meaning: “Am I near, or am I distant?” The reply is, “Indeed, I am near.”

His nearness—magnified and exalted be He—is a nearness that befits His majesty and greatness; it is not a nearness of place, for He is above all things, above the seven heavens, above the Throne. Yet, in a manner suited to His glory and grandeur, He is near while remaining sublimely high. His exalted elevation knows no limit save what His sacred Essence determines; thus He is near in His height and far in His closeness—glorified is He.

The Prophet ﷺ once said to his Companions, “The One you call upon is closer to any one of you than the neck of his riding beast, yet He is above His heavens.”

The seven heavens and the seven earths rest in His grasp—exalted is He—like a mustard seed in the palm of one of us. He encompasses all things; there is no deity but Him.

“And when My servants ask you concerning Me, indeed I am near”—a nearness befitting His majesty and greatness, not a spatial nearness, for He is not on earth with us; rather, He is above the heavens, glorified be He. “I answer the call of the caller when he calls upon Me.” This is the evidence: He answers the supplication of the one who truly invokes Him, seeks refuge with Him, acknowledges his poverty before Him, and knows that none removes hardship but Allah and that he is utterly dependent on his Lord. Whoever calls upon Him in such a state will be answered—exalted is He—provided the previously mentioned conditions are observed.

Allah then says, “So let them respond to Me and believe in Me.” Let them respond by doing what I have summoned them to—namely, worshipping Him, which includes calling upon Him—for Allah has commanded: “Your Lord has said, ‘Call upon Me and I will answer you.’”