Imam At Tabari says no one’s iman (faith) can be properly established, nor can the hukm (ruling) of kufr (disbelief) be lifted from a person, except by knowing what I have previously mentioned. This is because the sifat (attributes) that I have explained earlier are such that no one is excused for being ignorant of them once they have reached the age of responsibility—whether a messenger from Allah has come to them or not, whether they have seen others or have been alone. Allah has asma’ wa sifat (names and attributes) that are conveyed in His Book and informed to the ummah (nation) by His Prophet.
Translation: Abū Ja’far (Tabari) said: As for what no one’s faith can be properly established upon, and what does not remove the hukm (ruling) of kufr (disbelief) from him except by knowing it, it is what we have previously mentioned.
This is because the attributes we have mentioned earlier, no one is excused by ignorance of them if they have reached the age of responsibility, whether a messenger from Allāh, exalted is His mention, has come to them or not, whether they have seen other creatures or no one besides themselves. And Allāh, exalted is His mention, has asmā’ wa sifāt (names and attributes) that are conveyed by His Book, and His Prophet informed his nation about them.
No one from the creation of Allah, upon whom the qamat ‘alayhi al-hujjah (proof has been established) that the Qur’an was revealed, and it has been confirmed for him the saying of the Messenger of Allah, regarding the narration transmitted from him, can oppose it.
If they oppose it after the qamat ‘alayhi al-hujja (proof has been established) against them from the authentic report, as I have clarified, concerning what there is no way to fully comprehend its reality except through sensory perception, then the ignorant person is ma dhūr (excused) for their jahl (ignorance) of it, this is because knowledge of that [l.e of those sifatihi: Face, Hand, Foot] cannot be perceived by ‘aql (reason), nor by ru’yah (contemplation) and fikrah (thought).
Kitāb al-Tabsīr fi Ma’alim al-Din by al-Tabarī, Page 132-133
Imam Ash-Shafi‘i was asked about what a person should believe about Allah’s attributes. He answered that Allah has names and attributes that are mentioned in the Qur’an and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed the people about them. Anyone who denies them after proof has been established against him is a disbeliever, but if he has not received proof, he is excused due to ignorance, because such knowledge cannot be reached by thinking or reasoning.
He explained that Allah described Himself with attributes such as hearing, having two hands, having a right hand, having a face, placing His foot in Hell, laughing at His believing servant, descending to the lowest heaven at night, not being one-eyed like the false messiah, being seen by the believers on the Day of Judgement, and having fingers. These descriptions are in the Qur’an and hadith.
He made it clear that these descriptions are true, but no one can fully understand them by thinking about them. A person is not blamed for not knowing them unless proof reaches him and he rejects it. When something is clearly proven, a person must accept it as true, just as if he had seen and heard it himself.
Translation: Yunus ibn ‘Abd al-A‘la al-Misri (d. 264 AH) said he heard Abu ‘Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi‘i (d. 204 AH) say—when he was asked about the attributes of Allah and what should be believed about them?'”
He said: “Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, has names and attributes that are mentioned in His Book and that His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed his ummah (nation) about. No one from creation, upon whom proof has been established, can deny that the Qur’an has revealed them, and that it has been authentically reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) through a trustworthy person who narrated it from him.
If someone opposes this after the proof has been established against him, then he is a disbeliever in Allah. But before proof reaches him through authentic narration, he is excused due to ignorance, because knowledge of this cannot be attained by reason, reflection, or thinking.”
He continued: “Among these are the reports from Allah, the Exalted, that have come to us: that He is sami‘ (All-Hearing), that He has yadayn (two hands), as He said: (Rather, His two hands are outstretched) (Al-Ma’idah: 64); that He has a yamin (right hand), as He said: (And the heavens will be folded in His right hand) (Al-Zumar: 67); that He has a wajh (face), as He said: (Everything will perish except His face) (Al-Qasas: 88) and (And the face of your Lord, full of majesty and honour, will remain) (Al-Rahman: 27); that He has a qadam (foot), as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (Until the Lord places His foot in it), meaning Hellfire; that He laughs at His believing servant, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said about the one who was killed in the path of Allah: (He met Allah while He was laughing at him); that He descends every night to the lowest heaven, as the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us; that He is not one-eyed, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said when mentioning the Dajjal (false messiah): (He is one-eyed, and your Lord is not one-eyed); that the believers will see their Lord on the Day of Judgement with their eyes, just as they see the moon on the night it is full; and that He has an isba‘ (finger), as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (There is no heart except that it is between two fingers from the fingers of the Most Merciful, Exalted is He).”
He continued: “These meanings that Allah has described Himself with, and that His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described Him with, are not things whose reality can be understood by thinking and reflection. No one is considered a disbeliever for being ignorant of them unless the report reaches him and he rejects it. If what has been reported is something that is as clear to the mind as seeing and hearing, then the person who hears it must accept it as true and testify to it as if he had directly seen and heard it from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).”
“But we affirm these attributes while rejecting any tashbih (likening Allah to creation), as Allah has negated that about Himself. He said: (There is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing) (Al-Shura: 11).”
Tabaqat al-Hanabila by Abū al-Husayn Muhammad ibn Muhammad Ibn Abi Yaʻla (1/283-284)
