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Did Ibn Taymiyyah affirm the attributes of touch and taste for Allah Almighty, and are these among the attributes of Allah (SWT)?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The attributes of Allah are Tawqifiyyah (derived solely from revelation), so only what has been mentioned in the texts can be affirmed for Him. The attribute of "touching" (al-mass) has been affirmed for Allah Almighty in the Sunnah, as in the hadith about the creation of Adam and the wiping of his back. A group of the Salaf also affirmed it, such as Ibn Ka'b al-Qurazi, Maysarah Abu Salih, Ikrimah, the mawla of Ibn Abbas, Khalid ibn Ma'dan, and Hakim ibn Jabir, who said: "I was informed that your Lord, the Mighty and Majestic, did not touch with His hand except three things: He planted Paradise with His hand, He created Adam with His hand, and He wrote the Torah with His hand."

As for the attribute of "tasting" (at-tadhawwuq), it is not to be ascribed to Allah Almighty because no text has mentioned it. Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah held that affirming the perception of touch is possible for Allah, as it is a perfection and not a deficiency, unlike the perception of taste, which necessitates eating, and Allah is far removed from that.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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