As Ahlus sunnah we affirm that Allah ﷻ will be seen in the akhirah and this is clearly affirmed from the Quran, the sunnah and the salaf. Here Allah ﷻ clearly says the believers will be gazing upon him while the disbelievers won’t have this virtue of seeing him
The first ones to deny we will see Allah ﷻ were the Jahmiyyah and they did this because of their faulty understanding of the Quran specifically verse 6:103. However this is understood as us not being able to see him in this life, this doesn’t negate us seeing him indefinitely as this would lead to a contradiction.
Aisha رضي الله عنها took this understanding too when Masruq رضي الله عنه asked her if the prophet ﷺ saw his lord and this made her hair stand on end and she said “Whoever says that Muhammad ﷺ saw his lord he is a liar then she recited 6:103.
It is impermissible for a prophet among prophets whom Allah has vested with the cloak of prophethood and protected with what He has protected the messengers to ask his Lord for something impossible.
If this is impermissible for Musa عليه السلام, then we know that he did not ask his Lord for something impossible, and that seeing our Lord is permissible.
In Sahih Al Bukhari we see two hadiths which are the tafsir for this verse. One says we will see Allah ﷻ as clearly as we see the moon and another explicitly says we will see Allah ﷻ with our own eyes
Ṣuhayb ibn Sinan the sahabi says that Allah ﷻ will lift his veil from those in Paradise and nothing will be dearer to us than the blessings of setting our sight upon him ﷻ
Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen is explaining the belief held by Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’ah regarding the ability of the believers to see Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, in the Hereafter. He references a verse and Mutawatir hadiths that affirm that Allah will be seen with the eyes, and he states that this was affirmed by the salaf.
The Shaykh clarifies that the “looking” mentioned in the texts refers to the actual vision of Allah, not a metaphorical or symbolic sight.
Although this hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah is daif and is not authentically traced back to the prophet ﷺ
Imam Ibn Majah add it to his compilation and cites it under the chapter heading “concerning what the jahmiyyah denied”
Clear proof that the jahmiyyah were the ones who denied seeing Allah ﷻ
Imām Aḥmad says whoever denies seeing allah ﷻ is a jahmī, and the jahmī is a kāfir
Translation: Imām Ibn Hāni (d.275AH) said: I heard Imam Ahmad say: Whoever does not believe in Ru’yah (seeing Allah on the Hereafter) is a jahmī, and the jahmī is a kāfir
Masa’il Al-Imam Ahmad by Ibn Hāni (2/152)
Muḥammad bin Musʿab Al-ʿĀbid (d. 228H) who is also from the salaf says those who deny seeing Allah ﷻ are enemies of Allah and they are heretics.
Translation: Muhammad bin Mus’ab Al-‘Abid (d. 228H) said: Whoever claims that Allah does not speak and that You are not seen in the Hereafter, then he is a disbeliever in Your Face, and he does not know You. I bear witness that You are above the Throne above the seven heavens, unlike what the enemies of Allah, and the heretics say.
Kitab As-Sifat by Darquţni Pg. 60-61
Imam al-Tabari (d.310AH) explains that the possibility of seeing Allah is something that can be understood logically, similar to understanding that Allah is knowledgeable and powerful.
He also says that everything describable can be seen, and thus, Allah ﷻ being described with certain attributes, is not exempt from this.
He asserts that every accountable person must believe that Allah, being eternal, is alive and capable of being seen. However, the specific time and circumstances under which Allah ﷻ will be seen are known only through revelation, not reason. (like the narration that he will be seen on Fridays in Jannah, while i will reference next)
Imam al-Tabari further clarifies that in the Hereafter, Allah will be seen by the people of Paradise, and ignorance of this fact is comparable to ignorance of things that can only be known through revelation.
Translation: As for the vision, its possibility is something that can be understood rationally. Ignorance of this is like ignorance of the fact that Allah is knowledgeable and capable. This is because every describable entity is not impossible to be seen. If the Eternal is described as such, then it is necessary for every person who has reached the age of accountability to know that the Creator, when He is knowledgeable and capable and has the attributes mentioned, is not beyond the judgments of disbelievers except by the belief that He can be seen.
This is because He is described as such, just as it is necessary to believe that He is alive and eternal, for there is no one who manages actions except the living, and there is nothing new except what is created. As for the requirement of saying that He will undoubtedly be seen, the question remains of when He will be seen and when He will not be seen. This is something whose knowledge cannot be grasped except through report and hearing. Through the report, we say that in the Hereafter, He will be seen, and He will be specifically seen by the people of Paradise and not by others. The path of ignorance about this is like the ignorance of what cannot be perceived through the senses until the proof of hearing it is established.
