All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
The methodology of the Salaf regarding Allah’s Names and Attributes is to affirm what Allah Almighty affirmed for Himself and what His Messenger ﷺ affirmed for Him, without likening or comparing Him to creation, and without denying or distorting the Attributes, while believing that no one knows the modality of Allah’s Attributes except Him.
The Companions, the Followers, and those who followed them in righteousness affirmed the Names and Attributes of Allah mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah, while declaring Allah Almighty far above any resemblance to His creation.
Allah Almighty says:
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
[Ash-Shura 42:11]
Affirming the Attributes does not mean likening Allah to His creation, because sharing the basic meaning of a term does not necessitate identity in reality or modality. Allah Almighty has hearing, sight, and a Hand befitting His Majesty, while created beings have hearing, sight, and hands befitting them. Affirming these does not necessitate resemblance between the Creator and the created.
Among the traditional works that collected many statements of the Salaf on this subject are:
It has been transmitted from Imam Abu Hanifah, may Allah have mercy on him, in Al-Fiqh al-Akbar that he affirmed the Attributes of the Face, Hand, and Self for Allah Almighty, while denying any attempt to specify their modality or liken them to creation.
Among the statements attributed to him on this subject is that what Allah Almighty mentioned concerning the Face, Hand, and Self are Attributes of His without asking how, and that it should not be said that the Hand means power or favor, because diverting the wording of the Attribute to another meaning in this manner leads to nullifying the indication of the text.
This demonstrates that the methodology attributed to Imam Abu Hanifah regarding these texts is to affirm them in a manner befitting Allah Almighty, without likening Him to creation.
Among the most famous statements attributed to Imam Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, concerning Allah’s rising over the Throne (istiwa’) is his well-known statement:
“The istiwa’ is known, its modality is unknown, believing in it is obligatory, and asking about it is an innovation.”
The intended meaning is that the meaning of the text is known from the standpoint of language, whereas the modality of Allah Almighty’s Attribute is unknown to us.
This is the principle established by the Imams of Ahl al-Sunnah concerning all the Attributes: affirmation without specifying how, and declaring Allah transcendent without denying His Attributes.
Imam Al-Tirmidhi, may Allah have mercy on him, reported from several Imams of the Salaf, including Malik, Sufyan ibn ‘Uyaynah, and ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, that they would say regarding the hadiths of the Attributes:
“Pass them on without asking how.”
It is also reported from Ishaq ibn Rahawayh that resemblance occurs when someone says, “a hand like a hand” or “hearing like hearing.” As for affirming what is mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah without specifying a modality or drawing a comparison, this is not likening Allah to His creation.
Numerous reports have been transmitted from Imam Al-Shafi‘i and Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on them, establishing the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah and affirming the Attributes. Many of these reports can be found in books of creed that collected the statements and narrations of the Imams.
Among the most important references for learning about the position of Imam Ahmad is:
Al-Masa’il wa al-Rasa’il al-Marwiyyah ‘an al-Imam Ahmad fi al-‘Aqidah, a work that collects a number of reports and narrations concerning his beliefs.
The traditional books of Sunnah and creed that transmit statements from the four Imams are also useful for understanding the foundations of their methodology, while it remains necessary to verify the authenticity of each report and its attribution to the Imam concerned.
A distinction should be made between the different scholarly stages of Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash‘ari and everything that later became attributed to the later Ash‘ari school in all its details.
Among the most important books consulted regarding what Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash‘ari affirmed during the stage in which he supported the methodology of Ahl al-Sunnah is:
Al-Ibanah ‘an Usul al-Diyanah.
Books of Ahl al-Sunnah that transmit his statements and discussions may also be consulted, while paying attention to scholarly verification regarding the authenticity of the attribution of certain books and statements to him.
Useful works for studying the methodology of the Imams and their statements concerning creed and the Attributes include:
Among the books that give particular attention to collecting the beliefs of the Imams are:
The fundamental methodology of the Salaf is to affirm the Names and Attributes of Allah established in the Qur’an and Sunnah, while rejecting comparison, specifying how, denial, and distortion.
Accordingly, interpreting “Allah’s Hand” solely as power or strength, claiming this to be the only intended meaning of the text, is not the methodology transmitted from the Imams of Ahl al-Sunnah who affirmed the Attribute of the Hand while believing that it befits Allah Almighty, without resemblance to creation and without knowing its modality.
Whoever wishes to study the creed of the four Imams academically should preferably consult direct reports from each Imam while verifying the authenticity of their chains and attributions, and then study comprehensive books of creed that collected their reports, so that no statement is attributed to any Imam without reliable evidence.
And Allah knows best.