Tajdeed

I dedicate this work mainly for the Muslim Ummah who disagree & quarrel over such a vital part of religion & theology.

This research presents the varying usage of the Muhkamat (explicit) verses to fully apprehend the concept of mutashabihat (ambiguous/allegorical) verses in relation to metaphysical matters such as God, Divine attributes and the Hereafter

The debate & discussion of the possibility of visually seeing God has been a very controversial theological, doctrinal & textual debate for centuries between different Muslim groups. On one hand, the schools such as the Ahl al-‘Adl wa-Tawheed (i.e. the Mu’tazilites) alongside the Ibadis & the Shi’a (Zaydis & Imamis) have strongly endorsed the view that God, the Creator, the Necessary Existent cannot be seen or comprehended by the vision of the created because the Creator, the Necessary Being is not bound by that which is created.

In other words, that which is contingent cannot grasp that which is Necessary, Eternal & Unlimited. Yet, on the other hand, the mainstream Sunni groups affirm some level or some sort of envisioning (of God) in the Hereafter, with the Athari school leaning more towards an anthropomorphism & the Ash’ari & Maturdi schools engaging in a higher level of sophisticated kalam (dialectal theology).

In this research, we will delve into the subject of physically seeing God in the authentic & correct theology of Islam. We will do this by examining the augments & proofs regarding the doctrine. There will be a great focus on the Qur’an because the main text of Islam which is accepted as the literal word of God should suffice for such an important metaphysical matter.

The main textual evidence used to substantiate the doctrine of رؤية (Ru’ya) or visually seeing God is found in the Hadith collections. According to the report attributed to the Prophet in Bukhari & Muslim, it is narrated that the Prophet Muhammad said:

Jarir ibn Abdullah reported: We were with the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and he looked at the full moon one night. The Prophet said, “Verily, you will see your Lord just as you see this moon. There will be no crowd to block your sight. Thus, if you can avoid missing prayer before the rising of the sun and its setting, then do so.” Then, the Prophet recited the verse, “Glorify your Lord with praises before the rising of the sun and its setting.” (Surah 50:39)

The sources are, Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 554, & Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 633, and the report is graded as Muttafaqun Alayhi (authenticity agreed upon). The translation of this Hadith was by Abu Amina Elias.

Now this Hadith or documentation needs to be corroborated or compared with something that is definitive which conveys certitude and that is the Qur’an because the Qur’an is the ultimate text.

Naturally, the ultimate criterion for Muslims is the main text that all Muslims agree upon, which is the Qur’an, the book that is accepted and regarded as the literal Book of God by the Ummah. So, what is the Qur’anic evidence used to substantiate the idea that the creation will physically look at and see or envision the Creator in the Hereafter like they envision the moon?

The main proof cited is in Surah al-Qiyama, which reads:

وُجُوهٞ يَوۡمَئِذٖ نَّاضِرَةٌ

On that Day ˹some˺ faces will be bright, looking at their Lord. (Qur’an, 75-22-23)

Now to examine this verse, it becomes clear that the verse mentions the key phrase “looking at their Lord”. In order to correctly understand this metaphysical matter, we need to observe other key verses in the Qur’an about the same subject and we need to understand the key word which refers to seeing God and observe how this keyword is used in other passages of the Qur’an

The key word used is نَّاظرَةٌ (Naadhira) and this word which is translated as “looking” stems from the verb نَظَرَ (Nadhara). It is known that the Arabic word ‘Nadhara’ can mean see, look & observe. However, it could also mean perspective, outlook, view, opinion, thought, observation & even anticipating for something. The question is how do we correctly identify the intended interpretation of a word with so many meanings? The answer is to contextualise the verse & once again compare it to other verses with the same key word & the same subject matter.

To start off with the context, we see that the verse before this verse mentions the phrase, “On that Day ˹some˺ faces will be bright” and what this passage signifies is that the one who is “looking at God” in the Hereafter is in a state of bliss & happiness. This is because the face being bright in language is a clear metaphor to indicate happiness, success, glory & pleasure.

The usage of metaphor here is another indication that the later key verb of ‘Naadhira’ (looking) is also a metaphor. Moreover, the later passages or verses of the same chapter mention what happens to those who fail. The verses following these particular verses read, “And ˹other˺ faces will be gloomy” (75:24), then the next verse states “anticipating something devastating to befall them.” (75:25). So, what do we deduce here?

Those who fail on Judgement Day will have gloomy faces because they are anticipating for something devasting to befall them when God is judging them. Now the context is fully understood & completed.

The verses 75:24 & 75:25 emphasises that the faces will be gloomy due to awaiting bad news. Correspondingly, the verses before verses 75:24 & 75:25 elucidates that other faces will be shining brightly, looking at God for reward & blessing (anticipation). It is evident that according to language, looking at God can metaphorically signify looking at the blessing, reward & bounty of God. Therefore, this is the correct interpretation of this particular verse concerning “Looking at God”. So, ‘Naadhira’ implies that believers anticipate a good reward.

