Allaah, the Exalted, commands the believers to refer their disputes and differences to His Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam saying: "And when you differ in anything among yourselves, refer it to Allaah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allaah and the Last Day." [6]
Therefore, the words of Allaah, the Exalted, as well as the words of His Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam must be held as the ultimate and decisive judgment. No judgment or decision should take precedence over theirs whether in issues related to the divine attributes, or any other religious issue.
By their emphasis on reason in establishing religious truth, the rationalists, the modernists, and the Jahmites assert the preeminence of reason over the divine revelations. Whereas the Loftiness of Allaah which is clearly enunciated in the Qur'aan and the Sunnah, is beyond the reach of reason.
The true believers, contrary to the rationalists, believe that the 'Arsh of Allaah is above the seven heavens. They also believe that having created the seven heavens and the earth and what is in them, Allaah, the Exalted, has His great 'Arsh. Allaah says: "Declare your Rubb, the Supreme, to be far removed from every imperfection or impurity." [7]
The "Supreme", linguistically, is in the superlative signifying that Allaah is higher than everything and is above all things in essence, power, and invincibility. Commenting on this verse, Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allaah grant him His mercy, said: All Muslims in the past and in the present, when supplicating Allaah or imploring His help, they always raise their hands with palms towards the heaven. They do not lower their hands with palms towards the earth, nor do they turn them right or left, nor towards any other direction. They raise their hands up, knowing that Allaah is above them. The Muslims also say in prayer while prostrating, "I declare my Rubb, the Supreme, to be far removed from every imperfection or impurity."[8]
If Allaah is everywhere, as the deviated sects allege, why then the above verse does not read, 'Declare your Rubb, (around you), (below you), or (everywhere)?' Allaah says: "They fear their Rubb above them." [9]
This verse refers to the angels who are above us, and above them is our Rubb, the Blessed, the Exalted. Lest anyone be confused, Allaah confirms in this verse that He is above the angels who are the residents of the heavens: "The Compassionate has rose over the 'Arsh." [10]
And: "And verily, your Rubb is Allaah who created the heaven and earth in six days, and then rose over the 'Arsh." [11]
Allaah also says: "Are you sure that He Who is Above the heaven will not cleave the earth beneath you? Or are you sure that He Who is above the heaven will not send against you a stone-charged hurricane." [12]
The renowned exegetes and commentators are agreed that the One Who is above the heaven is none but Allaah Who has rose over His Arsh and is above it in the manner which suits His Majesty.
Those who believe that Allaah is everywhere base their argument on verses such as:"And He is Ilaah in the Heavens and He is Ilaah on the Earth!"
The term, 'Ilaah' is classical Arabic means, 'the worshipped'; thus the meaning of the above verse is, "It is He Who is worshipped in the heaven and worshipped on the earth". It would have been redundant were the verse to speak about the existence of Allaah in the heaven and on the earth, for the term Illah' is an adjective of Allaah, while the pronouns, 'He' in the verse is used in lieu of the name 'Allaah', therefor, when the name 'Allaah' replaces the pronoun 'He', we get the proper meaning of the verse: 'And it is Allaah Who is worshipped in the heaven and on the earth'. But according to the deviated sect who consider the term, 'Ilaah' as 'Allaah', we get the redundant meaning, 'And Allaah is Allaah in the heaven and Allaah is on the earth,' a sentence which is grammatically, linguistically and logically incorrect. Qatadah, a renowned exegete, interpreted this verse as: 'He is worshipped in the heaven and on the earth'.
Imaam al-Aajurri said: 'al-Ilaah, is the worshipped. He is worshipped in the heaven as He is worshipped on the earth.'
The Omnipresence of the Divine Knowledge
And He is Allaah above the heaven and on the earth He knows your private and public affairs. And He knows what you achieve. [13]
Those who deny that Allaah is above His 'Arsh, dubiously argue that this verse supports their argument. Their argument is refuted by realizing that this verse refers to the knowledge of Allaah, according to the renowned exegetes, not His essence. They further assert that this verse signifies that the knowledge of Allaah encompasses all things in the heavens and on the earth. The reference to the divine knowledge is made clearly by repeating the clause, 'He knows' twice in this verse, that is to say: "Allaah, the Exalted, knows the hidden and the open, and He knows what you achieve".
Had the verse ended with the word, 'earth', one might take their dubious argument into consideration, but Allaah, the Exalted, makes it abundantly clear that it is His knowledge, not His essence that encompasses all things. Another dubious argument is presented by those who deny the fact that Allaah, the Exalted, is above His 'Arsh, by alleging that the following verse supports their argument.
"Do you not see that Allaah knows all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth? There is no secret counsel of three, but He is their fourth, nor of five, but He is their sixth, nor of fewer than that, nor of more, but He is with them wherever they may be. Then on the Day of Resurrection He will inform them of what they did. Surely, Allaah knows all things full well." [14]
The above verse, they contend, signifies that Allaah is essentially everywhere. This argument is refuted by the prominent exegete, Ibn Katheer who says: "This means that Allaah is well acquainted with their utterances, and private talks and thoughts."
Al-Qurtubi commented on this verse saying: "He knows and hears their private counsel. This is evidenced by the fact that the opening and concluding clauses of this verse confirm the knowledge of Allaah."
Al-Qasimi says: "The scholars among the Prophet's companions, who transmitted the meaning of the Qur'aan to their successors, held this verse to mean that Allaah is above His 'Arsh, but His knowledge is everywhere."
The linguistic analysis of this verse proves the following points:
1. The opening words of the above verse speak of Allaah's knowledge, not His location.source: muslimconverts.com
2. Private counsel, or secret talk, is the theme of this verse. Allaah says, 'There is no secret counsel of three, but He is their fourth.' He does not say, 'There are not three, but He is their fourth'. Thus the meaning becomes quite clear that it is the knowledge of Allaah what encompasses all His creatures.
