And we believe that He, the Exalted, is with His creation, and He is upon His Throne, knowing their conditions, hearing their words, seeing their actions, and managing their affairs, providing for the poor, and mending the broken one, granting sovereignty to whom He wills, and removing sovereignty from whom He wills, honoring whom He wills, and humbling whom He wills, in His hand is the good, and He is over all things capable, and whoever is of this nature is truly with His creation, even though He is above them upon His Throne, truly.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said, in the context of the attributes, the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) "And we believe that He, the Exalted, is with His creation". After mentioning His (Glorified and Exalted is He) self-exaltation and attribute-exaltation, and mentioning His rising above the Throne, which is His exaltation above His Throne (Mighty and Majestic) in a manner that no one knows except Allah, he mentioned the companionship. This is because it may be difficult for a person to combine the exaltation and the companionship, as well as the nearness.
So he said "And we believe that He, the Exalted, is with His creation, and He is upon His Throne". He is with His creation "and He". This clause is a circumstantial clause "and He is upon His Throne". So what is the meaning of that? The word "companionship" (mu'ayyah) in the Arabic language implies accompaniment; it implies accompaniment with such-and-such, meaning he is accompanying him. And this accompaniment varies according to its contexts and according to the circumstances and context, so it is interpreted in each place according to its specific case. For example, if I say, "I mixed the water with the milk," this is a companionship of mixing; one mixes into the other and blends until one is not distinguished from the other. And if I say, "The wife is with her husband," this is accompaniment and comparison, but it does not necessitate mixing, connection, or being in the same place. In fact, the wife may be in the East and the husband in the West, and it is said that the commander is with the soldiers, even though he is in the operations room directing, and the soldiers are in the battlefield. There is a distance between them, and yet it is said he is with them. More eloquent than that is that the Arabs say "We kept walking and the moon was with us" "We kept walking and the moon was with us". Where were we walking?
The student: On the earth.
The Shaykh : And the moon
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : is in the sky, and yet they say it is with us. So it is now clear that companionship does not necessitate mixing or being in a place, but it is interpreted according to what the context and circumstances require. So we believe that Allah is with us, that Allah Himself is with us in reality. But where is He?
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : Upon His Throne in the sky. And it does not follow from our belief that He is with us in reality that He must be sharing our place, never. And if companionship between created beings does not necessitate sharing a place, then companionship between the Creator and the created is all the more so, all the more so. So we believe that Allah is with us, and the evidence for that is His saying, the Exalted:[Al-Hadid 57:4] Take all these pronouns and look at whom they refer to. [Hud 11:7] From
The student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself, or other than Allah? Allah Himself.
The student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself.[Saba 34:2] Knows
The student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself.[Al-Hadid 57:4] From
The student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah.[Al-Hadid 57:4]
The student: All-Seeing.
The Shaykh : So all the pronouns refer to Allah; they all refer to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And if we know that companionship does not necessitate mixing and blending, and does not necessitate being in a place, we know that the companionship of Allah with His creation is a real companionship and does not need to be interpreted by something else. It is a real companionship, but it does not necessitate that Allah is with us in place, as the Jahmiyyah said. Rather, He is with us and He is upon His Throne. And you have just learned that it is the style of the Arabs to say the moon is with us while it is in the sky, and they do not consider this a contradiction, nor do they consider it a departure from the meaning that the word "companionship" conveys. So there is no need for us to say no, there is no need to distort it, as Ibn al-Qayyim, Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said in *al-'Aqidah al-Wasitiyyah*: he said "He is with us in truth, in His reality, and it does not need to be distorted". And the Shaykh's meaning by "distortion" is taking the speech away from its apparent meaning, and there is no evidence for the obligation of taking it away from its apparent meaning. Rather, we say it must be protected from the false meaning that it does not indicate. What is the false meaning that it does not indicate?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : That He is opposite to us in place or mixed with us. This is impossible. And if you believe in this, it strengthens your fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). If you believe that Allah is with you, knowing you and watching you, and nothing of your conditions is hidden from Him, then at that time you will have the monitoring of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Because if you were in a dark room with no one there, you would say, "Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is with me and He is upon His Throne," so you would fear Him and be afraid of Him and not do anything that angers Him.
And let us continue in explaining it, so we say: "He is with His creation, and He is upon His Throne". "With His creation". Is it in reality or by metaphor?
The student: In reality.
