The First Section on the Divisions of Accompaniment. The Second Section: Is the Accompaniment Real, or is it a Metonymy for the Knowledge of Allah (Mighty and Majestic)?
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The Shaykh : The Accompaniment of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is divided into two categories: general and specific. The general and the specific. The specific is divided into: restricted to a person and restricted to a description. Restricted to a person and restricted to a description.
As for the general, it includes everyone, whether believer or disbeliever, righteous or wicked. Indeed, Allah the Exalted is with everyone, as He the Exalted said:[Al-Hadid 57:4]
As for the specific: that which is restricted to a description, such as His saying the Exalted: It is more specific than the first, because it is restricted to descriptions beloved to Allah. Is that so or not?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, the specific is also restricted to a description and restricted to a person, a specific person, such as His saying:[At-Tawbah 9:40] And He said to Musa and Harun: [Taha 20:46] This is more specific than the one before it. Degrees: general absolutely, and specific restricted to a description. Restricted to a description, and what is that?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Less general than that, and restricted to a person, which is also specific, and it is less than what is restricted to a description. So the most specific type of Accompaniment is what is restricted to a person, then what is restricted to a description, then what is general. Clear? Is this Accompaniment that Allah has affirmed for Himself real, or is it a metonymy for the Knowledge of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), His Hearing, His Sight, His Power, His Dominion, and so on? Most of the expressions of the Salaf (may Allah have mercy on them) say that it is a metonymy for Knowledge, Hearing, Sight, Power, and the like. They make the meaning of His saying: to be that He is All-Knowledge of you, All-Hearing of your words, All-Seeing of your deeds, All-Powerful over you, and the Judge between you. And so on. How do they interpret it? By its necessary implication. They interpret it by its necessary implication.
And the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) chose in this book that it is in its reality, and that its meaning is true in its reality. But it is an Accompaniment specific to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), not like the Accompaniment of a human to a human, where it is possible for a human to be with a human in his place. But yes, because the Accompaniment of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is an Accompaniment, and He is in
The student: His Highness
The Shaykh : In His Highness, and with us, and He is High above His Throne, above everything. It is not possible in any way for Him to be with us in the places where we are. It is not possible at all. And on this basis, it requires combining it with the Highness. The author allocated a special section for this, which will come, if Allah wills, with its explanation in the section, and that there is no contradiction between the Highness and the Accompaniment, because Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is not like anything in all His attributes. So He is High in His nearness, and near in His Highness. The Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) gave an example of that with the moon. He said that it is said: We are still traveling, and the moon is with us, and it is
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : Placed in the sky, and it is one of the smallest of created things. So how is it that the Creator (Mighty and Majestic) is not with the creation, which is nothing in comparison to Him? Yes, and He is above His heavens. And for this reason, some of the people of denial of attributes argued against the people of the Sunnah. They said: You forbid figurative interpretation, and you are doing figurative interpretation in the Accompaniment. Yes, you say the Accompaniment means Knowledge, Hearing, Sight, Power, Dominion, and the like. And everyone knows that it does not mean that He is with us, meaning that He is All-Knowledge of us. It does not hold that we say He is with us by His Knowledge, because Knowledge is an attribute in what? In the Knower. It is not possible for Knowledge to be separated from the Knower. What is separated from the Knower? The known. The known, correct, is on earth and in the sky. But the Knowledge of Allah is an attribute in what?
The student: His Essence
The Shaykh : In His Essence. So the matter is permissible for those who say to us, the people of figurative interpretation. But if we say what the Shaykh al-Islam chose regarding the Accompaniment, but it is not on the concept that these people understood, that He is with people in every place, then the statement remains in its reality, and no one has an argument against the people of the Sunnah.
We now return to the interpretation of the Accompaniment. We say that the Accompaniment is divided into two categories: general and specific. The general includes everyone: the righteous and the wicked, the believer and the disbeliever, the near and the far.
