—she meant only to affirm His exaltedness without confining Him to created bodies or suggesting that He indwells them.

When the term “exaltation” is used, it refers to that which lies above the whole of creation; whatever is above all created things is said to be “in heaven.” This, however, does not imply the existence of a spatial container that encompasses Him, for above the cosmos there is nothing existent except Allah alone. Similarly, if one says, “The Throne is in heaven,” this does not necessitate that the Throne resides within any other created entity.

Should someone understand “heaven” to mean the celestial spheres, the intended sense is that He is above them, just as Allah says: “I shall surely crucify you in the trunks of palm trees” (Q 20:71), and as He also says: