Explanation of the author's statement: "The difference between this group and the one before it is that the first group rules that both possibilities are permissible: affirmation and its absence, whereas the second group..."
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : He says: "The difference between this group and the one before it is that the first group rules that both possibilities are permissible: affirmation and its absence, whereas the second group never rules on anything at all".
You find him reciting the Qur'an, and you say, "Come, what is the meaning of Allah's saying:[Taha 20:5]?" He says, "What? Huh?"
The student: He does not speak.
The Shaykh : He does not speak; he says, "Turn away from this; do not speak about anything." The first group says, "Did Allah mean by 'He rose above the Throne' that He exalted and settled, or did He mean He took possession of it?" He says, "Both this and that are permissible, or He did not mean anything." He says, "Yes, both are permissible; this and that are possible."
And this is undoubtedly a ruling; this is a ruling on the matter that it is permissible for the intended meaning to be such or such or such, and so on.
As for the second group: if you ask him, "What is the meaning of 'Allah rose above His Throne'?" he says, "I am turning away from this; I never rule on anything, and I do not speak about this matter at all."
Both groups, or each of the two groups, are astray, because for us to deem this and that and this permissible in matters that are not befitting Allah is forbidden; what is not befitting Allah cannot be permissible.
And the second group, in that they turn away from all of this, contradict the saying of the Exalted:[Sad 38:29] and they fall into what Allah has condemned, where He, Mighty and Majestic, said: [Al-Mu'minun 23:68] This interrogative is for condemnation; so Allah commanded us to reflect so that we affirm the meaning indicated by the wording.
And by this we know that the best and most obligatory section in terms of following is the one that said, "They are to be taken at their apparent meaning," what? What is befitting Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. So when you read:[Taha 20:5] you affirm that He exalted above the Throne, but it is not permissible for it to occur to your mind that it is like our rising above a bed; this is absolutely not permissible, why? Because of the difference between the Creator and the created.
Likewise, when you read:[Al-Ma'idah 5:64] it is absolutely impossible for you to imagine that these two hands are like our hands, and it is not lawful for you to associate this with that, because Allah [Ash-Shuraa 42:11] even if your mind says that the hands of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, are like the hands of a human, you must drive this from your mind and not think about it, since it is possible that the hand of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is not like the hand of a human, but like the hand of something other than a human, is it not? Now, if the matter is so, then it is obligatory for us to refrain from likening and imagining, so we say: Allah the Exalted has a real hand with which He takes and grasps, yes, but it does not resemble the hands of the created.
And it is obligatory upon us, O brothers, to keep our imagination from visualizing anything of the attributes of Allah, whether they are active or descriptive, because we do not encompass Him, Glorified and Exalted is He.
You find him reciting the Qur'an, and you say, "Come, what is the meaning of Allah's saying:
The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.
الرحمن على العرش استوىThe student: He does not speak.
The Shaykh : He does not speak; he says, "Turn away from this; do not speak about anything." The first group says, "Did Allah mean by 'He rose above the Throne' that He exalted and settled, or did He mean He took possession of it?" He says, "Both this and that are permissible, or He did not mean anything." He says, "Yes, both are permissible; this and that are possible."
And this is undoubtedly a ruling; this is a ruling on the matter that it is permissible for the intended meaning to be such or such or such, and so on.
As for the second group: if you ask him, "What is the meaning of 'Allah rose above His Throne'?" he says, "I am turning away from this; I never rule on anything, and I do not speak about this matter at all."
Both groups, or each of the two groups, are astray, because for us to deem this and that and this permissible in matters that are not befitting Allah is forbidden; what is not befitting Allah cannot be permissible.
And the second group, in that they turn away from all of this, contradict the saying of the Exalted:
[This is] a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.
كتاب أنزلناه إليك مبارك ليدبروا آياته وليتذكر أولو الألبابThen have they not reflected over the Qur'an
أفلم يدبروا القولAnd by this we know that the best and most obligatory section in terms of following is the one that said, "They are to be taken at their apparent meaning," what? What is befitting Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. So when you read:
The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.
الرحمان على العرش استوىLikewise, when you read:
Rather, both His hands are extended
بل يداه مبسوطتانThere is nothing like unto Him
ليس كمثله شيءAnd it is obligatory upon us, O brothers, to keep our imagination from visualizing anything of the attributes of Allah, whether they are active or descriptive, because we do not encompass Him, Glorified and Exalted is He.