Citing the story of Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) with the one who asked him about istiwaa', along with an explanation of Imam Malik's phrase.

The Shaykh : ... And you know that among the four Imams is the Imam of the City of Migration, Malik ibn Anas (may Allah be pleased with him). It has become known to both the specialists and the general public what is established from him with a valid chain that a man came to him to ask him, saying: "O Malik: ; how did He rise above (istawa)?"
He said: "The rising above (istiwaa') is known, the how is unknown, belief in it is obligatory, and asking about it is a religious innovation (bid'ah); take the man out, for he is an innovator (mubtadi')."
Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) answered here with a sufficient and complete answer; he clarified that istiwaa' in the Arabic language is known, and it means elevation; that is, His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): means: He rose above (istala'). Therefore, every Muslim who worships Allah while prostrating says: "Glory to my Lord, the Most High." So Malik answered that the istiwaa' mentioned in the verse is known linguistically, but you are asking about the how; how did He rise above? The how is unknown; because the truth is that regarding the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), what is said about them is the same as what is said about His essence (Mighty and Majestic). Just as every Muslim affirms the existence of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) and His essence, so he affirms His attributes (Mighty and Majestic). And just as he is unable to ask how the essence of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) is, so he is unable to ask how any of the attributes of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) are. Therefore, he said: "And the how is unknown, and asking about it—that is, about the how—is a religious innovation (bid'ah), so you are an innovator (mubtadi')." Therefore, he ordered that the man be expelled from that gathering in which Malik (may Allah have mercy on him) was present (Blessed and Exalted is He).
So, the methodology of the Salaf is to believe in the verses of attributes and the hadiths of attributes according to the linguistic meaning, without figurative interpretation (ta'wil), because that is denial of the divine attributes (ta'til), and without likening Allah to creation (tashbih), because that contradicts the transcendence explicitly stated in His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): .