Surah Taa-Haa (20) — Ayah 5

(Ayah 5) ➊ { اَلرَّحْمٰنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوٰى:} That is, the revelation of the Qur’an upon you and the creation of the earth and the high heavens are the result of the mercy of the Most Merciful. He, the Most Merciful, is elevated above the Throne. The literal meaning of ‘Arsh is throne, and the meaning of {’’ اسْتَوٰى ‘‘} is {’’اِرْتَفَعَ‘‘} (became elevated). Above the Throne is Allah Almighty, and He is managing the entire universe. He said: «{ ثُمَّ اسْتَوٰى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ يُدَبِّرُ الْاَمْرَ }» [یونس : ۳ ] “Then He rose above the Throne, managing every affair.” From this verse and other verses, it is clear that Allah Almighty is above the Throne, but as for how He is above the Throne—whether He is standing, sitting, or in what manner—no one knows, nor can anyone know, because the creation is limited and He is unlimited. No one from the creation can fully fully encompass anything of His knowledge, let alone the Creator Himself, except what He wills. He said: «{ وَ لَا يُحِيْطُوْنَ بِشَيْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهٖۤ اِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ }» [ البقرۃ : ۲۵۵ ] “And they do not encompass anything of His knowledge except what He wills.” The Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, who after the Prophets, peace be upon them, were the most knowledgeable about Allah Almighty, did not ask the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) how He is upon His Throne. That is why when someone asked Imam Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, about {’’ اَلرَّحْمٰنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوٰى ‘‘} as to how, he replied: {’’اَلْاِسْتِوَاءُ مَعْلُوْمٌ وَالْكَيْفُ مَجْهُوْلٌ وَالسُّؤَالُ عَنْهُ بِدْعَةٌ ‘‘} “It is known to everyone that He is above the Throne, but how He is, no one knows, and asking about it is an innovation.” He further said: “I consider you a bad person; remove him from my presence.” So the questioner left saying, “O Abu Abdullah! I asked the people of Iraq and the people of Sham about this, but no one was granted the success (in giving the correct answer) as you have.” (Tafsir al-Baghawi)

In summary, it is obligatory to have faith in what Allah Almighty and His Messenger have informed, and that is that Allah Almighty is established above the Throne. On the Day of Resurrection, eight angels will carry the Throne of Allah Almighty (see Haqqah: 17). It also has legs. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ اَلنَّاسُ يَصْعَقُوْنَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَأَكُوْنُ أَوَّلَ مَنْ يُّفِيْقُ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِمُوْسٰی آخِذٌ بِقَائِمَةٍ مِنْ قَوَائِمِ الْعَرْشِ فَلَا أَدْرِيْ أَفَاقَ قَبْلِيْ أَمْ جُوْزِيَ بِصَعْقَةِ الطُّوْرِ ] “People will fall unconscious on the Day of Resurrection, and the first person to regain consciousness will be me. Suddenly, I will see Musa (peace be upon him) holding one of the pillars of the Throne. So I do not know whether he regained consciousness before me or he was compensated for the unconsciousness at Tur.” [ بخاري، أحادیث الأنبیاء، باب قول اللّٰہ تعالٰی : «وواعدنا موسٰی ثلاثین… » : ۳۳۹۸، عن أبي سعید الخدري رضی اللہ عنہ ] But Allah’s being upon the Throne or any of His attributes is not similar to the attributes of the creation. He said: «{ لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهٖ شَيْءٌ وَ هُوَ السَّمِيْعُ الْبَصِيْرُ }» [ الشورٰی : ۱۱ ] “There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” This is the belief of all the Salaf regarding Allah Almighty’s being above the Throne and His other attributes. After the best generations passed, when innovations in beliefs and actions began, the verses and hadiths about Allah Almighty were also interpreted or even distorted according to their innovations. Thus, many people said that the meaning of being above the Throne is being the owner of the dominion of the heavens and the earth; otherwise, there is no Throne, nor is Allah Almighty above it. He is neither above nor below, nor in any direction, nor does He descend to the lowest heaven, nor will He come to the earth on the Day of Resurrection. In short, in the name of interpretation, they denied the clear verses and hadiths. But it is astonishing how such great scholars denied, with such boldness, the existence of this magnificent and noble Throne, about which the Most Merciful Himself mentioned His being above, and about which the Noble Qur’an mentioned that on the Day of Resurrection, eight angels will carry it above all people, and about whose pillars His beloved (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned. [ فَنَعُوْذُ بِاللّٰہِ مِنْ ھٰذِہِ الْأَھْوَاءِ الْمُضِلَّۃِ وَالْعَقَائِدِ الْبَاطِلَۃِ وَ خُذْلَانِ رَحْمَۃِ اللّٰہِ تَعَالٰی ] See also Surah Al-A’raf (54), Haqqah (17), and Surah Al-Fajr (22). The commentator Jamaluddin Qasimi writes: “It has been proven by the research of modern astronomers that the Throne is a real entity with an actual body; it is the center of all the worlds of the universe, that is, the center of attraction, influence, management, and system (all the galaxies, each of whose planets is thousands of times larger than the sun, are revolving around it, and there is no room for denial or interpretation of it).” Its example is like the command of Allah Almighty, “We will set up the scales of justice on the Day of Resurrection.” When the rationalists could not comprehend how non-physical properties (a'rad) would be weighed, they denied the weighing of deeds or interpreted it away. Whereas, in modern inventions, almost every kind of meter has been made—electricity, steam, heat, cold, density, moisture, dryness—in short, countless instruments for measuring and weighing non-physical properties have come into existence, due to which the fabric of denial and interpretation by the rationalists has been torn apart.

➋ Allah Almighty revealed the Qur’an upon the earth out of His mercy, so He mentioned it first, then the high heavens, then the Most Merciful’s being upon the Throne, so that you may see from where this mercy descended and upon what great personality it was revealed. In this is a statement of the loftiness and greatness of the Qur’an and also the greatness of the possessor of the Qur’an. Furthermore, it is to make you, O Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and your Ummah realize the value of this blessing, and to give comfort and glad tidings in the face of the resistance and hardships from the disbelievers, that after having the support of this Most Merciful, what is there to fear? After this, the mention of Musa (peace be upon him) is given in detail, showing how the Prophets and their companions receive the help and support of Allah Almighty and what trials they face.

5. 1 Without any limitation or describing the manner, in the way that befits His majesty, that is, Allah Ta’ala is established on the Throne, but how and in what manner? This manner is not known to anyone.

5. The Most Merciful has established Himself [3] upon the Throne.

[3] The explanation of ﴿استوي على العرش﴾ has already been mentioned in the footnote of Surah Al-A'raf, verse 54. What is established from the texts regarding the Divine Throne is that it has legs, which are carried by special angels. And especially on the Day of Resurrection, eight angels will be carrying it, and this Throne is above all the heavens and encompasses them like a dome.