our Lord—glorified and exalted—is characterized by the attributes of pure oneness. He is marked by the qualities of absolute singularity; no creature resembles Him in any respect. He is exalted above limits and endings, above parts, limbs, and instruments.

We therefore affirm for Him whatever He affirmed for Himself and whatever His Messenger affirmed for Him, without resemblance or comparison, and without negation or probing into the how. This is the straight, balanced path.

Allah, exalted is He, has no peer, no equal, and no counterpart.

The attributes of oneness mean that Allah is One without partner—neither in His lordship, nor in His divinity, nor in His names and attributes; in all these realities He is uniquely One.

“He is characterized,” that is, He is described with the attributes of perfection and the qualities of majesty that none of His creation shares with Him. His names and attributes are His alone and befit Him, while the names and attributes of created beings belong to them and befit them. With this clarity, the truth stands out and one is freed from the ways of both the deniers and the anthropomorphists.

As for the phrase about “limits,” it is somewhat general. If by limits one means created confines, then Allah is far above such limits and above indwelling within created things. But if by limits one means the uncreated limit—namely, His exalted height—then this is affirmed for Allah, majestic and sublime. One does not declare Allah free of height, for it is real; this has nothing to do with created confines or spatial directions.