To add to the strength of this argument, let us examine other passages regarding the same topic of نَظَرَ (Nadhara). The second passage in regard to the word ‘Nadhara’ is seen in Surah Aal-Imran, the verse reads:

إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَشۡتَرُونَ بِعَهۡدِ ٱللَّهِ وَأَيۡمَٰنِهِمۡ ثَمَنٗا قَلِيلًا أُوْلَـٰٓئِكَ لَا خَلَٰقَ لَهُمۡ فِي ٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ وَلَا

يُكَلِّمُهُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَلَا يَنظُرُ إِلَيۡهِمۡ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِ وَلَا يُزَكِّيهِمۡ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٞ

“Indeed, those who trade Allah’s covenant and their oaths for a fleeting gain will have no share in the Hereafter. Allah will neither speak to them, nor look at them, nor purify them on the Day of Judgment. And they will suffer a painful punishment”. (Surah 3:77)

In this passage we see the word يَنظُر (yandhur) which means “he looks” is used metaphorically again because is it not possible that Allah cannot not see the individuals that he is judging because that would be a limitation on his omnipotence & omniscience.

Therefore, we see that similar to the other verses in Surah al-Qiyama (75), the passage is demonstrating that Allah will not be looking after those who sold the religion for the pleasure & benefit of the temporal world. To re-emphasise this point, the phrase “Allah will not look at them” ( وَلَا يَنظُر) means “Allah will not look after them with blessing”, nor will he “purify” them.

The meaning of this verse is that God will not look after them with blessing, compassion, forgiveness or reward and this is precisely why the verse is emphasising that they will not be spiritually purified. Thus, purification possibly refers to being purified from impure sin via Divine mercy & grace. To add to these arguments, what significance or benefit is there in Allah literally not seeing someone, why would Allah refrain from “looking” or “seeing”? It is obvious that this interpretation of the verse is not even a proper harm or punishment upon the grave sinner deserving of hellfire. Appropriately, the true punishment in this verse is the deprivation of blessing, reward & forgiveness, which in turn leads the criminals to suffer in the fires of hell.

The next question is, so does the Qur’an mention anything related to not seeing God or negating the physical vision of God in the Afterlife? The answer is in the affirmative, there are two key passages in regard to this important doctrine of negating the creation’s sight of the Creator.

The first verse about the negation of a vision of God is seen is Surah 7, which is named al-A’raf, where the verse mentions:

وَلَمَّا جَآءَ مُوۡسٰى لِمِيۡقَاتِنَا وَكَلَّمَهٗ رَبُّهٗ ۙ قَالَ رَبِّ اَرِنِىۡۤ اَنۡظُرۡ اِلَيۡكَ​ ؕ قَالَ لَنۡ تَرٰٮنِىۡ وَلٰـكِنِ انْظُرۡ اِلَى الۡجَـبَلِ فَاِنِ اسۡتَقَرَّ مَكَانَهٗ فَسَوۡفَ تَرٰٮنِىۡ​ ۚ فَلَمَّا تَجَلّٰى رَبُّهٗ لِلۡجَبَلِ جَعَلَهٗ دَكًّا وَّخَرَّ مُوۡسٰى صَعِقًا​ ۚ فَلَمَّاۤ اَفَاقَ قَالَ سُبۡحٰنَكَ تُبۡتُ اِلَيۡكَ وَاَنَا اَوَّلُ الۡمُؤۡمِنِيۡ

 And when Moses came at Our appointment, and his Lord spoke to him, he said: ‘O my Lord! Reveal Yourself to me, that I may look upon You!’ He replied: ‘Never can you see Me. However, behold this mount; if it remains firm in its place, only then you will be able to see Me.’ And as soon as his Lord unveiled His glory to the mount, He crushed it into fine dust, and Moses fell down in a swoon. And when he recovered, he said: ‘Glory be to You! To You I turn in repentance, and I am the foremost among those who believe. (Surah 7:143)

In this passage of the Qur’an we can see that the Prophet Moses wanted to physically see or visualise God, and in response to this request, the Creator replied to Moses by answering “You cannot see me”. Equally, the verse can be translated as “you can never see me”.

The reason is because the grammatical form for the Divine response is left as general without any restriction or specification which then renders the given information as absolute. As a result, Moses can never see God Almighty, it is an impossibility. To contend against this view, some may argue that later on God says, “you can only see me if the mountain remains in place after receiving the Divine glory, manifestation and/or unveiling”

However, this is not a strong contention for two main reasons, firstly it is flimsy because God unambiguously informed Prophet Moses, “you will not see me” ( لَنۡ تَرٰٮنِىۡ ) and this information is unconditional. The second point is that God knows that the mountain cannot bear the manifestation of the Divine, so this is not opening the possibility for the mountain to bair or uphold the great Divine manifestation, which would have then hypothetically led to Moses actually physically seeing God.