As for the specific, it is also divided into two categories: a category restricted to a description, such as:[An-Nahl 16:128] And a category restricted to a person, such as His saying the Exalted: [At-Tawbah 9:40] He speaks about His Prophet that he said to his companion, and such as His saying to Musa and Harun: [Taha 20:46]
As for the general, it includes everyone, whether believer or disbeliever, righteous or wicked. Indeed, Allah the Exalted is with everyone, as He the Exalted said:
and He is with you wherever you are
وهو معكم أين ما كنتمAs for the specific: that which is restricted to a description, such as His saying the Exalted:
And know that Allah is with the patient. Indeed, Allah is with those who fear Him and those who do good.
واعلموا أن الله مع الصابرين إن الله مع الذين اتقوا والذين هم محسنونThe student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, the specific is also restricted to a description and restricted to a person, a specific person, such as His saying:
Do not grieve; indeed Allah is with us.
لا تحزن إن الله معناIndeed, I am with you both; I hear and I see.
إنني معكما أسمع وأرىThe student: ...
The Shaykh : Less general than that, and restricted to a person, which is also specific, and it is less than what is restricted to a description. So the most specific type of Accompaniment is what is restricted to a person, then what is restricted to a description, then what is general. Clear? Is this Accompaniment that Allah has affirmed for Himself real, or is it a metonymy for the Knowledge of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), His Hearing, His Sight, His Power, His Dominion, and so on? Most of the expressions of the Salaf (may Allah have mercy on them) say that it is a metonymy for Knowledge, Hearing, Sight, Power, and the like. They make the meaning of His saying:
And He is with you
وهو معكمAnd the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) chose in this book that it is in its reality, and that its meaning is true in its reality. But it is an Accompaniment specific to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), not like the Accompaniment of a human to a human, where it is possible for a human to be with a human in his place. But yes, because the Accompaniment of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is an Accompaniment, and He is in
The student: His Highness
The Shaykh : In His Highness, and with us, and He is High above His Throne, above everything. It is not possible in any way for Him to be with us in the places where we are. It is not possible at all. And on this basis, it requires combining it with the Highness. The author allocated a special section for this, which will come, if Allah wills, with its explanation in the section, and that there is no contradiction between the Highness and the Accompaniment, because Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is not like anything in all His attributes. So He is High in His nearness, and near in His Highness. The Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) gave an example of that with the moon. He said that it is said: We are still traveling, and the moon is with us, and it is
The student: "In the heavens."
The Shaykh : Placed in the sky, and it is one of the smallest of created things. So how is it that the Creator (Mighty and Majestic) is not with the creation, which is nothing in comparison to Him? Yes, and He is above His heavens. And for this reason, some of the people of denial of attributes argued against the people of the Sunnah. They said: You forbid figurative interpretation, and you are doing figurative interpretation in the Accompaniment. Yes, you say the Accompaniment means Knowledge, Hearing, Sight, Power, Dominion, and the like. And everyone knows that it does not mean that He is with us, meaning that He is All-Knowledge of us. It does not hold that we say He is with us by His Knowledge, because Knowledge is an attribute in what? In the Knower. It is not possible for Knowledge to be separated from the Knower. What is separated from the Knower? The known. The known, correct, is on earth and in the sky. But the Knowledge of Allah is an attribute in what?
The student: His Essence
The Shaykh : In His Essence. So the matter is permissible for those who say to us, the people of figurative interpretation. But if we say what the Shaykh al-Islam chose regarding the Accompaniment, but it is not on the concept that these people understood, that He is with people in every place, then the statement remains in its reality, and no one has an argument against the people of the Sunnah.
We now return to the interpretation of the Accompaniment. We say that the Accompaniment is divided into two categories: general and specific. The general includes everyone: the righteous and the wicked, the believer and the disbeliever, the near and the far.
As for the specific, it is also divided into two categories: a category restricted to a description, such as: