Does affirming God's highness and transcendence not necessitate defining a direction or His being above us, but rather that He is above the entire world from all its directions and encompasses it, and that the name "Al-Batin" (the Inner/Hidden) means that He, glory be to Him, is above us and below us, considering the spherical shape of the earth and the heavens, citing the Prophet's saying, "And You are Al-Dhahir (the Manifest), so there is nothing above You, and You are Al-Batin (the Inner), so there is nothing below You"?

The answer summarizes Sheikh al-Islam's refutation of the Jahmiyyah's misconception regarding Allah's istawa (ascension) and the spherical Earth. It clarifies that the Throne ('Arsh) is domed, not round, and it is above all creations and their ceiling. Allah encompasses the universe in a manner befitting His Majesty. It emphasizes that Allah's encompassment of the universe is not like the encompassment of a bracelet by a wrist. It affirms that Allah's transcendence ('uluw) and ascension (istawa) are established by the Qur'an, Sunnah, and scholarly consensus (ijma'), and that the modality of these attributes is known only to Allah, and delving into it is an innovation (bid'ah). It also clarifies that Allah's name Al-Batin (The Inner) does not mean He is beneath creations; rather, He is close to His creation through His knowledge and power. And Al-Zahir (The Outer) means His transcendence above all things. It calls for believing in Allah's attributes without asking "how" (takyeef) or making resemblances (tamtheel), and to stop where the pious predecessors (Salaf as-Salih) stopped.