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His exaltedness, Glorified and Exalted is He
Original (Arabic): https://binbaz.org.sa/fatwas/17/علوه-سبحانه-وتعالى
Question: From Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Baz to the esteemed brother Dr. M. A. H., may Allah preserve him. Peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you. To proceed:
I refer to your letter in which it states: We hope Your Eminence will clarify the meanings of the following noble verses: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. And the verse: and the verse and the verse
and the hadith of the slave girl narrated by Muslim, when the Messenger of Allah asked her ﷺ And he said: Where is Allah? So she said: In the heaven, and he said to her: Who am I? she said, the Messenger of Allah, the Messenger said ﷺ: Free her, for she is a believer. We hope for clarification of the meanings of these noble verses, and clarification of the meaning of the hadith of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ﷺ for the female servant?
I refer to your letter in which it states: We hope Your Eminence will clarify the meanings of the following noble verses: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
وَهُوَ ٱللَّهُ فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَفِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ يَعۡلَمُ سِرَّكُمۡ وَجَهۡرَكُمۡ وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا تَكۡسِبُونَ
And He is Allah (to be worshipped Alone) in the heavens and on the earth, He knows what you conceal and what you reveal, and He knows what you earn (good or bad).
Qur'an 6:3 — trans. Hilali & Khan
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلۡحَيُّ ٱلۡقَيُّومُۚ لَا تَأۡخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٞ وَلَا نَوۡمٞۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِي يَشۡفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذۡنِهِۦۚ يَعۡلَمُ مَا بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِمۡ وَمَا خَلۡفَهُمۡۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيۡءٖ مِّنۡ عِلۡمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَۚ وَسِعَ كُرۡسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفۡظُهُمَاۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِيُّ ٱلۡعَظِيمُ
Allah! La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists. Neither slumber, nor sleep overtake Him. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His Permission? He knows what happens to them (His creatures) in this world, and what will happen to them in the Hereafter. And they will never compass anything of His Knowledge except that which He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them. And He is the Most High, the Most Great. [This Verse 2:255 is called Ayat-ul-Kursi.]
Qur'an 2:255 — trans. Hilali & Khan
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي فِي ٱلسَّمَآءِ إِلَٰهٞ وَفِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ إِلَٰهٞۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡحَكِيمُ ٱلۡعَلِيمُ
It is He (Allah) Who is the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) in the heaven and the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) on the earth. And He is the All-Wise, the All-Knower.
Qur'an 43:84 — trans. Hilali & Khan
أَلَمۡ تَرَ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَعۡلَمُ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۖ مَا يَكُونُ مِن نَّجۡوَىٰ ثَلَٰثَةٍ إِلَّا هُوَ رَابِعُهُمۡ وَلَا خَمۡسَةٍ إِلَّا هُوَ سَادِسُهُمۡ وَلَآ أَدۡنَىٰ مِن ذَٰلِكَ وَلَآ أَكۡثَرَ إِلَّا هُوَ مَعَهُمۡ أَيۡنَ مَا كَانُواْۖ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا عَمِلُواْ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ بِكُلِّ شَيۡءٍ عَلِيمٌ
Have you not seen that Allah knows whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on the earth? There is no Najwa (secret counsel) of three, but He is their fourth (with His Knowledge, while He Himself is over the Throne, over the seventh heaven), nor of five but He is their sixth (with His Knowledge), not of less than that or more, but He is with them (with His Knowledge) wheresoever they may be; and afterwards on the Day of Resurrection, He will inform them of what they did. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of everything.
Qur'an 58:7 — trans. Hilali & Khan
and the hadith of the slave girl narrated by Muslim, when the Messenger of Allah asked her ﷺ And he said: Where is Allah? So she said: In the heaven, and he said to her: Who am I? she said, the Messenger of Allah, the Messenger said ﷺ: Free her, for she is a believer. We hope for clarification of the meanings of these noble verses, and clarification of the meaning of the hadith of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ﷺ for the female servant?
Answer: I inform you that the general meaning of these noble verses and the noble Prophetic hadith is to indicate the greatness of Allah, glorified and exalted is He, His highness above His creation, and His divinity over all creatures altogether, and the comprehensiveness of His knowledge encompassing everything, great or small, secret or open, and to make clear His power over all things, and to negate incapacity from Him, glorified and exalted is He.
As for its specific meaning, it is His saying, the Most High: In it is evidence of the magnitude of the Kursi and its vastness, just as this indicates the magnitude of its Creator, Glorified is He, and the perfection of His power, and His saying: That is, the preservation of the heavens and the earth and all that is within them and between them does not burden Him or weigh upon Him; rather, that is easy and simple for Him. He is the One who stands over every soul in respect of what it has earned, the Watcher over all things, so that nothing escapes Him and nothing is hidden from Him, and all things are insignificant before Him, humble, lowly, and small in relation to Him, glorified is He, being needy and poor toward Him. He is the Self-Sufficient, the Praiseworthy, the Doer of what He wills, who is not questioned about what He does, while they are questioned. He is the Subduer of all things, the Reckoner over all things, the Watcher, the Most High, the Most Great; there is no god besides Him and no lord other than Him. And His saying, glorified is He: In it is the indication that the One who is called upon is Allah in the heavens and on the earth, and that He is worshipped, and affirmed as one, and acknowledged as the deity by whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth, and they call Him Allah and supplicate to Him in hope and fear, except for those who disbelieve among the jinn and mankind. And in it is the indication of the vastness of Allah's knowledge, glory be to Him, and His awareness of His servants, and His encompassing knowledge of what they do, whether in secret or openly, for secrecy and openness are alike before Him, glory and exaltation be to Him. He records against His servants all their deeds, the good of them and the evil of them.