At Tabsirah fi Ma’alim al-Din by Imam At Tabari Pg 147-148
Uthman ad-Daarimi (d.280AG) responds to those who question the belief of seeing Allah on the Day of Judgment, specifically addressing the arguments of the Mu’tazilah and their interpretation the Quran.
He argues that the verse sight does not comprehend Him [Al-An’am: 103] refers specifically to the inability of people to see Allah in the dunya but not in the akhirah.
He supports his position by citing a hadith where the Prophet ﷺ said that believers will see Allah on the Day of Resurrection, comparing it to how people see the sun and the moon without difficulty.
Bishr al Marisi لعنه الله says those who affirm the hadith in Bukhari are mushabbiha because we are supposedly likening Allah ﷻ to the sun and the moon, this is not the case the point of the example is to show that we will clearly see allah ﷻ with our eyes not that his essence is like the moon or the sun.
Ad-Daarimi challenges the claim that asking to see Allah is wrong by differentiating between requests made in the dunya (as seen with the people of Musa عليه السلام who were struck by a thunderbolt for such a request), and requests for vision in the Hereafter, which the Prophet ﷺ praised and encouraged.
Translation: Al-Hawdi and others told us, from Yazid ibn Ibrahim, from Qatadah, from Abdullah ibn Shaqiq, from Abu Dharr, from the Prophet ﷺ. The meaning of his saying: the eyes do not perceive him (Al-An’am: 103) means we will not see him in this life. When he was asked about seeing him in the hereafter, he said: “Yes, clearly, just as you see the sun and the moon on the night of a full moon.” So the Messenger of Allah ﷺ explained both meanings in a way different from what you claimed.
It is surprising that you (Bishr Al Marisi) do not understand the clear words of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. You imagine that seeing Allah clearly is like seeing the sun and the moon, and then you claim that those whom you call mushabbihah hold this view because of ignorance. But by your claim, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would be the first of the mushabbihah, since he compared seeing Allah to seeing the sun and the moon, just as those you accuse have done.
As for your argument, by which you deceived the followers of your view about seeing Allah on the day of judgment, you said: do you not see that the people of Musa, when they said: show us Allah clearly (An-Nisa: 153), were struck by the thunderbolt? And when they said: we will not believe in you until we see Allah clearly (Al-Baqarah: 55), they were struck by the thunderbolt? And when they said: or we see our Lord (Al-Furqan: 21), they were arrogant within themselves and were extremely insolent? So you claimed that Allah rejected their request and blamed them for asking to see him.
But one of us said to you: you read the book of Allah while your heart is unaware of what is recited to you. Do you not see that the people of Musa asked to see Allah in the dunya persistently, saying: we will not believe in you until we see Allah clearly (Al-Baqarah: 55), and they did not say: until we see Allah in the hereafter.
Allah had already said: the eyes do not perceive him (Al-An’am: 103), meaning the eyes of the people of dunya. So the thunderbolt struck them because of their wrongdoing and because they asked for something that Allah had forbidden for the people of dunya. But if they had asked to see him in the hereafter, as the companions of Muhammad ﷺ asked him, they would not have been struck by the thunderbolt.
They would have only been told what the prophet told his companions when they asked him: will we see our Lord on the day of judgment? He said: yes, you will not struggle to see him. So neither Allah nor his Messenger ﷺ rejected their question. Rather, he approved of it and gave them glad tidings about it, just as you yourself narrated from him.
Naqd Uthman ad-Darimi ala al-Marisi al-Jahmi Pg 130-131
The Jahmiyyah claimed that Allah cant be seen and argued that no one can see Allah because the “seen” is something known, described, and created. They reference the verse: “No vision can grasp Him, but He grasps all vision” (Qur’an 6:103), claiming it proves that Allah cannot be perceived.
Their Interpretation of “Looking towards their Lord” (Qur’an 75:23) is that it means “looking forward to (waiting for) their Lord’s reward,” not literally seeing Allah. (same cope as from some of the heretics we see today).
