What is the difference between the divine attributes of "نزول" (descending) and "هبوط" (alighting), and between "قرب" (nearness), "تقرب" (drawing near), "دنو" (drawing close), and "تدلي" (leaning down)? Also, do you recommend the book "Sifat Allah min al-Kitab wa al-Sunnah" (Attributes of Allah from the Book and the Sunnah) by Sheikh Al-Saqqaf?

One must believe in the names and attributes that Allah has affirmed for Himself, and among them is the attribute of "descent" (an-nuzul), which has been mentioned with the words "descent" (an-nuzul), "descent" (al-hubut), and "dangling/drew near" (at-tadalli). One must also believe that He, glory be to Him, truly approaches and draws near to His creation in a manner befitting Him. This falls within the scope of belief in Allah the Almighty.

The hadiths regarding the descent in the last third of the night are authentic, such as the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him): "Our Lord, the Blessed and Exalted, descends every night to the lowest heaven when only the last third of the night remains, and He says: 'Who is there to supplicate to Me so that I may answer him? Who is there to ask of Me so that I may give him? Who is there to seek My forgiveness so that I may forgive him?'" As for the word "at-tadalli" (dangling/drawing near), it appeared in the long hadith (definition) of Al-Isra' (the Night Journey): "And the Compeller, Blessed and Exalted, drew near and descended." However, this phrase is a point of scholarly disagreement, and the correct view is that it refers to Jibreel (peace be upon him).

As for proximity and drawing near, Allah has affirmed for Himself a special proximity that befits Him, such as His saying: "And when My servants ask you concerning Me, then I am indeed near; I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me" (Quran 2:186), and the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him): "O people! Be gentle with yourselves, for you are not calling upon one who is deaf or absent, but rather you are calling upon one who is All-Hearing, All-Near. Indeed, the One you are calling upon is nearer to one of you than the neck of his riding animal." This proximity does not necessitate that His Essence is empty of the Throne; rather, He is above the Throne and draws near to His creation as He wills.

As for His (Glorified and Exalted) drawing near to some of His servants, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said regarding it: "Indeed, Allah will bring the believer close and will cover him with His protection and conceal him." And the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him): "And if he draws near to Me by a span, I draw near to him by a cubit" has been interpreted as a real drawing near to the servant's essence, or as a conceptual drawing near through acts of obedience. The latter interpretation is favored by some scholars.