‘And We are closer to him than his jugular vein’ (16) [Qāf 16].” He then said: “We affirm all that we have mentioned as their position.”

He said in al-Ibānah: “Our position, in summary, is that we affirm belief in Allah, Blessed and Most High.” He then mentioned much the same as he had in al-Maqālāt, until he said:

“We affirm that Allah will come on the Day of Resurrection, as He says: ‘And your Lord comes, and the angels, rank upon rank’ (22) [al-Fajr 22], and that Allah Most High draws near to His servants however He wills, as He says: ‘And We are closer to him than his jugular vein’ (16) [Qāf 16], and as He says: ‘Then he drew near and came down (8), and was two bow-lengths away or nearer (9)’ [al-Najm 8–9].”

He has other statements besides this. His wording explicitly indicates that, in his view, His drawing near to His creation is one of the attributes of action, for he said, “however He wills.” Nearness through knowledge and power cannot be made contingent upon His will, because His knowledge and power are inseparable from His essence. This, then, reflects the agreement of the generality of those who affirm the divine attributes