They justify this by referencing verses like “Have you not seen your Lord, how He extends the shadow” (Qur’an 25:45), where “seeing” is interpreted as observing Allah’s actions, not His essence. They deny the Prophet ﷺ’s statement, “You will see your Lord just as you see the moon,” Imam Ahmad رحمه الله responds by affirming we can see Allah ﷻ. Imam Ahmad states that the believers will see Allah in Paradise, as affirmed by many verses and hadiths.
He affirms the hadith that we will see allah ﷻ as we see the moon upon its apparent, he contrasts this with Allah’s statement to Moses: “You will not see Me” (Qur’an 7:143), noting that Allah did not say, “I cannot be seen.” Imam ahmad refutes the Jahmiyyah’s interpretation, stating that Allah’s actions have always been visible to His creation and that the verse specifically refers to seeing Allah Himself. Imam Ahmad quotes Allah’s saying “For those who do good is the best reward and more besides” (Qur’an 10:26), interpreting the “more besides” as the ability to see Allah’s face.
He references a hadith of the Prophet ﷺ where the lifting of the veil in Paradise is described as the most beloved reward for believers. He also argues that the verse “No vision can grasp Him” does not negate Allah being seen but rather states that human perception cannot fully encompass Him. He also points out that if believers were also veiled, there would be no difference between them and disbelievers, which contradicts Allah’s justice.
Translation: Ahmad ibn Hanbal said: We said to them: Why do you deny that the people of Jannah will see their Lord? They said: No one should see Allah because anything that is seen must be something known and described, and Allah cannot be seen except through what He does. We said: Did Allah not say: looking at its Lord? They said: The meaning of looking at its Lord is that it waits for the reward from its Lord. They only see His actions and power.
Then they recited a verse from the Qur’an: Have you not seen your Lord, how He extended the shadow? (Al-Furqan: 45). They said: When He said, Have you not seen your Lord, they did not see their Lord, but the meaning is: Have you not seen the action of your Lord? We said to them: The servants have always seen the actions of Allah. Yet He said: Looking at its Lord, and not: Looking at His action. They said: It only waits for the reward from its Lord. We said to them: While it waits for the reward from its Lord, it also sees its Lord.
They (The Jahmiyyah) said: Allah cannot be seen in the dunya or in the akhirah. They recited a verse from the unclear ones in the words of Allah, Exalted be He: The eyes do not perceive Him, but He perceives the eyes (Al-An’am: 103). We said: Tell us about the Prophet ﷺ when he said: You will see your Lord as you see the moon, is it not true that the Prophet ﷺ knew the meaning of the words of Allah: The eyes do not perceive Him? Yet he said: You will see your Lord. And Musa said: My Lord, show Yourself to me (Al-A’raf: 143), and he did not say: I will never see You. So which is more worthy to follow, the Prophet ﷺ when he said: You will see your Lord, or the saying of the Jahmi who says: You will not see your Lord? The ahadith in the hands of the people of knowledge from the Prophet ﷺ state that the people of Jannah will see their Lord. The people of knowledge do not differ on this.
From the hadith of Sufyan, from Abu Ishaq, from Amir ibn Sa’d about the saying of Allah: For those who do good is the best and more (Yunus: 26), he said: The more is seeing the face of Allah. From the hadith of Thabit al-Bunani, from Abdur-Rahman ibn Abi Layla, from Suhayb, from the Prophet ﷺ, he said: When the people of Jannah settle in Jannah and a caller calls: O people of Jannah, Allah has permitted you for more, then the veil will be lifted, and He will reveal Himself to them, and nothing will be more beloved to them than looking at Him.
Imam Ahmad said: We hope that Jahm and his followers will be among those who do not see their Lord and will be veiled from Allah, for Allah said about the disbelievers: No, indeed they will be veiled from their Lord on that Day (Al-Mutaffifin: 15). If the disbeliever is veiled from Allah and the believer is also veiled from Allah, then what virtue does the believer have over the disbeliever? Praise be to Allah who did not make us like Jahm and his followers but made us among those who follow and not those who innovate. Praise be to Allah alone.
Kitab As Sunnah Al Khallal (2/432-434)
The Jahmiyyah argued that seeing Allah ﷻ entails that he has a size, shape, length, width and colour and that’s why they denied it.
Translation: The Jahmiyyah asserted, “Sight encompasses only length, width, color, and form.” So, they were asked, “Inform us about Allah, is He not a thing?” If they replied, “Yes,” they were told, “Therefore, sight can be directed towards that thing.
