𓆩 Minbar al-ʾAshʿariyyah wa al-Ṣūfiyyah 𓆪

This specific page shows how al-Zabīdī explains one Arabic root (ع ر س or a similar one), bringing together different classical scholars’ comments. Each colored section (yellow, green, blue, red) summarizes what a specific scholar said about the meaning and usage of that word in Arabic.

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Ibn hamdan one of the foremost hanbali scholars said: “And that Allah, exalted be He, is not a substance (jawhar), nor an accident (‘araḍ), nor a body (jism), nor does anything inhere in Him…”

Imam Al khattabi said: “(Qur’an 39:75) — ‘And you will see the angels surrounding the Throne…’ — this (Throne) is carried upon the shoulders of the angels. And Allah — exalted be He — is the One who upholds those who bear it. He has no need of the Throne, nor is it a place for Him, nor is He situated upon it, nor dependent upon it — for all of that belongs to the attributes of created things. Rather, He is distinct and separate from it and from all His creation.”

Ibn al-Munayyir al-Mālikī (رحمة الله) Said: > *“All of the ḥadīths in this chapter correspond to its title except the ḥadīth of Ibn ʿAbbās, which only contains the phrase ‘Lord of the Throne.’ Its relevance Allah knows best is that it refutes the claim of those who affirm direction, deducing it from the verse, ‘Possessor of the ascending ways’ (al-Maʿārij 70:3). They supposed that vertical elevation was being ascribed to Allah. So al-Bukhārī clarified that both what is called ‘heaven’ and what is called ‘Throne’ are created, governed, originated. Allah existed before all of that and other than it. Those places came into being after non-existence, and His pre-eternity rules out describing Him with spatial confinement within them.”* [Fatḥ al-Bārī, 13/418–419; Ibn Ḥajar quoting and approving him]

Imām Abū al-Muẓaffar al-Isfarāyinī (رحمه الله) the great Ashʿarī theologian Said: > *“ And you must know that motion, rest, going, coming, being in place, combination and separation, nearness and farness by distance, contact and separation, size, mass, body, form, space, quantity, sides, regions, dimensions, and directions — all of these are impossible for Him, exalted is He, for all of them entail limitation and finitude. We have already demonstrated the impossibility of such attributes for the Creator glorified and exalted be He. It was said to ʿAlī (may Allah be pleased with him): ‘Where is Allah?’ He replied: ‘He who determined the “where” cannot be asked “where.”’ And it was said to him: ‘How is Allah?’ He said: ‘He who determined the “how” cannot be asked “how.”*

al-Nasafī al-Ḥanafī (d. 537 AH), author of the famous “al-ʿAqīdah al-Nasafiyyah Said: ***“The vision of Allah Most High is rationally possible and textually established. Revealed evidence (dalīl samʿī) affirms that the believers shall see Allah Most High in the Abode of the Hereafter they will see Him not in a place, and not in a direction, neither through confrontation, nor by the contact of rays, nor by spatial distance between the seer and Allah Most High.***

Al tufi al-hanbali رحمة الله Said: The “mutashabih” (ambiguous verse) is that whose meaning is unclear — either because of shared wording or because it seems to suggest similarity (tashbih) or something of that sort. Such verses must be referred back to the “muhkam” (clear and decisive verses), since Allah — the Exalted — has called the muhkamat “the foundation of the Book,” meaning its basis. When confusion arises, things must be referred back to their foundations. Therefore, the mutashabihat about Allah’s essence and attributes should be referred to the clear verse: “The Originator of the heavens and the earth… There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” (al-Shura 11) And the mutashabihat about His actions should be referred to the clear verse: “Say, to Allah belongs the conclusive argument; had He willed, He would have guided you all.” (al-An‘am 149).

__Shaykh Manṣūr ibn Yūnus al-Buhūtī (رحمه الله) the author of Sharḥ Manhaj al-Rāghib and Kashshāf al-Qināʿ is the relied-upon (المعتمد) jurist of the Ḥanbalī Maḏhab Statement on the mujassimah__ al-Buhūtī al-Ḥanbalī (رحمه الله) Said: > *“The madhhab of Jahm ibn Ṣafwān and those like him is like that of the anthropomorphists (mujassimah) and those who hold the beliefs of the Khawārij and Qadariyyah and their likes. (And the mujtahid among them is a disbeliever) meaning: the one who performs ijtihād among those who say that the Qurʾān is created, and the like of them among those who oppose what the people of the Sunnah and the Jamāʿah are upon. As for the dāʿiyah (the one who calls to such beliefs), he is a disbeliever. It is stated in al-Fuṣūl fī al-Kifāʾah: “As for the Jahmiyyah, the Wāqifiyyah, the Ḥarūriyyah (Khawārij), the Qadariyyah, and the Rāfiḍah whoever debates (nāẓara) and calls to his doctrine, is a disbeliever; otherwise, he is not even a fāsiq.”* [Sharḥ Manhaj al-Rāghib vol. 3, p. 590]

The muḥaddith Shaykh Muḥammad ʿArabī al-Ṭabbān al-Mālikī, teacher at Madrasat al-Falāḥ and in the Meccan Mosque (d. 1395 AH), said: * > “The rational people among Ahl al-Sunnah the Shāfiʿīs, Ḥanafīs, Mālikīs, and the virtuous Ḥanbalīs, and others agree that Allah blessed and exaltedis transcendent above direction, corporeality, limit, place, and resemblance to His creatures.”* [Barāʾat al-Ashʿariyyīn, 1/79]

These scans aren’t mine, they belong to our brother shabab may allah be pleased with him

The Clarification of Imām Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī on the Creed of Imām Aḥmad and His Refutation of the Anthropomorphism Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī (رحمه الله) Said: *> “What has become widespread among the ignorant people who affiliate themselves with this great, independent Imām [Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal] namely, that he supposedly affirmed anything of ‘direction’ (jiha) or the like is falsehood, slander, and fabrication against him. So may Allah curse whoever attributes that to him or accuses him of any of these defects from which Allah has purified him. Al-Ḥāfiẓ, the proof, the exemplar Imām Abū al-Faraj Ibn al-Jawzī, one of the leading scholars of his madhhab who are innocent of this ugly and disgraceful accusation has made clear that everything ascribed to him [Aḥmad] in that regard is sheer lie, slander, and fabrication, and that his own explicit statements invalidate such claims and declare Allah’s transcendence above them. These transgressors have broken all limits, overstepped all bounds, and torn down the fence of Sharīʿah and truth m imagining that, by doing so, they are guided by their Lord, though in reality they are not. Rather, they are upon the worst of misguidance, the most despicable of traits, the utmost divine wrath and loss, and the height of falsehood and calumny. May Allah abandon those who follow them and purify the earth of their likes.”* [Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī, al-Fatāwā al-Ḥadīthiyyah, p. 415]

Abū al-Maḥāsin Muḥammad al-Qāwūqjī al-Ṭarābulusī al-Ḥanafī (رحمة الله) Said: > *“So if someone says to you: “Where is Allāh?” then say: He is with everyone by His knowledge, not by His essence (dhāt). And He is above everyone by His power. He is apparent in everything through the effects of His attributes, and hidden in His true essence meaning, He cannot be imagined in the mind. He is exalted beyond direction and corporeality, so it is not said of Him: He has a right or left, or a behind or before. His life is eternal and self-subsisting, His knowledge encompasses all things, His power is complete, His wisdom is manifest, His hearing and sight penetrate every thing. And if you ask about His action, then it is the creation of the created beings and the placing of everything in its proper place. And if you ask about His essence, then He is not a body (jism) nor an accident (ʿaraḍ), nor is He composed of parts. Everything that crosses your mind Allāh is different from that. Rather, His essence exists, and His existence is necessary (wājib). He neither begets nor is begotten, and none is equal to Him. There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. And whoever says, “I worship the Essence qualified by the attributes,” then he is the believing one who shall be saved.”* [Mukhtaṣar al-Iʿtimād fī al-Iʿtiqād Pg, 9-10]

