The Meaning of the Poet's Statement: (Clarifying the Descent of Allah to the Lowest Heaven in the Last Third of the Night and the Response to Those Who Deny It) and Likewise the Descent of the Lord, Exalted is His Majesty
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : As for the descent, he said
"And likewise the descent of the Lord, Exalted is His Majesty *** in the middle of the night, and that is the second"
In the second half, Allah the Exalted descends in the last half of the night, either when the third remains or from the midpoint of the night, according to two narrations on this matter. The well-known view is that it is from the third, but there is a narration that it is from the midpoint. It is not far-fetched that it is from the midpoint, but until the dawn breaks. The descent of the Lord has come as mass-transmitted from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that He descends to the lowest heaven. And what descends? He Himself descends; He Himself descends. This is because the general rule is that whatever Allah attributes to Himself of actions and attributes is for Himself, for Himself, not for another. For example, He created it, He Himself; [Al-Baqarah 2:22] Who sent it down? He Himself; He Himself, and so on. Every action Allah attributes to Himself is for Himself and does not return to another. Yes, [Al-A'raf 7:54] The actor is Allah, so He is the Creator and He is the One who rises above the Throne, and so is every pronoun in any verse of the Qur'an. If the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) says, Who is the one who descends? Allah, not another. It is not permissible for us to say that the one who descends is another, ever. Because if we say that the one who descends is another, we have placed something before Allah and His Messenger. And Allah the Exalted said, [Al-Hujurat 49:1] If Allah is the one who descends, then all languages require that the descent be from
The student: From above
The Shaykh : From above, from above to what is below it
"And likewise the descent of the Lord, Exalted is His Majesty *** in the middle of the night, and that is the second"
In the second half, Allah the Exalted descends in the last half of the night, either when the third remains or from the midpoint of the night, according to two narrations on this matter. The well-known view is that it is from the third, but there is a narration that it is from the midpoint. It is not far-fetched that it is from the midpoint, but until the dawn breaks. The descent of the Lord has come as mass-transmitted from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) that He descends to the lowest heaven. And what descends? He Himself descends; He Himself descends. This is because the general rule is that whatever Allah attributes to Himself of actions and attributes is for Himself, for Himself, not for another. For example,
He created the heavens
خلق السماواتsent down from the sky
أنزل من السماءHe settled upon the Throne
استوى على العرشIndeed, your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and earth in six days and then established Himself above the Throne
إن ربكم الله الذي خلق السماوات والأرض في ستة أيام ثم استوى على العرشOur Lord descends
ينزل ربناO you who have believed, do not put [yourselves] before Allah and His Messenger
يا أيها الذين آمنوا لا تقدموا بين يدي الله ورسولهThe student: From above
The Shaykh : From above, from above to what is below it