Al-Ibanah al-Kubra by Ibn Battah (d. 387 AH) Pg 403
Muhammad ibn Ka‘b al-Quradhi – (d. 120 AH), Abd al-Rahman ibn Sabit al-Jumaḥi – (d. 118 A, H), Al-Hasan al-Basri – (d. 110 AH), Mujahid ibn Jabr – (d. 104 AH), Ikrimah (d. 105 AH), Abu Salih – (d. 101 AH)
All 5 from among the salaf affirmed that we will see Allah ﷻ
Translation: Ahmad ibn Munbi’ told us, Ali ibn Thabit told us, from Musa ibn Humaydah, from Muhammad ibn Ka’b al-Quradhi about the saying of Allah: and faces that day will be radiant (Al-Qiyamah: 22). He said: Allah beautified those faces for looking at Him.
Abu Shahl al-Hamadhani told us, Amr ibn Awn told us, from Qushaym, from Qatir ibn Khalifah, from Abdur-Rahman ibn Sabit al-Jumahi about the verse: and to their Lord they look (Al-Qiyamah: 23). He said: to the face of their Lord they look.
Qasim ibn al-Qasim and Tahsin ibn Muhammad told us, Ibn al-Mubarak told us, from al-Hasan about the saying of Allah: and faces that day will be radiant, looking at their Lord. He said: the radiant faces are those whose beauty Allah has perfected for looking at their Lord, and they truly deserve to be radiant as they look at their Lord, Glorified and Exalted.
Abu al-Rabi’ al-Zahrani told us, Sharik told us, from Mansur, from Mujahid about the saying of Allah: faces that day will be radiant (Al-Qiyamah: 22). He said: laughing and looking towards their Lord.
Abu Ma’mar told us, Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Shaqiq told us, from al-Husayn ibn Waqid, from Yazid an-Nahwi, from Ikrimah about the verse: and to their Lord they look. He said: they will look at Him directly.
Muhannad ibn Kilalah told us, Abu Mu’awiyah told us, from Isma’il, from Abu Salih about the verse: faces that day will be radiant, looking at their Lord. He said: beautiful and looking at their Lord.
Kitab As Sunnah By Ibn Ahmad Pg 245-247
Imam Malik affirms we will be able to see Allah ﷻ aswell.
Translation: Abu Ishaq mentioned, from Muzayyin, from Isa ibn Dinar, from Ibn al-Qasim, Abu al-Samh asked Malik (d. 179 AH) and said: O Abu Abdullah, will Allah be seen on the Day of Judgment?
He said: Yes. Allah, the Almighty, says: faces that day will be radiant, looking at their Lord (Al-Qiyamah: 22-23).And He said about another group: no, indeed they will be veiled from their Lord on that day (Al-Mutaffifin: 15).
Al-Intiqa fi Fada’il al-A’immah al-Thalathah al-Fuqaha’ Malik wa al-Shafi’i wa Abi Hanifah by Ibn Abd al-Barr (463AH) Pg 73
The Sifaat Of Allah ﷻ his face
Allah ﷻ’s face is a real attributes and we (ahlus sunnah) affirm that he ﷻ has a face that is befitting of him. We don’t liken his face to the faces of creation. We affirm what’s in the Quran and sunnah and what the salaf affirmed.
The verses in the Quran that prove he has a face
- Surah Al-Baqarah (2:115):
“To Allah belong the East and the West, so wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah. Indeed, Allah is All-Encompassing, All-Knowing.” - Surah Al-Qasas (28:88):
“Everything will perish except His Face. To Him belongs the judgment, and to Him you will be returned.” - Surah Ar-Rahman (55:26-27):
“Everyone upon the earth will perish, and there will remain the Face of your Lord, Owner of Majesty and Honour.” - Surah Al-Layl (92:20):
“But only seeking the Face of his Lord, Most High.”
There is a bad argument that some people spread and they say if everything will perish except his face, then this means his hands, eyes and foot etc.. will also perish. But the correct understanding is that it means everything except his essence will perish and this is mentioned by Ibn Kathir and many other mufasireen
Ibn Kathir is explaining the meaning of the verse “Everything will perish except His Face” (Qur’an 28:88). He mentions that the term “Face” here refers to Allah’s Essence, and everything besides Allah will eventually perish. He cites a narration from the Sahih where the Prophet ﷺ quoted the poet Labid, stating “Everything besides Allah is vain.” This reinforces the idea that everything in existence is transient, except for Allah Himself.