And His saying, exalted is He: Its meaning is: that He, Glorified is He, is the God of whoever is in the heaven and the God of whoever is on the earth; the inhabitants of both worship Him, and all of them are submissive and humbled before Him, except one over whom wretchedness has prevailed, so he disbelieved in Allah and did not believe in Him. And He is Al-Hakim (the All-Wise) in His legislation and decree, Al-'Alim (the All-Knowing) of all the deeds of His servants, Glorified is He.
And His saying, Glorified and Exalted is He:
Its meaning is: that He, glory be to Him, is aware of all His servants wherever they may be; He hears their speech, their secrets, and their private conversations, and He knows their deeds. His messengers from among the noble angels, the recording scribes, likewise write down what they converse about, even though God's knowledge and hearing of it all encompasses it. What is meant by the "withness" (ma'iyyah) mentioned in this verse, according to Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah, is the withness of His knowledge, glory be to Him and exalted is He. He is with them through His knowledge, encompassing them, and His sight penetrates them. He, glory be to Him and exalted is He, is aware of His creation, and nothing of their affairs is hidden from Him, while at the same time He, glory be to Him, is above all creation, having risen over His Throne with a rising befitting His majesty and greatness, resembling none of His creation in any of His attributes, as He, Mighty and Majestic, said: Then He will inform them on the Day of Resurrection of all the deeds they did in the worldly life; because He, Glorified is He, has knowledge of all things and encompasses all things, the Knower of the unseen, from whose knowledge not even the weight of an atom escapes, whether in the heavens or on the earth, nor anything smaller or greater than that, except that it is in a clear register.
And as for the hadith of the slave girl whose master wanted to free her as expiation for having struck her, the Prophet ﷺ said to her ﷺ: Where is Allah? She said: In the heaven. He said: Who am I? She said: The Messenger of Allah. He said: Free her, for she is a believer.and it is proof of Allah's highness above His creation, and that acknowledgment of that and of his messengership ﷺ This is evidence for iman. This is the concise meaning of what you asked about, and it is obligatory upon the Muslim to follow, regarding these verses and the authentic hadiths of similar meaning that indicate the names and attributes of Allah, the path of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah, which is belief in them, and holding the correctness of what they indicate and affirming it for Him, glory be to Him, in a manner befitting Him, without distortion, without negation, without asking how, and without likening Him to His creation. This is the correct path that the righteous predecessors followed and agreed upon, just as it is obligatory upon the Muslim who desires safety for himself to keep himself from falling into what angers Allah, and to turn away from the path of the people of misguidance who reinterpret the attributes of Allah or deny them from Him, exalted and glorified far above what the wrongdoers and the ignorant say, a great exaltation. We are enclosing for you a copy of (Al-Aqidah Al-Wasitiyyah) by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and its explanation by Shaykh Muhammad Khalil al-Harras, for it contains an extensive discussion of the topic you asked about. We ask Allah to grant everyone beneficial knowledge and action upon it, and to grant everyone success in what pleases Him; indeed, He is All-Hearing, Responsive.
Was-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh[1].
As for its specific meaning, it is His saying, the Most High:
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلۡحَيُّ ٱلۡقَيُّومُۚ لَا تَأۡخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٞ وَلَا نَوۡمٞۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِي يَشۡفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذۡنِهِۦۚ يَعۡلَمُ مَا بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِمۡ وَمَا خَلۡفَهُمۡۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيۡءٖ مِّنۡ عِلۡمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَۚ وَسِعَ كُرۡسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفۡظُهُمَاۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِيُّ ٱلۡعَظِيمُ
Allah! La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists. Neither slumber, nor sleep overtake Him. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His Permission? He knows what happens to them (His creatures) in this world, and what will happen to them in the Hereafter. And they will never compass anything of His Knowledge except that which He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them. And He is the Most High, the Most Great. [This Verse 2:255 is called Ayat-ul-Kursi.]
Qur'an 2:255 — trans. Hilali & Khan
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلۡحَيُّ ٱلۡقَيُّومُۚ لَا تَأۡخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٞ وَلَا نَوۡمٞۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِي يَشۡفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذۡنِهِۦۚ يَعۡلَمُ مَا بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِمۡ وَمَا خَلۡفَهُمۡۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيۡءٖ مِّنۡ عِلۡمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَۚ وَسِعَ كُرۡسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفۡظُهُمَاۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِيُّ ٱلۡعَظِيمُ
Allah! La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists. Neither slumber, nor sleep overtake Him. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His Permission? He knows what happens to them (His creatures) in this world, and what will happen to them in the Hereafter. And they will never compass anything of His Knowledge except that which He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them. And He is the Most High, the Most Great. [This Verse 2:255 is called Ayat-ul-Kursi.]
