to which one draws near?” If he says, “What one draws near to is Allah’s reward,” he is told: “Allah’s reward in the Hereafter is Paradise, while in this world it consists of the blessings one receives. It is well known that someone prostrating draws near to Paradise only as he draws near to Allah Most High, for he has not physically traversed any distance between himself and Paradise. Thus, the objectionable implication to which the interpreter has fled is of the same kind as that from which he fled.

“As for reward in this world, he may be told, first: This does not necessarily follow, for some who draw near receive no reward until after death. Second: Prostration alone does not bring one near to the material things with which Allah blesses him. The servant may not even know what those things are; even if he did, drawing near to them would not lie within his power. Rather, bringing them into existence depends on Allah’s power and will. How, then, can the servant be drawing near to them?”

Sixth, regarding his statement, “As for nearness in a direction, it is necessarily known that this does not result from prostration,” he may be told: We need to establish that the apparent meaning of the wording is drawing near through prostration itself. The Quran merely says:

“Prostrate and draw near.” (19)