—rather, Allah Most High is necessarily the Most High, the Highest, exalted above the world. Its contrary—His not being above the world—is impossible. Thus, His being above the world in Himself is necessary, and the contrary of this knowledge is impossible. This is what those who affirm the divine attributes agree upon, including the early generations of the Muslim community and its leading scholars, and all others of sound natural disposition who acknowledge the Creator.

As for the statement he quoted, “He must be situated specifically in the upward direction, and it is impossible for Him to be in the other directions and spatial loci,” these people mean that He must be above us and cannot be beneath us, to our right, or to our left. They do not mean that He is in contact with our heads; rather, they mean that He is above the Creator. The servant therefore turns towards Him there, not beneath his feet, to his right, or to his left.

We have already said that direction has a relational meaning. Thus, the servant turns his heart towards his Lord in the upward direction, not downwards, to the right, or to the left, as Ibn ‘Abbās and ‘Ikrimah said concerning Allah Most High’s words about Iblīs:

“Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful.” {17} [al-A‘rāf 17]

He said: “He did not say ‘from above them,’ because he knew that Allah is above them.”