Instead, this conditional expression used by God was a lesson to stress that God cannot be seen. In other words, this expression was announced to practically teach Moses that the Unlimited, Eternal Creator cannot be confined to or comprehended by the limited vision of the contingent creation. Therefore, this phrase was a further emphasis established by the Creator in order for Moses to truly experience this truth of reality, the reality of the transcendence of the Unlimited Divine Being.

In addition to this contention, some argue that this was a lesson for Moses in the temporal world, but Moses will be able to see or vision God in the Hereafter. In response to this, it will be said, then why did God not clearly unequivocally say that Moses will be able to see or vision God Almighty in the Hereafter?

Logically, if Moses requested to see God, the Creator could have responded “you cannot see me in this world, but you will surely see me in the next life”, but the verse did not mention such a key detail despite the eagerness of Moses. In contrast to this, Moses actually repented to God for demanding such a request because seeing God implies a limitation upon the Unlimited Being, hence the repentance at the end, ‘Glory be to You! To You I turn in repentance, and I am the foremost among those who believe’. (Surah 7:143)

It is also important to note that the key phrase in the verse (Surah 7:143) which says, لَنۡ تَرٰٮنِىۡ (lan tarani) which translates as “not see me” is clearly about the psychical eyesight of God.

Now, to add to all of these arguments, was such a vital doctrine neglected in the Qur’an? If the creation was able to eventually see God Almighty, why was this not explicitly stated in the clear Book of guidance? This point is even more important because we see that this is not only a question that the average man is curious about, but the prophets of God, like Moses also delved into this philosophical matter.

Thus, in contrast to this doctrine, the most compelling verse about the negation of the رؤية or Ru’ya (sight/vision) says:

لَّا تُدۡرِكُهُ ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرُ وَهُوَ یُدۡرِكُ ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرَۖ وَهُوَ ٱللَّطِیفُ ٱلۡخَبِیرُ

No vision can encompass Him, but He encompasses all vision. For He is the Most Subtle, All-Aware. (Surah 6:103)

This is the final verse & greatest proof to negate the idea that limited, created visions can encompass the Unlimited Creator. In actuality, this verse is explicit in its import, the clear message of the verse is that the Creator is not limited or confined to inadequate created vision. Instead, it is the Creator of all visions that comprehends, visualises and envisions all sight, all vision, all things & all knowledge.

Moreover, the keyword used to negate vision رؤية (Ru’ya) in Surah 6:103 is the word ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرَۖ (al-absaar) which is derived from the word بۡصَـٰرَ (Basara) which means sight & physical vision. The significance of the keyword بۡصَـرَ (Basara) in relation to the other keyword used for sight or seeing which is the word نَظَرَ (Nadhara) is that the word بۡصَـرَ (Basara) is mainly used in relation to the psychical eyesight, vision and seeing something. Whereas the word نَظَرَ (Nadhara) is often times used for a metaphorical sight, which comes to mean things such a point of view, perspective, thought & anticipation.

Consequently, this is another reason why the verse (Surah 6:103) in regard to the negation of ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرَۖ (al-absaar) is stronger, clearer & more explicit in comparison to the word choice of نَظَرَ (Nadhara) used in Surah 75:23 to prove that God can be physically seen.

If we also add the key phrase of “you will not see me” in Surah 7:143, which uses the keyword of تَرَىٰنِ (tarani) from Ru’ya/Ra’a ( رؤية ) which also denotes a physical sight then the matter will be fully sealed because if we link verses such as 7:143 which state “you will not see me” and then connect it to Surah 6:103 which mentions, “No vision can encompass Him”, then you will get the result that God Almighty is not bound by created vision and he will never be seen. Evidently, God is not seen in this world, nor will he be seen in the Hereafter. It is proven that created vision cannot comprehend such limitless greatness of the Creator.

To conclude, we have assessed the Qur’anic verses in relation to رؤية (vision) and we have demonstrated through detailed analysis that the verse used to establish that man will be psychically seeing God in the Afterlife are full of short comings & flimsy arguments.

Likewise, when examining the key words of the used passages & when examining the context by observing the verses before & after the particular verses, we are able to derive a more comprehensive understanding of the correct interpretation of the texts. In addition to these points, Surah 75:23 used to prove the belief of actually seeing God in the Hereafter is actually about a completely different subject that has been misinterpreted.

The subject of the verse is about anticipation, either anticipating reward or punishment by God. Instead, what is seen is that other Qur’anic texts such as verses 7:143 & 6:103 prove that God can never be seen, and that eyesight cannot comprehend his greatness. We come to this conclusion because the mentioned proofs are explicit in meaning & they corroborate each other especially through inter-textual analysis.

• By Abul Hasan al-Gabikani al-Shadi al-Shaddadi al-Hadhabani -al-Kurdi