3. Allaah confirms that He will inform them of their secret talk on the Day of Resurrection.
4.The verse ends, therefore, confirming Allaah's knowledge.
5. Allaah begins the surah of al-Mujadilah (Chapter 58), of which the verse in question is part, with the following verse: "Allaah has indeed heard the speech of the woman who pleads with you concerning her husband and complains to Allaah. And Allaah has heard your dialogue. Verily, Allaah is All-Hearing and All-Seeing." [15] Allaah, the Exalted, states that He has heard the woman who was complaining to the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, and has certainly heard her arguing with her husband, but He did not state in the verse that He was their third.
6. In the subsequent verse, Allaah emphasizes that He is well acquainted with the deeds of His slaves. If one were to believe that Allaah is essentially everywhere, it would follow then that He also dwells in filthy places. Only an insane person would dare to impute to Allaah such an attribute. Far removed is Allaah of what they ascribe to Him. It would also follow that Allaah is mingling with His creatures in the heavens and on the earth. Such belief has paved the way for panatheism [16], and promoted the myth of god incarnate. Allaah is far removed from what they ascribe to Him. It should be clear in the minds of the true believers that there is nothing to surround Allaah, the Exalted, nor is there a place to contain Him. Things and places are creatures, and Allaah is above all His creatures. All creatures need Him, while He is separated from His creatures, and stands in need of none of them. The Heaven is the Qiblah of the Du'a Muslims supplicate Allaah with their palms upheld because they believe Allaah is above the heaven. When confronted with this fact, those who deny the Loftiness of Allaah allege that Muslims supplicate in this manner only because heaven is the qiblah of du'aa or supplication.
7. The above allegation, to begin with, has no proof in the Qur'aan or the Sunnah, and it cannot be related to any of the Companions of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam nor to any of the Tabi'een, who succeeded them. There is no mention of this statement in the Book of Allaah or the Sunnah of the Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. The issue of the qiblah is central to the religion of Islam, so every Muslim must be aware of it and especially the scholars of the Muslim ummah should have known it.
8. It is an established fact, that the Ka'bah is the qiblah of formal prayer as well as the du'aa or supplication. To declare the heaven or anywhere else to be the qiblah of du'aa is a gross bid'ah (innovation) and a clear breach of the Qur'aan, the Sunnah, and the consensus of the ummah, because the Muslims have one single qiblah, the Ka'bah.
9.The qiblah is the direction to which Muslims turn or face in prayer, and to face something is to look toward it. If the heavens were the qiblah, the Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam would have commanded his companions, with whom Allaah is pleased, to face the heavens in their prayer. On the contrary, the Muslims are forbidden to uphold their eyes while praying, but are to concentrate on the spot upon which their faces rest during prostration. The Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam warned: "Let those who uphold their eyes while praying stop doing so, lest they become blind." [17] The Qur'aanic verses allow no room for such opinions. Allaah, the Exalted, specifically commanded His Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and his ummah to face the direction of the Ka'bah in their prayers, saying: "And from wherever you come forth, turn your face toward the Sacred Mosque." [18] Then Allaah addresses the Muslims: "And wherever you may be, turn your faces toward it." [19] The Loftiness of Allaah is also proven by the following verse: "To Him ascend the good words, and He exalts the righteous deeds." [20]
This verse contains the clear words of Allaah, in which the verb "ascend" is used to indicate that Allaah is above and separated from His creatures. The ascendance of deeds is also proven by the words of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam describing the excellence of the period of time that falls after zawal of zenith. He said, "This is a time when the gates of the heavens are opened, and I hope that a good deed of mine would ascend to Allaah." The verb "ascend" in the text signifies that the good deeds are raised up to reach Allaah, the Exalted. And Allaah says:"The angels and ar-Rooh [21] ascend to Allaah in a day which is fifth thousand years long." [22] The Loftiness of the Creator is made clear by the great distance that separates the angels who inhabit the heavens from their Rubb above them. And Allaah says:"He manages all affairs from the heaven unto the earth." [23]
It should be borne in mind that this verse is preceded by the words of Allaah: "He rose over the Throne." And Allaah also says:"O, Issa (Jesus)! I will take you, and raise you to Myself." [24] Since Allaah addressed Issa saying: "I will take you, and raise you to Myself", what would those who believe that Allaah is every where answer when they are asked: "Where is Issa now?" They would say either Issa is everywhere, or he is in heaven. If they claim that Issa is everywhere, they would apostatize as a result of their equating Issa with Allaah in accordance with their claim that Allaah is everywhere. A claim which resembles the Christians' myth of god incarnate. But if they say, "Issa is in the heaven," they would admit that Allaah did raise Issa up to the heaven, and that Allaah is above the heavens. Allaah says:"Surely, your Rubb is the One who created the heavens and the earth in six days; then He istawa[25] on the Throne." [26]
This is one of the seven Qur'aanic verses in which Allaah, the Exalted, refers to His istiwa' on His 'Arsh. Ahlus-Sunnah are certain that the great 'Arsh of Allaah is above the seven heavens. They also believe that Allaah, having created the earth and apportioned its provisions, ascended above His great 'Arsh. Only those who believe otherwise hold these verses to be allegorical. Allaah, they say, "is everywhere", denying that He is above the 'Arsh. Exalted is Allaah, and far is He removed from their ascription. Quoting all or even most of the verses signifying Allaah's attribute of Loftiness would only enlarge the volume of this issue. There are about 215 verses in the Qur'aan containing the verb sent down with reference to either the Qur'aan, the previous Scriptures, or the angels.
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