Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
There is no contradiction between the statement of Ibn Mas‘ud رضي الله عنه, “Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is above the Kursi,” and affirming the exaltedness of Allah تعالى and His Istiwa over the Throne. This is because the Throne is greater and higher than the Kursi. Therefore, if Allah تعالى is above the Throne, then He سبحانه is above the Kursi all the more so. Furthermore, the narrations reported from Ibn Mas‘ud concerning this statement can be reconciled by understanding some of them as abbreviated versions or as narrations conveying the meaning.
Al-Bayhaqi narrated in Al-Asma’ wa as-Sifat from ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud رضي الله عنه that he said, describing the heavens and the Kursi:
“Between the lowest heaven and the one above it is five hundred years, and between each heaven is five hundred years, and between the seventh heaven and the Kursi is five hundred years, and between the Kursi and the water is five hundred years. The Kursi is above the water, and Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is above the Kursi.”
Another narration from him mentions the Throne and states:
“The Kursi is above the water, and Allah تعالى is above the Throne, and nothing of your deeds is hidden from Him.”
Al-Bayhaqi mentioned both narrations in Al-Asma’ wa as-Sifat.
No. A difference in wording does not necessarily mean there is a contradiction in meaning.
Some narrators may have abbreviated the narration, mentioning the Kursi without mentioning the Throne, while another narrator transmitted a longer version mentioning both the Throne and the Kursi.
It is also possible that some narrators transmitted the report according to its meaning, or mentioned only some of its wording.
Even if we assume that the narration with the wording “Allah is above the Kursi” is established without being an abbreviation, there is still no contradiction between it and affirming Allah’s exaltedness and His Istiwa over the Throne.
The statement that Allah تعالى is above the Kursi does not contradict His being above the Throne, because the Throne is higher and greater than the Kursi.
It has been reported in the well-known narration from Ibn ‘Abbas رضي الله عنهما:
“The Kursi is the place of the two Feet, and the Throne—no one can estimate its magnitude.”
According to the view that the Kursi is different from the Throne, the Kursi is below the Throne. Therefore, if it is established that Allah تعالى is above the Throne, then He is also above the Kursi, because whoever is above something higher is necessarily above what is beneath it.
Thus, there is no problem with the wording attributed to Ibn Mas‘ud رضي الله عنه from this perspective.
Scholars have differed regarding the reality of the Kursi and the Throne. Some held that the Throne and the Kursi are one and the same thing. According to this view, there is no issue at all with the difference in wording.
However, the view considered stronger by many scholars is that the Throne is one thing and the Kursi is another, and that the Throne is greater and higher than the Kursi.
According to this view as well, the two narrations from Ibn Mas‘ud are compatible, because Allah تعالى is above the Throne and also above the Kursi.
What is obligatory in this matter is to affirm what has been established concerning Allah تعالى’s exaltedness and His Istiwa over His Throne, while declaring Him سبحانه free from resembling His creation.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing﴾ [Ash-Shura: 11].
Affirming Allah’s exaltedness does not mean likening Him to created beings, just as affirming His Istiwa over the Throne does not mean that His Istiwa is like the Istiwa of created beings.
There is no contradiction between the narration attributed to Ibn Mas‘ud رضي الله عنه, “Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is above the Kursi,” and affirming that Allah تعالى is above the Throne and has established Himself over it.
Either the narration mentioning “above the Kursi” is an abbreviated version of the longer narration that mentions the Throne, or it is an independent narration, in which case there is still no contradiction, because Allah تعالى is above the Throne, and the Throne is higher and greater than the Kursi. Whoever is above the Throne is, all the more so, above the Kursi.
The stronger view is that the Throne and the Kursi are two different things, and that the Throne is greater and higher than the Kursi.
And Allah knows best.