Ghazali on Ibn Taymiyya 5 Page 1 of 2

MUHAMMAD AL-GHAZALI (b. 1917) ON

IBN TAYMIYYA [2]
by Dr. Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqqa
Regarding Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn Qayyim, Ibn `Uthaymeen
Shaykh Muhammad ibn SaaliH al-`Uthaymeen says that Allah is in the
heaven in person or with His Essence (bi dhaatihi) and that despite this he
draws near to the servant during the latter's prayer, *just as the sun is in the
heaven, while its rays reach creatures on earth.*

[Note #1: Ibn Taymiyya establishes this clear-cut case of similitude

(tamtheel) for Allah's Attributes of knowledge, watchfulness and protection
in the ' `Aqeeda waaSiTiyya ' (Salafiyya ed. 1346/1927 p. 20): "The phrase
'and He is with you' (cf. 57:4) does not mean that He is mixed in
(mukhtaliT) with creation... Nay the moon... one of the smallest of God's
creations, is both placed in the heaven (mawdoo`un fi al-samaa') and
present with (wa huwa ma`) the traveler and the non- traveler wherever
they may be, and [a fortiori] He, the Exalted, is over (fawq) the Throne
(but) as a watchful guardian of His creatures; He is their protector and is
cognizant of them".]

[Note #2: Ibn Taymiyya elsewhere denies this simile as valid for attributes
according to Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah in 'Kitaab al-RooH' (Madani ed.
1984 p. 59): " [The soul's movement] is unrelated to the body, for it rises
until it reaches what is above the heavens (taS`adu ila ma fawq al-
samaawaat) then it alights back on earth between the time that it is seized
and that of the body's burial in the grave -- and that is a brief time --
whereas the body neither rises nor alights like it. Similarly its ascension
from and return to the body during sleep or wakefulness. Some have
compared it to the sun and its rays, for the sun is in the heaven (fa innaha fi
al-sama') while its rays are on earth (shu`aa`uha fi al-arD). But our shaykh
(Ibn Taymiyya) said: "This example does not apply, because the sun itself
or in its essence (fa inna nafs al-shams) does not descend from the heaven,
and the radiance that is upon the earth (`ala al-arD) is neither the sun *nor
its attribute* (laysa huwa al-shamsu wa la Sifatuha), but merely a
nonessential, contingent accident (`araD) which happens to take place
because of the sun, and because of an (earthly) body facing it; whereas the
soul itself (al-rooHu nafsuha) ascends and descends.'"]

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 Ghazali on Ibn Taymiyya 5 Page 2 of 2

Ibn `Uthaymeen says ('SharH al-`aqeedah al-waasiTiyya' p. 44):

"The proof that Allah is (directly) in front of the person who prays is
the Prophet's (s) saying: If one of you stands in prayer, let him not spit
in front of him (qibala wajhihi) for Allah is in front of him (fa inna
Allaha qibala wajhihi)'; and so this confrontation (muqaabala) is
established for Allah literally (thaabitatun lillahi Haqeeqatan), in the
way that befits Him. Nor does it contradict His elevation (`uluwwahu),
for what reconciles the two matters is that with respect to the creature
(fi Haqq al-makhlooq) both can be put together, just as the sun at its
rising (kama law kaanat al-shamsu `inda Tuloo`iha) is facing him who
faces the East (fa innaha qibalu wajhi man istaqbala al-mashriq), at the
same time being in the heaven (wa hiya fi al-samaa'). And if this is true
for created things, then it is more rightfully so for the Creator."

These are the very words of Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymeen who is a Salafi. It is
possible to force upon him the proof (based on his own words) that the
external meaning (zaahir) of Allah's words: "Prostrate thyself, and draw
near (unto Allah)" (96:19) indicates physical proximity. But no rational
person can say that such a meaning is meant here, for when the person at
prayer prostrates, he does not draw near to a body nor to Allah's body! This
proves that the proximity in question is that of His mercy (al-iqtiraab
iqtiraabu raHmatih), and that the words "in front of him" in the above
hadith mean that Allah is looking over him and taking account of his works
(Allah naaziruhu wa muHSi `alayhi a`maalahu).

From 'Daf` al-shubuhaat `an al-Shaykh Muhammad al-Ghazali' [The

Refutation of False Arguments Made Against the Shaykh Muhammad al-
Ghazali] (Cairo: Maktabat al-kulliyyaat al-azhariyya, 1410/1990) p. 58-59.

Peace and Blessings upon the Prophet, his Family, and his Companions

Refuting Ibn Taymiyya: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |

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