Discussion of the elevation of Allah and His rising above the Throne, being distinct from His creation, and the meaning of the Salaf's statement that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is distinct from His creation

The Shaykh : This section is on explaining the attribute of essential elevation and rising above the Throne. We say that Allah the Exalted is above His Throne, having risen above it, and above all created things, distinct from His creation. The meaning of distinctness is that there is nothing of His creation in Him, and nothing of Him in His creation. The explanation of distinctness is in His saying: "There is nothing of His essence in His creations, and nothing of His creations in His essence". Distinctness does not mean the absence of contact, for example; we do not know that. So if someone asks, "Did Allah rise above the Throne in contact with it or not in contact with it?" we say, "Allah knows best." So what is the meaning of the distinctness mentioned in the words of the Salaf? It means negating indwelling. Nothing of the created things indwells in His essence, and nothing of His essence indwells in the created things, because He is above everything. By this, we know that if Allah the Exalted descends to the lowest heaven, the other heavens are not above Him. If they were above Him, He would be indwelling in the created things, which is impossible. Nothing of His creations ever encompasses Him; rather, He is above everything. You may be unable to conceive of this matter, but there is no wonder in it, for we are unable to conceive of all the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). It is not permissible for us by the Shari'ah to conceive of them. We are unable to conceive of them by our capacity, and it is not permissible for us by the Shari'ah to conceive of them, because conceiving of them means attempting to determine how an attribute is, which is impossible. Whatever you may imagine in your mind, Allah the Exalted is greater and more exalted. Therefore, we have no right to reflect on the essence of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and His attributes, because that is impossible to attain. So we say: Allah the Exalted does not indwell in any of His creations, and nothing of His creations indwells in Him. This is the meaning of the distinctness expressed by the Salaf in their saying: "distinct from His creation". Now, elevation is also established for Allah (Mighty and Majestic), because He is the Most High, the Great, the Most High . He raised the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to Allah, and all of this indicates His elevation (Glorified and Exalted is He). All these meanings do not apply except to elevation. Thus, the monotheist affirms that the Qur'an is truly the speech of Allah, and that Allah the Exalted is above His Throne, distinct from His creation. Let us look at what the position of the one who denies the divine attributes was. Yes.