his position concerning seeing Allah with the eyes. He held that the Creator, glorified and exalted is He, has always existed, while neither place nor time existed before creation; that He remains as He has always been; that He is established above His Throne, as He has said; and that He, exalted is He, is above all things.

Abū al-Hasan al-Ash‘arī also said, in the chapter on their disagreement concerning the Creator—whether He is in one place rather than another, in no place, or in every place; whether the bearers carry Him or carry the Throne; and whether they are eight angels or eight classes of angels:

“They differed concerning this, holding seventeen positions. We have already mentioned the view of those who rejected this and said that He dwells in every place, and the view of those who said that He has no limit, and that both these groups denied that He is in one place rather than another.”

I say: He had already mentioned, in his explanation of people’s disagreement concerning