Qur'an 2:255 — trans. Hilali & Khan
وَهُوَ ٱللَّهُ فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَفِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ يَعۡلَمُ سِرَّكُمۡ وَجَهۡرَكُمۡ وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا تَكۡسِبُونَ
And He is Allah (to be worshipped Alone) in the heavens and on the earth, He knows what you conceal and what you reveal, and He knows what you earn (good or bad).
Qur'an 6:3 — trans. Hilali & Khan
And His saying, exalted is He:
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي فِي ٱلسَّمَآءِ إِلَٰهٞ وَفِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ إِلَٰهٞۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡحَكِيمُ ٱلۡعَلِيمُ
It is He (Allah) Who is the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) in the heaven and the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) on the earth. And He is the All-Wise, the All-Knower.
Qur'an 43:84 — trans. Hilali & Khan
And His saying, Glorified and Exalted is He:
أَلَمۡ تَرَ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَعۡلَمُ مَا فِي ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِۖ مَا يَكُونُ مِن نَّجۡوَىٰ ثَلَٰثَةٍ إِلَّا هُوَ رَابِعُهُمۡ وَلَا خَمۡسَةٍ إِلَّا هُوَ سَادِسُهُمۡ وَلَآ أَدۡنَىٰ مِن ذَٰلِكَ وَلَآ أَكۡثَرَ إِلَّا هُوَ مَعَهُمۡ أَيۡنَ مَا كَانُواْۖ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا عَمِلُواْ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ بِكُلِّ شَيۡءٍ عَلِيمٌ
Have you not seen that Allah knows whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on the earth? There is no Najwa (secret counsel) of three, but He is their fourth (with His Knowledge, while He Himself is over the Throne, over the seventh heaven), nor of five but He is their sixth (with His Knowledge), not of less than that or more, but He is with them (with His Knowledge) wheresoever they may be; and afterwards on the Day of Resurrection, He will inform them of what they did. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of everything.
Qur'an 58:7 — trans. Hilali & Khan
Its meaning is: that He, glory be to Him, is aware of all His servants wherever they may be; He hears their speech, their secrets, and their private conversations, and He knows their deeds. His messengers from among the noble angels, the recording scribes, likewise write down what they converse about, even though God's knowledge and hearing of it all encompasses it. What is meant by the "withness" (ma'iyyah) mentioned in this verse, according to Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah, is the withness of His knowledge, glory be to Him and exalted is He. He is with them through His knowledge, encompassing them, and His sight penetrates them. He, glory be to Him and exalted is He, is aware of His creation, and nothing of their affairs is hidden from Him, while at the same time He, glory be to Him, is above all creation, having risen over His Throne with a rising befitting His majesty and greatness, resembling none of His creation in any of His attributes, as He, Mighty and Majestic, said:
فَاطِرُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِۚ جَعَلَ لَكُم مِّنۡ أَنفُسِكُمۡ أَزۡوَٰجٗا وَمِنَ ٱلۡأَنۡعَٰمِ أَزۡوَٰجٗا يَذۡرَؤُكُمۡ فِيهِۚ لَيۡسَ كَمِثۡلِهِۦ شَيۡءٞۖ وَهُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلۡبَصِيرُ
The Creator of the heavens and the earth. He has made for you mates from yourselves, and for the cattle (also) mates. By this means He creates you (in the wombs). There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer.
Qur'an 42:11 — trans. Hilali & Khan
And as for the hadith of the slave girl whose master wanted to free her as expiation for having struck her, the Prophet ﷺ said to her ﷺ: Where is Allah? She said: In the heaven. He said: Who am I? She said: The Messenger of Allah. He said: Free her, for she is a believer.and it is proof of Allah's highness above His creation, and that acknowledgment of that and of his messengership ﷺ This is evidence for iman. This is the concise meaning of what you asked about, and it is obligatory upon the Muslim to follow, regarding these verses and the authentic hadiths of similar meaning that indicate the names and attributes of Allah, the path of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah, which is belief in them, and holding the correctness of what they indicate and affirming it for Him, glory be to Him, in a manner befitting Him, without distortion, without negation, without asking how, and without likening Him to His creation. This is the correct path that the righteous predecessors followed and agreed upon, just as it is obligatory upon the Muslim who desires safety for himself to keep himself from falling into what angers Allah, and to turn away from the path of the people of misguidance who reinterpret the attributes of Allah or deny them from Him, exalted and glorified far above what the wrongdoers and the ignorant say, a great exaltation. We are enclosing for you a copy of (Al-Aqidah Al-Wasitiyyah) by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and its explanation by Shaykh Muhammad Khalil al-Harras, for it contains an extensive discussion of the topic you asked about. We ask Allah to grant everyone beneficial knowledge and action upon it, and to grant everyone success in what pleases Him; indeed, He is All-Hearing, Responsive.
Was-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh[1].
- Majmu' Fatawa wa Maqalat Mutanawwi'ah li al-Shaykh Ibn Baz (1/135).