In this work, he affirmed that He is above the Throne, unlike His state before the Throne existed. He said:

“If someone asks, ‘Then tell us: where was He before He created?’ the reply is: ‘Where?’ presupposes a place, and places are created. He—glorified be He—has always existed, before creation and places, without being in a place; neither time nor duration applies to Him.

“If he asks, ‘Then what is He above now?’ he is told: He is established above the Throne, as He—glorified be He—said: ‘The Most Merciful is established above the Throne.’”

He also said:

“If someone asks, ‘Has the Creator always been All-Powerful, All-Knowing, Ever-Living, All-Hearing, and All-Seeing?’ the reply is: Yes. If he then asks, ‘Why, then, do you deny that He has always been a creator?’ he is told: If by saying, ‘He has always been a creator,’ you mean that creation has always existed alongside Him in His beginningless eternity, this is incorrect. For creation means that something did not exist and then came into being. How, then, could something that did not exist and then came into being have always existed?

“If you mean that the Creator has always existed and was able to create, then that is what we say. For the Creator has always existed, whereas creation did not exist and then came into being; and He has always had the power to create. This, then, is the answer.”

He said:

“If it is asked, ‘Since you say that He is a creator now, why do you deny that He has always been a creator?’ the reply is: That does not necessarily follow. For He is now established above