The Ruling on Istiwa' (Rising Above the Throne) and Descent in Creed
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Question:
He was asked, may Allah have mercy on him, about the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Taha 20:5] and the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him): Sunan Abi Dawud 4733Sahih (Al-Albani) Is the rising above the Throne and the descent a reality or not? To the end of the question. So he answered:
Answer:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy. The ruling regarding the rising above the Throne and the descent is like the ruling regarding all the other attributes by which Allah described Himself in His Book and on the tongue of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). For Allah the Exalted named Himself with names and described Himself with attributes. He named Himself the Living, the All-Knowing, the Wise, the All-Powerful, the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful, and so on to His other beautiful names. Allah the Exalted said:[Taha 20:7] and He said: [Al-Baqarah 2:255] and He said: [Adh-Dhariyat 51:58] and He said: [Adh-Dhariyat 51:47] meaning with power. And He said, "And My mercy encompasses all things." He cited, may Allah have mercy on him, verses in this meaning. Then he said: The school of the Salaf of the Ummah and its imams is to describe Allah with what He described Himself with, and with what His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described Him with, without distortion, without denial of the divine attributes, without asking how an attribute is, and without likening Allah to creation. So it is not permissible to negate the attributes of Allah the Exalted by which He described Himself, and it is not permissible to liken them to the attributes of the created beings. Rather, He, Glorified and Exalted is He, is [Ash-Shuraa 42:11].
And Nu'aym ibn Hammad al-Khuzai said: Whoever likens Allah to His creation has committed kufr (disbelief), and whoever denies what Allah described Himself with has committed kufr (disbelief). And what Allah described Himself with is not tashbih (likening Allah to creation). The methodology of the Salaf (the earliest generations) is between two methodologies, and guidance between two misguidances.
Affirming the attributes and denying any likeness to the creation. His saying, the Exalted:[Ash-Shuraa 42:11] is a refutation of the people of tashbih (likening Allah to creation) and tamthil (comparing Allah to creation). And His saying: [Ash-Shuraa 42:11] is a refutation of the people of denial and ta'til (denial of the divine attributes). The one who compares is blind in one eye, and the one who denies is blind in both. The one who compares worships an idol, and the one who denies worships nothing. We will suffice with this much in this episode, so until the next episode, with the permission of Allah the Exalted, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
He was asked, may Allah have mercy on him, about the saying of Allah the Exalted:
The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.
الرَّحْمَٰنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوَىٰOur lord gets down every night to the heaven of this world
ينزل ربنا كل ليلة إلى سماء الدنياAnswer:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy. The ruling regarding the rising above the Throne and the descent is like the ruling regarding all the other attributes by which Allah described Himself in His Book and on the tongue of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). For Allah the Exalted named Himself with names and described Himself with attributes. He named Himself the Living, the All-Knowing, the Wise, the All-Powerful, the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful, and so on to His other beautiful names. Allah the Exalted said:
And if you speak aloud - then indeed, He knows the secret and what is [even] more hidden.
وَإِن تَجْهَرْ بِالْقَوْلِ فَإِنَّهُ يَعْلَمُ السِّرَّ وَأَخْفَىand they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth
وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلَّا بِمَا شَاءَ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَIndeed, it is Allah who is the [continual] Provider, the firm possessor of strength.
إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الرَّزَّاقُ ذُو الْقُوَّةِ الْمَتِينُAnd the heaven We constructed with strength
وَالسَّمَاءَ بَنَيْنَاهَا بِأَيْدٍThere is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.
لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُAnd Nu'aym ibn Hammad al-Khuzai said: Whoever likens Allah to His creation has committed kufr (disbelief), and whoever denies what Allah described Himself with has committed kufr (disbelief). And what Allah described Himself with is not tashbih (likening Allah to creation). The methodology of the Salaf (the earliest generations) is between two methodologies, and guidance between two misguidances.
Affirming the attributes and denying any likeness to the creation. His saying, the Exalted:
There is nothing like unto Him
لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌand He is the Hearing, the Seeing.
وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، فتاوى ابن تيمية|191 من 287|مذهب أهل السنة والجماعة في الصفات|الفوزان|كبار العلماء — youtube.com (5:56)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.