an existent thing separate from Him, such as the cloud or the Throne, then he may hold that His being in it is contingent. This makes clear the answer to his statement: “That particularization can only be brought about by an agent who precedes it; hence Allah’s essence being in a spatial region cannot be eternal.” On this supposition, it is indeed conceded that His essence being above the Throne is not eternal. Rather, Allah existed before He was established over the Throne, whether being established is understood as a relational matter, or as one of His attributes of action, such that He became established over the Throne after not having been established over it. On either supposition, His being established over it came about only through His creation of the Throne, and He created the Throne by His will and choice.

As for his statement, “If He was eternally free of place and spatial region, it is impossible for Him subsequently to occupy a particular spatial region; otherwise, this would entail a transformation in His essence,” he may be told: This is not conceded. For if He was eternally free of an existent spatial region, such as the Throne or the cloud, and then came to be so situated after