And for this reason they appeal to both principles. Abū Muhammad ‘Abd Allāh ibn Kullāb and his followers, as well as Abū al-Hasan al-Ash‘arī and the leading scholars among his followers, do not dispute that Allah Most High is above the Throne or that one can draw near to Allah Himself. They use each principle as evidence for the other, even though they also say that He is not a body, and despite their disagreement with others over whether their position is contradictory.

For this reason, many of al-Ash‘arī’s later followers denied that He is above the Throne, agreeing with the Mu‘tazilah in denying this on the grounds that affirming it entails attributing corporeality to Him.

Abū al-Hasan al-Ash‘arī said concerning the Throne:

“Further confirmation for you that Allah is established over His Throne, and not over anything else, is what the transmitters have related of his saying, ‘Our Lord descends every night.’”

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