describing Allah as being high above the Throne;
the question of the Quran;
and the question of interpreting the divine attributes nonliterally.

I said to him:

“Let us begin with the question of interpreting the divine attributes nonliterally, for this is the fundamental issue, and the remaining questions depend upon it.”

I also said to him:

“The position of the people of hadith—the early generations, comprising the first three generations, and those of later generations who followed their path—is that these hadiths are to be accepted as they have come, believed in, and affirmed as true. They must be safeguarded against nonliteral interpretation that leads to negating the attributes, and against specifying their manner in a way that leads to likening Allah to His creation.

“More than one scholar who has reported the consensus of the early generations—including al-Khattābī—has stated their position in general terms: these hadiths are understood according to their apparent sense, without specifying how the attributes are or likening them to those of creation. This is because what is said concerning the attributes follows from what is said concerning the divine essence, adhering to the same pattern and principle. Thus, just as affirming the divine essence means affirming its existence, not specifying how it is, so too affirming the attributes means affirming their existence, not specifying how they are. We therefore say that He has a hand and hearing, but we do not say that hand means power or that hearing means knowledge.”

I then said to him:

“Some people say, ‘The position of the early generations is that the apparent sense is not intended,’ and say, ‘We agree that the apparent sense is not intended.’ This expression is erroneous—either in both wording and meaning, or in wording but not in meaning—because ‘the apparent sense’ has come to be used for two different things: