| 26 September 2009
The 16th and 17th verses of the Sura Sovereignty in the Quran reads,“Are you confident that He who is in heaven will not let loose on you a sandy whirlwind? You shall before long know the truth of MY warning.” (A translation by N. J. Dawood)
What is meant by “He who is in heaven” (“men’fi Sokak-Sema” in Arabic)? There’s no doubt that God is meant with this relative clause. So, it’s clear that according to Quran, God is in the sky. This expression has caused many interpreters of the Quran to get stupefied and confused. Relying upon this expression, some have claimed that God has a dwelling. (See F. Razi, e't - Tefsiru'l Kebir, 30/69)
However, after this claim, the following questions about the case have arisen;
-If God were in the sky, he should be smaller than the space. How can we imagine such a thing?
-If we agree that God is in the sky, his existence and survival would be dependent to other things. How can that be possible? (See Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, Hak Dini Kur'an Dili, 7/5233)
Many interpreters of the Quran cannot fit “being in the sky” or “having a dwelling” in the concept of ‘God’. However, the truth is that the Quran itself tells so. The forced interpretation of the interpreters is never sufficient enough to conceal the truth. Remember that primitive men used to think that God was in the sky, and so do the contemporary primitive ones, don’t they? Ebu Muslim also concluded that the expression, “He who is in heaven” takes place in the Quran due to the fact that the Arabs at that time used to believe that God was in the sky. (See F. Razi, 30/70)
The 210th verse of the Sura The Cow (Al Baqara) reads,
"[2.210] They do not wait aught but that Allah should come to them in the shadows of the clouds along with the angels, and the matter has (already) been decided; and (all) matters are returned to Allah." (A translation by M. H. Shakir)
Presidency of Religious Affairs (Turkey) construes this verse as "Allah's furry should come over the angels" but the verse does not imply so. The verse doesn't say, “Allah's furry”, but it says that “Allah” (himself) should come. Although the Quran clearly mentions this, they attempt to embed some other meanings into the translation because “coming through the clouds” doesn't fit Allah, so they translate it as “Allah's furry”. Some Quran annotations include this standpoint, too. (See: Tefsiru'n -Nesefi, 1/105; Tefsiru'l-Celaleyn, 1/31;Taberi, Camiu'l-Beyan,2/191-192; F.Razi, 5/215 )
The Torah also mentions God’s arrival through the clouds. Actually, the Torah is the original source of this verse in the Quran.
The Torah reads, "Ahoy Master, you are so great! (...) You are the one who make yourself vehicles from the clouds." (Psalms, 104:1-2)
"There, the master goes to Egypt riding a fast cloud. The totems of Egypt will shiver with fear because of His existence." (Ishaya 19:1)
To sum up, both in the Quran and the Torah, God's main location is above the skies, where his palace and throne are. The Quran, too, mentions that Allah went up beyond the skies after He had created the Earth and the skies.
In one hadith, it is stated that “Arş” (where Allah dwells) is above the skies. The details can be seen if you carefully examine the verses and hadiths related to “Arş” and “the eight wild mountain goats on which Allah rides. Furthermore, it must be kept in mind that Muhammad is also said to have been to “His Arş” above the skies in order to see and talk to Him. (The case of Mirac) And the Torah reads, “Sing for Him who is riding on the sky of the skies. (68:33) “The Master is in his sacred temple.” (Psalms, 11:4) “The Master sets up His throne in the skies.”
According to the beliefs of both prehistoric and contemporary primitive-minded ones, the dwelling of God is in the skies.
Yes, it is stated that the dwelling of God is in the skies, but this does not prevent Him from coming to the Earth from time to time. The Quran says, “God will come down together with the angels on Doomsday,” (The Daybreak, 22). “He will come on his throne carried by eight angels,” (The Inevitable, 17). In a hadith which is considered true with no dispute, Muhammad says, “In the last one third of each night, our Master comes down to the sky of the Earth..." (See Buhari, e's -Sahih, Kitabu'tanri-Tehacud/14;Tecrid, hadith no:590)
Some interpreters of the Quran who cannot fit “the arrival of God at the sky of the Earth” try to gloss the revelation by intentional misinterpretations. However, those who disapproved the idea, for example, Ibn Teymiyye, stated that no other meanings should be attributed to the words other than their original meanings. (See Ibn Teymiyye, Der'u Tearuzi'l-Akli ve'n -Nakl Arabic ,1971, 1/15)