al-Imām Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad ibn Jarīr al-Ṭabarī (رحمه الله) discusses the verses on the mutashābih he said: > *“They say: ‘We believe in it.’ Then they returned the interpretation (taʾwīl) of the ambiguous verses (mutashābih) back to what they already knew from the interpretation of the clear and decisive verses (muḥkamah) those which no one interprets except with one meaning alone. Thus, their statement made the Book consistent, its parts confirming one another. Through it the proof (ḥujjah) was established, the excuse (ʿudhr) was made apparent, falsehood was repelled, and disbelief was struck down. Whoever holds the first opinion that the firmly grounded in knowledge do not know the taʾwīl says that Allāh merely informed of their faith and their affirmation that it «the Qurʾān» is from Allāh. According to the grammarians of Baṣrah, the phrase (the firmly grounded in knowledge) is in the nominative by being the subject (mubtadaʾ), and its predicate (khabar) is the phrase (they say: we believe in it). As for some of the Kūfans, they said its predicate is the returning pronoun implied from “yaqūlūna” (they say), while others among them said the entire clause “yaqūlūna āmannā bihi” serves as the predicate. But whoever holds the second opinion claiming that the firmly grounded in knowledge do know its taʾwīl treats “al-rāsikhīn” as conjoined (maʿṭūf) to the Name of Allāh, and so raises it by the conjunction to Him (making the reading: “and none knows its interpretation except Allāh and those firmly grounded in knowledge”). The correct view, according to us (al-Ṭabarī says), is that they are in the nominative due to the predicate clause after them, which is (they say: we believe in it). This is because we have already explained that they do not know the taʾwīl of the mutashābih mentioned by Allāh exalted is He in this verse. And it has also reached me that in the recitation (qirāʾah) of Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, it was read: “wa yaqūlu al-rāsikhūna fī al-ʿilm” (and the firmly grounded in knowledge say…). We have also mentioned from Ibn ʿAbbās that he used to recite it in this way. And in the recitation of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd, it was: “inna al-rāsikhīna fī al-ʿilm” (indeed, the firmly grounded in knowledge). Others, however, said: Rather, the meaning of the verse is “And none knows its interpretation except Allāh and those firmly grounded in knowledge”and that they, together with their knowledge and their firmness in knowledge, still say: “We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord.”* [Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī vol. 5, Pg 220-221]

Ibn al-ʿArabī al-Mālikī (رحمه الله) Said: ***> “As for “al-Raḥmān”, it means the One who wills provision for every being in the abode of trial and testing. “al-Raḥīm” means the One who wills to bestow blessings upon the people of Paradise. “al-Ghaffār” is the One who wills to remove punishment after it has been deserved. “al-Wadūd” means the Loving One, and this returns to irādah (will), so its meaning is the One who wills beneficence toward those whom He loves and toward His allies. “al-Ghafūr” means the One who wills to ease matters for the people of divine knowledge. “al-Raʾūf” means the One who wills to lighten burdens from the servants. > “al-Ḥalīm” means the One who wills to withhold punishment originally due for sin. It has been said: al-Ḥalīm is the One who grants reprieve despite the deserving of punishment. > And it is said: It is among the attributes of action. “al-Karīm” means the One who wills abundant good for those in need and it has been said: It is among the attributes of essence. “al-Barr” means the One who wills to honor His devoted allies. > And among creation, al-barr is the one whose acts of righteousness are guided by Allah; whoever Allah is barr toward, He elevates him among the creation and manifests His subtleties upon him. The meaning of > al-Barr is: the Creator of righteousness and the One who rewards it. “al-Ṣabūr” means the One who grants delay despite the deserving of punishment. “al-Rashīd”, it is said, means the One who guides aright; if it returns to explanation through speech, it is among the attributes of essence, and if it refers to the creation of guidance itself, it is among the attributes of action. “al-Samīʿ” refers to hearing, “al-Baṣīr” to sight, “al-Ḥayy” to life, “al-Bāqī” to everlastingness, and “al-Shakūr” to gratitude. Thus, these Names are understood according to one’s knowledge and comprehension. When the servant attains this kind of knowledge of the Names and Attributes with sincerity and realization, Allah responds to him accordingly.”*** [from al-Masālik fī Sharḥ Muwaṭṭaʾ Mālik, vol. 3, p. 496]

