Is the term "direction" applied to Allah?
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The Shaykh : The word "direction"—they also say that it is not permissible for you to say that Allah is in a direction. So what should I say? They say: Say that Allah is everywhere, in whatever direction you are, Allah is there. Or say that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is neither inside the universe nor outside it, neither connected nor disconnected, neither above nor below, neither to the right nor to the left.
The student: Non-existent.
The Shaykh : Yes, non-existent. That is, the first is the doctrine of the Jahmiyyah, who hold that Allah is in everything, and the second is the doctrine of the Mu'attilah, who deny the attributes.
The questioner : The first...
The Shaykh : The Jahmiyyah, who hold that Allah is in everything, and others, and the second is the doctrine of the Mu'attilah, who deny the attributes. They say: Do not say that Allah is in a direction, ever. Either say He is everywhere, or say He is not in a place. Now, what do we say to them? We say: The word "direction" has not come in the Qur'an or the Sunnah, neither in negation nor in affirmation. But why? Because it admits of both truth and falsehood. And what came in its place admits of nothing but truth. What is it? The elevation. The elevation came. So we say: Based on the fact that you have forced us, and you say that it necessitates that Allah be in a direction, we challenge you. We say: If you mean by "direction" what is above the universe, then Allah the Exalted is above the universe without doubt, and nothing of His creation encompasses Him. And if you mean by "direction" what encompasses a thing as a container encompasses its contents, then this is false. So if you mean that Allah is in a direction, meaning in a place that encompasses Allah, Mighty and Majestic, as a container encompasses its contents, then this is false and it is not possible for Allah to be described with it, because Allah the Exalted is too great for anything of His creation to encompass Him. And His Kursi encompasses the heavens and the earth, and His Kursi is the place of His feet. And whoever has this greatness, it is not possible for him to be in a direction that encompasses him. Is that clear now? So we specify the meaning and say: If you mean such and such, it is true; if you mean such and such, it is false. As for the term itself, we do not speak of it in affirmation or negation, because that has not come in the Qur'an, neither in affirmation nor in negation. And these things that we have exemplified with are exemplified by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, because they are the hallmark of the people of denial. Whenever they wanted...
The student: Non-existent.
The Shaykh : Yes, non-existent. That is, the first is the doctrine of the Jahmiyyah, who hold that Allah is in everything, and the second is the doctrine of the Mu'attilah, who deny the attributes.
The questioner : The first...
The Shaykh : The Jahmiyyah, who hold that Allah is in everything, and others, and the second is the doctrine of the Mu'attilah, who deny the attributes. They say: Do not say that Allah is in a direction, ever. Either say He is everywhere, or say He is not in a place. Now, what do we say to them? We say: The word "direction" has not come in the Qur'an or the Sunnah, neither in negation nor in affirmation. But why? Because it admits of both truth and falsehood. And what came in its place admits of nothing but truth. What is it? The elevation. The elevation came. So we say: Based on the fact that you have forced us, and you say that it necessitates that Allah be in a direction, we challenge you. We say: If you mean by "direction" what is above the universe, then Allah the Exalted is above the universe without doubt, and nothing of His creation encompasses Him. And if you mean by "direction" what encompasses a thing as a container encompasses its contents, then this is false. So if you mean that Allah is in a direction, meaning in a place that encompasses Allah, Mighty and Majestic, as a container encompasses its contents, then this is false and it is not possible for Allah to be described with it, because Allah the Exalted is too great for anything of His creation to encompass Him.