Since the intellect indicates the attributes of essence, space, and direction... why do we not deny them entirely due to the lack of evidence?
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The questioner : Shaykh, may Allah reward you. In affirming the attributes of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), the methodology of the people of the Sunnah is that they follow the evidence: they affirm what He has affirmed for Himself and stop there regarding everything else. As for the methodology of the people of Kalam and denial of the divine attributes, they rely on the intellect; they affirm an attribute and then say, "The evidence of the intellect is such and such." Shaykh, when we affirm... we encounter statements such as "space" and "direction." They say that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is not an essence, nor does He have length or shortness, nor heat or cold. Shaykh, if we address these matters, why do we not deny them entirely because they are not mentioned in the text?
The Shaykh : We cannot deny them, because if we deny them, we must have knowledge. Yes, we do not have knowledge to elaborate on the meaning, and praise be to Allah. Therefore, we deny those things that necessitate deficiency, even if they are not explicitly mentioned in the text. For example, if someone asks, "Does Allah have intestines? Does He have a stomach? Does He have a liver?" What do we say? We deny these and say, "No," because these are organs for what? For food and drink. He (Glorified and Exalted is He) feeds, but He is not fed. Even regarding molars: if someone asks, "Does He have molars?" I see that I should say, "No." There is a hadith that says, "Allah laughs until His molars are seen," but I do not think it is authentic at all, because molars are for grinding food. Yes.
The questioner : O Shaykh, these things... cold and heat, shortness and length, these things...?
The Shaykh : Yes, but Allah has not obligated us to speak about them. If we do not speak about them, we adhere to proper conduct with Allah. As long as Allah has not denied them of Himself and has not affirmed them, what do we have to do with them? They are not a problem at all. Take the safest path: say, "I am a servant of Allah. What He has informed me of, I accept. What He has not informed me of, I do not affirm." Yes.
The Shaykh : We cannot deny them, because if we deny them, we must have knowledge. Yes, we do not have knowledge to elaborate on the meaning, and praise be to Allah. Therefore, we deny those things that necessitate deficiency, even if they are not explicitly mentioned in the text. For example, if someone asks, "Does Allah have intestines? Does He have a stomach? Does He have a liver?" What do we say? We deny these and say, "No," because these are organs for what? For food and drink. He (Glorified and Exalted is He) feeds, but He is not fed. Even regarding molars: if someone asks, "Does He have molars?" I see that I should say, "No." There is a hadith that says, "Allah laughs until His molars are seen," but I do not think it is authentic at all, because molars are for grinding food. Yes.
The questioner : O Shaykh, these things... cold and heat, shortness and length, these things...?
The Shaykh : Yes, but Allah has not obligated us to speak about them. If we do not speak about them, we adhere to proper conduct with Allah. As long as Allah has not denied them of Himself and has not affirmed them, what do we have to do with them? They are not a problem at all. Take the safest path: say, "I am a servant of Allah. What He has informed me of, I accept. What He has not informed me of, I do not affirm." Yes.