respect to Him is the same as its meaning with respect to us. Likewise, when He described Himself as having created Adam with His two hands, that did not require us to say that the plain sense is not intended, for its meaning in His case is like its meaning in ours; rather, every attribute befits the One who is characterized by it.

Therefore, just as His holy Essence is unlike the essences of created beings, so His attributes—like His Essence—are unlike the attributes of created beings. The way an attribute belongs to a creature is comparable to the way an attribute belongs to the Creator, yet the attribute attributed is not like the attribute attributed, and the bearer of the attribute is not like the bearer of the attribute. As the Prophet ﷺ said, “You will see your Lord just as you see the sun and the moon.” He likened the act of seeing to the act of seeing, not the One seen to the things seen.