The Islamic Belief That Allah Is Beyond Place, Direction, and Space

A brilliant method of keeping the gaze lowered

It is related that Sayyiduna Hassaan Bin Abi Sinaan رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِonce went for Eid Salah and when he رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ returned home, his wife asked him, 'How many women did you look at today?' He رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ remained silent in response, but when she continued asking incessantly, he replied, 'From leaving the house until returning to you, I kept my gaze on my toes.'

(Kitab-ul-Wara' Maa' Mawsu'ah Imam Ibn Abi Dunya, vol. 1, pp. 205)

سُبْحٰنَ اللّٰه! The pious bondsmen of Allah do not look around unnecessarily, especially in crowded areas, to ensure that their gaze does not fall on that which is impermissible to look at in Shari'ah. Sayyiduna Dawood Taa'ee رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ, mentioning a sign of the pious predecessors, said, 'The pious people would dislike looking around pointlessly.'

(Kitab-ul-Wara' Maa' Mawsu'ah Imam Ibn Abi Dunya, vol. 1, pp. 204)

May Allah Almighty have mercy upon him and forgive us for his sake.

اٰمِيْن بِجَاهِ النَّبِيِّ الْأَمِيْن صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم

Is anyone watching?

Sayyiduna Farqad Sinji رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ said, 'When a hypocrite sees that no person is watching him, he goes ahead and commits sin. Alas! He bears in mind that people are not watching him, but he fails to take into account that Allah is watching.'

(Kitab-ul-Wara' Maa' Mawsu'ah Imam Ibn Ab Dunya, vol. 1, pp. 130)

May Allah Almighty have mercy upon him and forgive us for his sake.

اٰمِيْن بِجَاهِ النَّبِيِّ الْأَمِيْن صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم

Chhup kay logon say kiye jis kay gunah
Woh khabardar hay kya hona hay

Aray O mujrim bay parwa daykh,
sar pay talwaar hay kya hona hay

(Hadaiq-e-Bakhshish Shareef)

Madani request: Purchase a copy of the speech entitled 'Allah Daykh Raha Hay' (Allah is watching) from Maktaba-tul-Madinah, listen to it yourself, and make your family members listen to it too.

The Shar'i ruling on saying 'Allah is my support above'

Question:

What is the ruling on saying to someone, 'Allah is my support above, and you are my support on earth.'

Answer:

It is disbelief because place and direction are being affirmed for Allah Almighty in it.

Referring to Allah as 'ooper wala' (the one above)?

Question:

What is the ruling on referring to Allah as 'ooper wala' (the one above)?

Answer:

It is disbelief to refer to Allah Almighty as 'ooper wala', because this statement affirms direction for Him and He is free from direction, as 'Allamah Sa'aduddin Taftaazaani رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ states, 'Allah is free from being in a place, and since He is free from being in a place, He is also free from direction, and free from being above or below.'

(Sharh-ul-'Aqaaid, pp. 60)

Moreover, 'Allamah Ibn Nujaym Misri رَحْمَةُ اللّٰہِ عَلَیْہِ states, 'Whoever deems Allah as being above or below, the ruling of disbelief will be applied to him.' (Al-Bahur-ur-Raaiq, vol. 5, pp. 203) However, if someone uses this statement in the meaning of elevation of rank and majesty, we will not apply the ruling of disbelief on the speaker, although we will still declare the statement to be a bad one and we will still prevent the speaker from saying it.'

(Fatawa Fayz-ur-Rasool, vol. 1, pp. 2)

Saying Allah is 'in the Masjid, the temple, and everywhere'

Question:

Someone said, 'Allah is everywhere; He is in the Ka'bah, in the Masjid, in the temple, and in the church'. What is the ruling on the speaker?

Answer:

The ruling of Luzoom-e-Kufr applies to the speaker because place has been affirmed for Allah Almighty in this statement. Some Na'at reciters recite statements like this in Ḥamdiyyah poetry¹. They should repent, and renew their faith as well as their Nikah [i.e. marriage].

Explanation of Allah being free from place

Question:

Nowadays, common people are generally heard saying, 'Allah resides above, His place is in the sky'. Countless people also say, 'Allah is everywhere.' However, the correct Islamic belief is that Allah Almighty is free from place. Please explain this belief for us?

Answer:

Without doubt, Allah Almighty is free from place. The truth is that the concept mentioned in the question (of Allah being above or everywhere), which is disbelief, has become embedded into the minds of many people due to them watching films and dramas and listening to indecent songs. From these people, this concept transfers to subsequent generations. Due to being distant from knowledge and scholars of Islam, some minds are not prepared to accept that Allah Almighty is free from place. There are numerous proofs for Allah Almighty being free from place, but I will try to present just one proof. اِنْ شَآءَاللّٰہ, minds possessing the spirit of accepting the truth will accept this proof straightaway. Remember that Allah Almighty is Qadeem (Pre-Eternal), i.e. He has existed forever. He existed even when there was no 'now, when, or then' and no 'here, there, above, below, left, or right'.

¹ Poetry that is written to praise Allah Almighty

Everything other than Allah Almighty and His Divine Attributes is Ḥaadis (contingent). Ḥaadis is the opposite of Qadeem and refers to anything that came into existence from non-existence, or in even simpler words, anything that did not exist before and then existed. اَلْحَمْدُلِلّٰہ, every Muslim believes that Allah and. Now, all we need to understand is that undoubtedly, the earth, the sky, the 'Arsh, the Kursi, above, below, right, left, etc. are all amongst the things that were created afterwards. Now, if it was to be said that Allah is above, or in the sky, or on the 'Arsh, or everywhere, then it would become necessary to accept that the sky, the 'Arsh and everywhere else are Qadeem, or one would have to conclude that initially Allah Almighty was free from place but then as He started creating things, He began residing in them, such that when 'above' came into existence, He went above, when 'below' was created, He descended below, when He created the 'Arsh, then He went to the 'Arsh, and when He created all places, He began to reside everywhere. (How absurd!) وَلَاحَوْلَ وَلَاقُوَّةَ اِلَّا بِاللّٰہ, May Allah عَزَّوَجَلَّ allow this explanation to enter the hearts.

Hopefully, you would have understood the ruling now. Anyhow, the ruling of Shari'ah is that referring to Allah Almighty as being above, or residing in the sky, or being everywhere is Kufr-e-Luzoomi. Although a Muslim who holds such a belief does not exit the folds of Islam according to the Mutakallimeen (theologians), however, according to the noble Fuqaha (jurists), the ruling of disbelief does apply to him. Therefore, it is necessary for him to repent, and renew his faith and Nikah [i.e. marriage].