Refuting the objection of those who deny Allah’s rising above the Throne by claiming that raising the hands in supplication is because the sky is the direction of mercy

The questioner : They say regarding raising the hands in a state of dire necessity to seek elevation for the supplicant: they say the sky is the direction of mercy. Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, created mercy in Paradise and elsewhere, so He placed the elevation and the Fire below.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : I am saving the mercy; we turn toward a direction.

The Shaykh : That is, you are not currently supplicating to mercy, nor are you saying, “O Mercy, O Paradise,” you are saying, “O Allah.”

The questioner : Tell us to look toward the good, to look toward the direction where the good exists.

The Shaykh : But who is the one supplicating now? To whom is he supplicating? Fine, and he is raising his hands to Him. So where is He? Do they not say in the sky? It is stubbornness.