And Shaikh Nasr ul-Maqdisee ash-Shaafi'ee said in the book 'al-Hujjah', 'And if someone should say, 'You have mentioned what is obligatory upon the People of Islaam of following the Book of Allaah and following the Sunnah of His Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) ...' until he said, '...so he mentioned their madhaahibs (ways, i.e. what they were upon and held to) and what they had agreed upon with respect to their beliefs and what we are obliged to hold from those matters that they had ijmaa' upon, so what is obligatory: that which I found the People of Knowledge upon and those whom I met and took knowledge from and those whose saying has reached me from other than them ... then he mentioned a summary of the creed of Ahl us-Sunnah and in it occurs, 'Verily, Allaah ascended His Throne, and is separate and distinct (baa'in) from His creation'." End of his words.

Shaikh ul-Islaam also quotes from Abu 'Umar Ibn 'Abdul-Barr, from the Shaikh and 'Aarif, Ma'mar bn Ahmad al-Asbahaanee, from Abdur-Rahmaan bin Abee Haatim, the athar of al-Awzaa'ee, from Abu Hasan al-Ash'aree and some of his major companions. He also quotes from Ibn 'Asaakir, Ibn Fawraak and Alee bin Mahdee at-Tabaree, who are the greatest of the companions of al-Ash'aree and also from al-Qurtubee the mufassir as occurs in 'Bayaan ut-Talbees' (2/332). In fact he quotes this ijmaa' from twenty imaams from the Salaf and the Khalaf as occurs in 'Dar' ut-Ta'aarud' (1/245), including the Imaam, Ahmad bin Hanbal, Alee bin al-Madeenee, Ishaaq bin Ibraaheem, Daawood bin 'Alee, Uthmaan ad-Daarimee, Ibn Khuzaimah, Ibn Kullaab, al-Qalaanisee, al-Ash'aree, Abu Hasan at-Tabari, Abu Bakr al-Ismaa'eelee, Abu Nu'aym al-Asbahaanee, Ibn 'Abdul-Barr and others which are many in number.

All of those Imaams say that Allaah is above the Throne with ijmaa' (concensus) [5]. So do they (also) agree upon the opposing rational proof, which the intellect (seemingly) proves to be correct? Far be it from them! For there is no intelligence, nor textual proof with the philosophers, only doubts, crimes, desires and suspicions, some of which destroy others!!

The Fourth

That the saying of those philosophers necessitates the most ugly and detestable of requirements and that is describing Allaah with non-existence. Shaikh ul-Islaam said in 'Bayaan ut-Talbees' (2/104), "And this is from that which the Scholars of Ahl us-Sunnah and the Imaams of the Deen are agreed upon, that the saying of the Jahmiyyah that, 'He is not above the Throne nor inside the world, nor outside of it' implies that He is non-existent, having no reality, nor existence, and they (the Ahl us-Sunnah) have explained this more than once." End of his words.

Know that the objective here is not to narrate rational proofs, requisites and refutations against the doubts that the philosophers amongst Ahl ul-Kalaam have preferred. Whoever desires a lengthy treatment should return to the books of Shaikh ul-Islaam, such as 'Bayaan Talbees ul-Jahmiyyah' and 'Dar' ut-Ta'araud', for they contain hundreds of pages of the refutation of the false principles of the philosophers, those for which they are not capable of bringing any criticism or reply. Let that which we have quoted be a key and an illumination by which the heart of the seeker of truth is strengthened.

The Fifth