Al-Qāḍī Abū Bakr Ibn al-ʿArabī al-Mālikī (رحمه الله) Said: > *“You have lied against Mūsā he never said that! And who can reach Him (Allāh)? You are only the followers of Pharaoh, who believed that the Creator, Exalted is He, was in a direction (jīha). So Pharaoh wanted to ascend to Him by a ladder. Congratulations to you, then, for you are the followers of Pharaoh and he is your leader (imām).”* [al-Masālik fī Sharḥ Muwaṭṭaʾ Mālik vol. 3, p. 451] Ibn al-ʿArabī (رحمه الله), the great Mālikī Imām, is here refuting the anthropomorphists (mujassimah) who affirm jīha (direction) for Allāh.

Al-Imām Marʿī ibn Yūsuf al-Karmī al-Ḥanbalī (رحمه الله) said: “The madhhab of tafweed (delegation of meaning) supports the madhhab of the Salaf, along with negating the apparent meaning.”

Al-Imām Abū ʿAbd Allāh al-Qurṭubī (رحمه الله) also said in his Tafsīr: “The word istiwaʾ in the language of the Arabs means ‘rising’ or ‘elevation’. I [Al-Qurṭubī] say: the ‘elevation’ and ‘rising’ of Allāh, Exalted and Sublime, is an expression for the loftiness of His Majesty, His Attributes, and His Sovereignty. Meaning: there is none above Him in what is due to Him of the meanings of majesty, and there is none alongside Him with whom loftiness could be shared. Rather, He is al-ʿAlī absolutely, Glorified be He. His saying, Exalted is He: «upon the Throne» this is a shared expression which can be applied to more than one meaning. Al-Jawharī and others said: the ʿArsh is the throne of the king. In the Qurʾān it appears: «And they disguised her throne» (Q 27:41), and «And he raised his parents upon the throne» (Q 12:100). The ʿArsh can also mean: the roof of a house; the protruding part of the foot on its upper side where the toes are; the constellation of al-Simāk (four small stars below al-ʿAwāʾ, said to hold back the lion); the wooden structure placed over a well after its base is lined with stone to about the height of a man that wood is called ʿarsh, and its plural is ʿurūsh. The word ʿArsh is also a name for Makkah. And ʿArsh can mean kingship and authority. It is said: ‘So-and-so’s throne has been demolished’ meaning his kingdom, authority, and might have perished.

al-Qurtubi (رحمه الله) writes: Then we say: Indeed Allah, Exalted is He, spoke to Musa with His speech which is His attribute, and Musa heard it with the perception which Allah created for him. As for your saying: “How?”, this is injustice and deviation. For your asking “how?” in this matter is proof that you are ignorant of what is being sought. You must know that the forms of questions are many, and despite their variety, none of them can be applied to Allah, Exalted is He, or to His attributes. That is because among the forms of questions are: “what?”, “which?”, “why?”, “how?”, “when?”, “where?”, and others with similar meaning. None of these apply to Allah, Exalted is He, for their meanings are impossible concerning Him. So you must not ask about Him with “what” or “which” for He has no genus nor species. Nor with “why” for He has no cause nor origin. Nor with “when” for He is the One who determines time. Nor with “where” for He is the Creator of place. Nor with “is it so?” for there is no doubt about His existence, for He is our Creator. Nor with “how” for nothing from our states or descriptions resembles His Majesty or His attributes.