Allah’s (s.w.t.) Establishment on the Throne Refers to His Sovereignty

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ 

Some people claim Allah (s.w.t.) is on the ‘Arsh, based on verses such as the following: 

سُوۡرَةُ طٰه

ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنُ عَلَى ٱلۡعَرۡشِ ٱسۡتَوَىٰ (٥) 

(Allah) Most Gracious is Firmly Established on the Throne (of Authority). (Surah ThaHa:5) 

Imam Abu Manswur ‘Abd al-Qahir ibn Thahir al-Baghdadi (r.a.), in Uswul ad-Din, wrote, “The correct position according to us is the interpretation of the Throne in this verse to mean Sovereignty, as if He meant that Sovereignty has not been established for any but Him.  This interpretation is taken from the saying of the Arabs, ‘So-and-so’s throne has toppled,’ if he lost his power.”  He then cited three examples from poetry illustrating this. 

He further said, about the characteristics of the Ahl as-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah, in his al-Farq bayn al-Firaq, “The Ahl as-Sunnah are in consensus that Allah, the Flawless, the Exalted, is not bounded by location.”  He then reported the saying of Sayyidina ‘Ali ibn Abu Thalib (k.w.), “Allah Created the Throne as an Indication of His Power, not for taking it as a place for Himself.” 

Imam Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali ibn Isma’il al-Ash’ari (r.a.), wrote, in his al-Ibana fi Uswul ad-Diyanah, “Allah is above the Heavens, above the Throne, above everything, with a Loftiness which does not make Him any closer to the Throne or the Heavens, just as it does not make Him any further from the Earth.  He is Close to everything in existence; He is closer to the servant than his jugular vein, and He is a Witness over all things.” 

He also said, as reported by Imam Abu Mansur al-Baghdadi (r.a.), in Uswul ad-Din: “Allah’s Establishment on the Throne is an action He has Created named ‘istiwa’’ and related to the Throne, just as He has Created an action named ‘ityan’”, meaning, “coming”, “related to a certain people; and this implies neither descent nor movement.”