Ibn Kathir says that all actions are in vain unless they are done sincerely for Allah’s Face, in line with the Shari‘ah, and this is how the statement of sufyan at thawri and mujahid is understood not that they did ta’wil of Allah’s face
He includes a narration about Ibn Umar, who, when reflecting on the transience of life, would recall the verse “Everything will perish except His Face” to remind himself of the impermanence of the world.
Translation: The phrase “He used face to refer to the essence,” and similarly, His saying here: “Everything will perish except His Face” (Qur’an 28:88), means: except Him. It is established in the Sahih from the narration of Abu Salamah, from Abu Huraira, who said: The Messenger of Allah said: “The truest word ever spoken by a poet is the statement of Labid: Everything besides Allah is vain.”
Mujahid and Ath-Thawri said regarding the verse “Everything will perish except His Face”: “It means except what is intended for His Face. Al-Bukhari narrated this as something agreed upon. Ibn Jarir said: The one who says this is supported by the poet’s statement: I ask Allah for forgiveness for a sin I do not fully comprehend, the Lord of the worlds, to Him is the Face and the deed. This explanation does not contradict the first interpretation, as it refers to the fact that all deeds are vain except those intended for Allah’s Face, meaning, deeds done sincerely for Allah alone according to the Shari’ah.
The first explanation implies that all beings are perishable and will disappear except for His Essence (subhanahu wa ta’ala), for He is the First and the Last, before all things and after all things.
Abu Bakr Abdullah ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Dunya in his book At-Tafakkur wal-l’tibor narrated: Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr narrated to us, from Muslim ibn Ibrahim, from Umar ibn Sulaim al-Bahili, from Abu al-Walid, who said: Ibn Umar, when he wanted to remind himself, would go to the harbah (the place of battle) and stand at its door, then call out in a sorrowful voice: Where are your people? Then he would return to himself and say: Everything will perish except His Face. And His saying: To Him belongs the judgment (Qur’an 28:88), means: the sovereignty and dominion, and there is no one to reverse His Judgment. To Him you will return (Qur’an 28:88), meaning: on the Day of Judgment, where He will reward you for your deeds, with good for good, and evil for evil. And Allah knows best.
Tafsir Ibn Kathir 28:88
Imam Asbahani references 3 narrations from the Prophet ﷺ where he sough refuge in the light of the face of Allah ﷻ which is a refutation to any ta’wil that may come afterwards on the matter because you can’t seek refuge in creation.
He quotes Muhammad ibn Isḥāq (d.311AH) saying that all of his scholars from the Hijaz, Tihama, Yemen, Iraq, Sham, and Egypt affirm what Allah has affirmed for Himself, without resembling the Face of the Creator to the face of creation.
Translation: The affirmation of the face of Allah, the Almighty, which He described with majesty, honour, and everlasting existence, is in His saying: and the face of your Lord will remain, full of majesty and honour (Ar-Rahman: 27). And He said to His Prophet Muhammad: and be patient with those who call upon their Lord in the morning and evening, seeking His face (Al-Kahf: 28). And He said: to Allah belongs the east and the west, so wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah (Al-Baqarah: 115). And He said: for those who seek the face of Allah (Ar-Rum: 38). And He said: we feed you only for the face of Allah (Al-Insan: 9). And He said: only seeking the face of his Lord, the Most High (Al-Layl: 20).
Muhammad ibn Ishaq (Ibn Khuzaymah) (d. 311AH) said: all our scholars from the people of Hijaz, Tihamah, Yemen, Iraq, Sham, and Egypt affirm for Allah, the Almighty, what He affirmed for Himself, without likening the face of the Creator to the face of any of the creation. Our Lord is far above resembling the creation, and far above the claims of the deniers.
The evidence for this from the words of the Prophet ﷺ: Jabir ibn Abdullah said: when the verse was revealed, say: He is able to send upon you a punishment from above you (Al-An’am: 65), the Prophet ﷺ said: I seek refuge in Your face. Or from beneath your feet? He said: I seek refuge in Your face. Or to make you sects? He said: this is lighter.
Abdullah ibn Ja’far that the Prophet ﷺ supplicated on the day he went out to Ta’if, and he said in it: O Allah, I seek refuge in the light of Your face, by which the heavens were illuminated.
Abu Musa said that the Prophet ﷺ stood among us with four statements. He said: Indeed, Allah does not sleep, and it is not proper for Him to sleep. He raises and lowers the balance. The deeds of the night are raised to Him before the day, and the deeds of the day before the night. His veil is fire or light. If He were to uncover it, the radiance of His face would burn everything His sight reaches.
