affirm this attribute for Allah, glorified be He, until the Mu‘tazilah denied it. The later Ash‘arīs, such as Abū al-Ma‘ālī and those who followed his views, then followed them in denying it.

The apparent meanings of the revealed Law require the affirmation of direction, as in His saying, Exalted is He:

‘The Most Merciful rose over the Throne.’ [Tā Hā: 5]

And His saying, Exalted is He:

‘His Kursī encompasses the heavens and the earth.’ [al-Baqarah: 255]

And His saying:

‘And eight will bear the Throne of your Lord above them that Day.’ [al-Hāqqah: 17]

And His saying:

‘He directs the affair from heaven to earth; then it ascends to Him in a day whose measure is a thousand years by your reckoning.’ [al-Sajdah: 5]

And His saying:

‘The angels and the Spirit ascend to Him.’ [al-Ma‘ārij: 4]

And His saying:

‘Do you feel secure that He who is in heaven will not cause the earth to swallow you, and suddenly it would sway?’ [al-Mulk: 16]

There are other such verses. If they are subjected to non-literal interpretation, the whole revealed Law becomes subject to non-literal interpretation. If they are said to be among the ambiguous passages, the whole revealed Law becomes ambiguous. For all revealed laws rest upon the affirmation that Allah is in heaven, that from there the angels descend with revelation to the prophets, that the Scriptures came down from the One in heaven, and that to it