The Shaykh :"And He is upon His Throne". In reality, and there is no contradiction, because this is permissible for the created being, so for the Creator it is all the more so. And because, on the assumption that it is not permissible for the created being to be something high, towering in height, and yet be with you, it is permissible for Allah, because Allah, the Exalted, is not measured by His creation.
"Knowing their conditions". This is among the implications and necessities of companionship. "Knowing their conditions, hearing their words, seeing their actions, managing their affairs, providing for the poor, and mending the broken one" "
Then he said: "And whoever is of this nature is truly with His creation, and he is". "Even though he is above them upon His Throne, truly". And there is no preventer, and there is no contradiction in this, nor any attribute that does not befit Allah. What does not befit Allah is that we understand from the companionship
The student: Mixing.
The Shaykh : Mixing and being in a place, as the Jahmiyyah said. So when this innovated, misguided statement appeared, the Salaf would say, "He is with us by His knowledge." He is with us by His knowledge. So they interpreted the companionship by its necessary consequence, which is knowledge. However, the necessary consequence of companionship is not only knowledge, as Ibn Kathir explicitly stated in the Tafsir, and Ibn Rajab also explicitly stated it in *Jami' al-'Ulum wa al-Hikam*. Rather, He is with us by His knowledge, His hearing, His sight, His power, His ability, His lordship, and other meanings of lordship. But those who interpreted it among the Salaf by knowledge, in response to whom? In response to the Jahmiyyah who said, "He is with us by His essence in our place." So they said, "By His knowledge." And for this reason, in the phrase of some of them, I think Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak said: "And we do not say, as these Jahmiyyah say, that He is with us here", and he pointed to the earth. And this is what the Salaf warned against, and they interpreted it by knowledge, which is an interpretation by some of the necessary consequences, not by all the necessary consequences. What was the intention?
The student: The response...
The Shaykh : The response to the Jahmiyyah who believe in incarnation. Just as some of the Salaf said, "He is established above the Throne by His essence," even though "by His essence" is not a valid expression, but he said "by His essence" in response to the statement of those who said that the establishment is domination, so it is a metaphorical establishment, not a self-establishment. And as some expressed it by saying, "He descends to the lowest heaven by His essence," in response to the statement of those who say that what descends is His command, or His mercy, or one of His angels. So we must know that the Salaf may interpret a thing by its meaning, i.e., by its necessary consequence, out of fear of a false meaning that people adopted at that time. As for us, we believe, as we said. He says, "Okay."
And[Ash-Shuraa 42:11] is an indication that companionship with being above, if it were considered impossible for the created being, is not impossible for the Creator, because Allah, the Exalted, is not like anything.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. The author (may Allah have mercy on him) said, in the context of the attributes, the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) "And we believe that He, the Exalted, is with His creation". After mentioning His (Glorified and Exalted is He) self-exaltation and attribute-exaltation, and mentioning His rising above the Throne, which is His exaltation above His Throne (Mighty and Majestic) in a manner that no one knows except Allah, he mentioned the companionship. This is because it may be difficult for a person to combine the exaltation and the companionship, as well as the nearness.
So he said "And we believe that He, the Exalted, is with His creation, and He is upon His Throne". He is with His creation "and He". This clause is a circumstantial clause "and He is upon His Throne". So what is the meaning of that? The word "companionship" (mu'ayyah) in the Arabic language implies accompaniment; it implies accompaniment with such-and-such, meaning he is accompanying him. And this accompaniment varies according to its contexts and according to the circumstances and context, so it is interpreted in each place according to its specific case. For example, if I say, "I mixed the water with the milk," this is a companionship of mixing; one mixes into the other and blends until one is not distinguished from the other. And if I say, "The wife is with her husband," this is accompaniment and comparison, but it does not necessitate mixing, connection, or being in the same place. In fact, the wife may be in the East and the husband in the West, and it is said that the commander is with the soldiers, even though he is in the operations room directing, and the soldiers are in the battlefield. There is a distance between them, and yet it is said he is with them. More eloquent than that is that the Arabs say "We kept walking and the moon was with us" "We kept walking and the moon was with us". Where were we walking?
The student: On the earth.
The Shaykh : And the moon
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : is in the sky, and yet they say it is with us. So it is now clear that companionship does not necessitate mixing or being in a place, but it is interpreted according to what the context and circumstances require. So we believe that Allah is with us, that Allah Himself is with us in reality. But where is He?