Mujahid (d. 104 AH) said: between the angels and the throne are seventy veils, a veil of light and a veil of darkness, a veil of light and a veil of darkness.
Ibn Khuzaymah said about the verse: and the face of your Lord will remain, full of majesty and honour (Ar-Rahman: 27). This is proof that the face of Allah is an attribute of Allah, an attribute of His essence, not that His face is Allah, nor that His face is something other than Him. Because if His face were Allah, it would have been recited as: and the face of your Lord, the possessor of majesty and honour.
Al-hujjah fi bayan al-mahajjah wa-sharh ‘aqidat ahl al-sunnah by Imam Abil-Qasim Ismail (d.535AH) (1/199-201)
Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (d.311AH) mentions how the jahmiyyah called Ahlus sunnah mushabbiha. He talks about how the Jahmiyyah said the face of Allah ﷻ is like what the Arabs say “the face of speech” and “the face of the garment,” and “the face of the house.” He responds by saying whoever claims this has compared the Face of Allah to the face of creation.
Translation: Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (d.311AH) said: The Jahmiyyah claimed that Ahl al-Sunnah and the followers of the narrations, who affirm Allah, Exalted and Glorified, with the attributes He has described for Himself in His clear revelation, which is preserved in the two covers (the Qur’an), and upon the tongue of His Prophet, transmitted by trustworthy narrators from trustworthy narrators, are mushabbihah, in ignorance of the Book of our Lord and the Sunnah of our Prophet.
We say, and all our scholars agree, that our Lord, Exalted and Glorified, has a Face, as Allah has informed us in His clear revelation, and He described it with majesty and honour, and affirmed its eternity. It is veiled from the eyes of the people of this world; no one can see it as long as they are in this world. The Face of our Lord is ancient, it has always existed, and it remains. Therefore, we reject the idea of its annihilation. The faces of the children of Adam are created and newly brought into existence; they did not exist before, and thus, their faces are perishable and not eternal.
Is there any resemblance between the Face of our Lord, Exalted and Glorified, and the faces of the children of Adam, except for the shared name “face” and the application of the name “face” to the face of the children of Adam, just as Allah has named His Face as a “face”?
The Jahmiyyah claimed that the meaning of “face” in the Qur’an and the Hadiths is like what the Arabs say “the face of speech” and “the face of the garment,” and “the face of the house.” Whoever claims this has compared the Face of Allah to the face of creation. Glory be to Allah, how could anyone from the Ahl al-Athar and Ahl al-Sunnah compare the Creator to any of the created beings? We have said that applying the name “face” to the Creator does not necessitate comparing the Face of the Creator to the faces of the children of Adam
Al-Hujjah fi Bayaan al-Mahajjah by Imam Abil-Qasim Ismail (d.535AH) Pg 201-202
Shayk Al Islam Ibn Taymiyyah says those who believe in the verse
- Surah Al-Baqarah (2:115):
“To Allah belong the East and the West, so wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah. Indeed, Allah is All-Encompassing, All-Knowing.”
That this is talking about his sifaat are mistaken because it’s clear from the context it’s talking about the the direction one turns towards in worship
Translation: Some of their scholars brought the book Al-Asma’ wa As-Sifat by Al-Bayhaqi and said: This book contains interpretation of wajh (face) by the salaf. I said: Perhaps you mean the saying of Allah, To Allah belong the east and the west, so wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah (Al-Baqarah: 115). He said: Yes, for Mujahid (d. 104 AH) and Ash-Shafi’i (d. 204 AH) said that it means the qiblah of Allah.
I said: Yes, this is correct from Mujahid, Ash-Shafi’i, and others, and this is the truth. However, this verse is not from the verses of sifat. Whoever considers it among the sifat has made a mistake, as some have done, because the context of the speech shows the intended meaning. Allah says, To Allah belong the east and the west, so wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah. The east and the west are directions. The word wajh (face) here means direction. It is said: Which wajh do you intend? Meaning: which direction. And: I want this wajh, meaning this direction. As Allah says, For each is a direction to which he turns (Al-Baqarah: 148). That is why He said, Wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah, meaning: wherever you face and turn towards.
Majmu Fatawa By Ibn Taymiyyah (3/193)
Thomas Aquinas says that God cannot be seen, so the asharis and maturidis who deny god can be seen take from the christians in this matter let alone the Jahmiyyah who came much later
