Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.

Belief in Allah requires affirming His transcendence above anything that does not befit Him, such as resembling the creation or possessing attributes of created beings like composition or occupying space. This is what the clear, unequivocal texts indicate, such as Allah's statement {which means}: "There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing." [Ash-Shura, 11], and Allah’s words {which mean}: "Say, 'He is Allah, [who is] One, Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent.'" [Al-Ikhlas, 1-4].

What is mentioned in the Book of Allah The Almighty or the Sunnah of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) from words that may imply, in their literal meanings, the resemblance of Allah to His creation, should not be taken at their literal linguistic meanings. Words such as "eye," "hand," "face," and "istiwa" (rising above) are not to be understood in their literal sense as they are used in the Arabic language to refer to body parts and limbs, which would imply a resemblance to the creation. The reason it is impermissible to take these words at their literal meanings is that it would lead to the implication of likening Allah to His creation. Ibn al-Jawzi, a Hanbali scholar, condemned the anthropomorphists and those who attribute bodily attributes to Allah, saying: "They adhered to the apparent meanings of the names and attributes, calling them 'attributes' in an innovative way for which they have no evidence from Sharia texts or reason. They did not consider the texts that divert from the apparent meanings to the necessary meanings attributed to Allah, nor did they negate what the apparent meanings imply of the characteristics of created beings. " [Daf' Shubah al-Tashbih].

The scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah wa'l-Jama'ah have unanimously agreed that the proper way to understand these ambiguous verses is through exalting Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) by not taking the literal meanings of the verses that would attribute to Allah what is not befitting of Him. Instead, they interpret them in a manner that is fitting for the majesty and perfection of Allah by employing various linguistic tools of the Arabic language, such as metaphor, allegory, and broad meanings. This approach involves referring these ambiguous verses to the clear and unequivocal verses, while denying anything that is inappropriate or unbefitting to Allah's exalted nature.

Ahl al-Sunnah wa'l-Jama'ah, among the interpreters and theologians, have two approaches to dealing with these verses after exalting Allah: interpretation (ta'wil) or delegation (tafwid). Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) stated, "This hadith is among the hadiths concerning attributes, and there are two schools of thought regarding it, which have been mentioned several times in the Book of Faith. One is to believe in it without delving into its meaning, with the conviction that Allah is not like anything and is exalted beyond the attributes of creatures. The second is to interpret it in a manner that is befitting of Him ." 

In [Sharh al-Muqaddimah al-Hadramiyyah ], it is mentioned, "As for what is found in the Book (Quran) and the Sunnah that may imply corporeality or direction or other attributes that are incompatible with His nature, it is unanimously understood to be taken away from its apparent meaning due to its contradiction with rational evidence." Imam al-Luqani (may Allah have mercy on him) in "Jawharat al-Tawhid" stated, "Any text that implies resemblance... should be interpreted or delegated, all while maintaining exultation."

Imam al-Nafrawi (may Allah have mercy on him) noted, "It is understood from what we mentioned that each of the two groups interprets the ambiguous texts by diverting them from their apparent meanings due to their impossibility. They diverge after diverting from the impossible apparent meaning in explaining it in detail. The Salaf (Early generations of Muslims) delegate the knowledge of it to Allah, while the Khalaf (Generations of Muslims who came after the Salaf) interpret it with specific detailed interpretations, attributing each word to a particular meaning. "

Thus, the delegation according to the predecessors is to divert the term from its literal meaning because such a meaning cannot be attributed to Allah at all, and then not to delve into determining and detailing its meaning, due to their utmost caution against that, even though it may be permissible in Sharia. From this, it is understood that detailed interpretation is not considered distortion (tahrif), as distortion is the invention of meanings for which there is no valid evidence, contradicting both reason and texts of Sharia.

In brief, both the Salaf and the Khalaf agree on rejecting any resemblance between Allah and His creation as well as anything that is not befitting of Allah, even if such notions might appear in the literal wording of a noble verse or a noble hadith. The difference between some of the Salaf and some of the Khalaf lies in determining the intended meaning of these noble verses and hadiths. Some of the Salaf refrained from specifying the intended meaning (Tafwid), while some of the Khalaf clarified and explained the intended meaning based on linguistic indications, Arabic styles, and contextual evidence.

Some of the Salaf chose the approach of Tafwid (Delegating the meaning to Allah) due to the limited presence of misconceptions about Allah’s attributes during their time, their deep knowledge of the Arabic language, the people’s focus on worship, and their cautiousness in avoiding any discussions about anthropomorphism or likening Allah to His creation. However, when circumstances changed, understanding weakened, the Arabic language became less familiar, and ideas of anthropomorphism and corporealism entered people's minds, many of the Khalaf opted for the approach of Ta’wil (Interpretation). They began clarifying the intended meanings more explicitly to eliminate any misconceptions or misunderstandings.

However, if false understanding of these ambiguous texts becomes widespread, people stray from the correct methodology, and the true beliefs become mixed with the misconception of anthropomorphism, the preferred approach is detailed interpretation (Ta’wil). Al-Nafrawi said: “Izz al-Din Ibn Abd al-Salam leaned towards preferring it, stating that it is the approach closest to the truth. Imam al-Haramayn sometimes inclined towards the method of the Khalaf and at other times towards the method of the Salaf. This disagreement exists only when there is no necessity for interpretation, but if there is a pressing need—such as when a misconception arises that can only be dispelled through detailed interpretation—then there is consensus on the obligation of detailed interpretation .” As for the ruling on those who liken Allah to His creation, they should be taught the correct understanding with wisdom and fair preaching.

Accordingly, Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah unanimously agree that it is not permissible to affirm any degree of resemblance between Allah and His creation. They also agree that texts which may seem to imply resemblance should be interpreted away from their apparent literal meanings that suggest similarity (to creation), which is known as general figurative interpretation (Ta'wil ijmali). After that, Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah have only two accepted approaches: either they perform a detailed figurative interpretation (Ta'wil tafsili), which is the preferred approach during times of widespread confusion and prevalence of anthropomorphism, or they consign the knowledge of such texts to Allah (Tafwid), which is preferred during times when beliefs and hearts are sound. Allah, the Exalted, is Wise, and has made everything in His Book precise in proportion. And Allah The Almighty knows best.