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : Upon His Throne in the sky. And it does not follow from our belief that He is with us in reality that He must be sharing our place, never. And if companionship between created beings does not necessitate sharing a place, then companionship between the Creator and the created is all the more so, all the more so. So we believe that Allah is with us, and the evidence for that is His saying, the Exalted:
It is He who created the heavens and earth in six days and then established Himself above the Throne. He knows what penetrates into the earth and what emerges from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends therein; and He is with you wherever you are
هو الذي خلق السماوات والأرض في ستة ايام ثم استوى على العرش يعلم ما يلج في الأرض وما يخرج منها وما ينزل من السماء وما يعرج فيها وهو معكم أينما كنتمAnd it is He who created the heavens and the earth in six days
هو الذي خلق السماوات والأرض في ستة أيامThe student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself, or other than Allah? Allah Himself.
Then He rose above the Throne
ثم استوى على العرشThe student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself.
He knows what penetrates into the earth
يعلم ما يلج في الأرضThe student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah Himself.
and what emerges from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends therein; and He is with you
وما يخرج منها وما ينزل من السماء وما يعرج فيها وهو معكمThe student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah.
wherever you are. And Allah, of what you do, is Seeing.
أينما كنتم والله بما تعملونThe student: All-Seeing.
The Shaykh :
Seeing
بصيرThe student: ...
The Shaykh : That He is opposite to us in place or mixed with us. This is impossible. And if you believe in this, it strengthens your fear of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). If you believe that Allah is with you, knowing you and watching you, and nothing of your conditions is hidden from Him, then at that time you will have the monitoring of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Because if you were in a dark room with no one there, you would say, "Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is with me and He is upon His Throne," so you would fear Him and be afraid of Him and not do anything that angers Him.
And let us continue in explaining it, so we say: "He is with His creation, and He is upon His Throne". "With His creation". Is it in reality or by metaphor?
The student: In reality.
The Shaykh :"And He is upon His Throne". In reality, and there is no contradiction, because this is permissible for the created being, so for the Creator it is all the more so. And because, on the assumption that it is not permissible for the created being to be something high, towering in height, and yet be with you, it is permissible for Allah, because Allah, the Exalted, is not measured by His creation.
"Knowing their conditions". This is among the implications and necessities of companionship. "Knowing their conditions, hearing their words, seeing their actions, managing their affairs, providing for the poor, and mending the broken one"
He gives sovereignty to whom He wills and takes sovereignty away from whom He wills. He honors whom He wills and humbles whom He wills. In His hand is all good, and He is over all things competent.
يؤتي الملك من يشاء وينزع الملك ممن يشاء ويعز من يشاء ويذل من يشاء بيده الخير وهو على كل شيء قديرThen he said: "And whoever is of this nature is truly with His creation, and he is". "Even though he is above them upon His Throne, truly". And there is no preventer, and there is no contradiction in this, nor any attribute that does not befit Allah. What does not befit Allah is that we understand from the companionship
The student: Mixing.
The Shaykh : Mixing and being in a place, as the Jahmiyyah said. So when this innovated, misguided statement appeared, the Salaf would say, "He is with us by His knowledge." He is with us by His knowledge. So they interpreted the companionship by its necessary consequence, which is knowledge. However, the necessary consequence of companionship is not only knowledge, as Ibn Kathir explicitly stated in the Tafsir, and Ibn Rajab also explicitly stated it in *Jami' al-'Ulum wa al-Hikam*. Rather, He is with us by His knowledge, His hearing, His sight, His power, His ability, His lordship, and other meanings of lordship. But those who interpreted it among the Salaf by knowledge, in response to whom? In response to the Jahmiyyah who said, "He is with us by His essence in our place." So they said, "By His knowledge." And for this reason, in the phrase of some of them, I think Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak said: "And we do not say, as these Jahmiyyah say, that He is with us here", and he pointed to the earth. And this is what the Salaf warned against, and they interpreted it by knowledge, which is an interpretation by some of the necessary consequences, not by all the necessary consequences. What was the intention?
The student: The response...
The Shaykh : The response to the Jahmiyyah who believe in incarnation. Just as some of the Salaf said, "He is established above the Throne by His essence," even though "by His essence" is not a valid expression, but he said "by His essence" in response to the statement of those who said that the establishment is domination, so it is a metaphorical establishment, not a self-establishment. And as some expressed it by saying, "He descends to the lowest heaven by His essence," in response to the statement of those who say that what descends is His command, or His mercy, or one of His angels. So we must know that the Salaf may interpret a thing by its meaning, i.e., by its necessary consequence, out of fear of a false meaning that people adopted at that time. As for us, we believe, as we said. He says, "Okay."
And