or equals because Allāh has no equal.  Therefore the self of Allāh-that is, His reality-does not resemble the selves and His attributes don’t resemble the attributes of the creations.  Allāh revealed that He has no similar.

Therefore the one who says that Allāh resides in a place or in all the places or that He is sitting upon the throne or that He is dwells above the throne, then such a person has contradicted the Qur’ān, The Hadeeth, and the consensus of the muslim nation and he has contradicted the judgment of the mind.

The revelation is the basis and the sound mind is a witness to it and the revelation does not come with anything except that it is intellectually valid.

The Hāfidh and jurist Ahmad the son of Al-Husayn Al-Bayhaqiyy (Died 458 H) in his book Al-Asmā’ Was-sifāt said:  “Some of our colleagues used as an evidence that Allāh exists without a place the saying of the Prophet peace be upon him “You are Adh-dhāhir therefore there is nothing above you and you are Al-Bātin therefore there is nothing below you” therefore if there is nothing above him and nothing below him then he is not residing in a place.”  the meaning of the Prophet’s saying “Adh-dhāhir” is the one who everything is an indication of His existence, and the meaning of his saying “Al-Bātin” is the one who is not imagined.

And he said in his book Al-I^tiqād:  the saying of the Prophet peace be upon him “Allāh existed eternally and nothing else existed” proves that nothing else existed, no throne, no water, and not other than them and all of those things are other than Allāh.

So if it is said what is the wisdom behind creation the throne?  the answer:  Indeed, Allāh created the throne as a sign of His power and He did not take it as a place for His Self.  Just as the Imām ^Aliyy said and that is narrated from him by Abī Mansour Al-Baghdādiyy in his book Al-Farq Baynal Firaq.  So if it is said “All the creations are an indication of God’s power, then why was the throne specified among the creation?”  The answer is that the throne is the biggest mass in size created by Allāh and Allāh is its subduer and the subduer of what is less than that.  Don’t you see that Allāh revealed that He is the Lord of the grand ^Arsh, He specifically mentioned the ^Arsh in the verse although He is the Lord of everything.

The great companion ^Aliyy the son of Abī Tālib (Died 40 H) said “Allāh existed eternally without a place and He is existing now as He eternally existed.”  This means Allāh exists without a place.  this is narrated by Abū Mansour Al-Baghdādiyy in Al-Farq Baynal Firaq.

The Imām The Great Tābi^iyy the best of Quraysh in his time ^Aliyy the son of Husayn the son of ^Aliyy Zaynul ^Ābidīn may Allāh raise his rank (Died 90 H) said in As-sahīfah As-sajjādiyyah: “You are Allāh the one who is not encompassed by a place.”  The Imām The Hāfidh The Jurist The linguist Muhammad Murtadā Az-zabīdiyy narrated that with a connected chain from him to him by way of Ahlul Bayt.

The Imām Ja^far As-sādiq may Allāh raise his rank (Died 148 H) said: “Whoever claims that Allāh is from something or in something or on something has certainly associated partners with Allāh because had He been on something He would be carried and had He been in something then He would be contained and had He been from something then He would be a creation.”

Therefore it is known from everything that has been mentioned that Allāh The Exalted is the one who created everything, He does not need anything and He does not resemble anything.  Allāh does not need a direction nor a place.  Allāh created the creations and created tome therefore He exists eternally and everlastingly without a direction or a place.  Be a proliferator of goodness, I hope for supplication.

The Imām Abū Hanīfah may Allāh raise his rank said:  Allāh The Exalted exists without a how and without a place.