Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
Knowing Allah تعالى, His Names, and His Attributes is among the noblest and greatest branches of knowledge. This includes believing in Allah’s exaltation above His creation and His establishment above His Throne. As for expressing this with the phrase “the actual physical location of Allah تعالى,” this is not a scriptural expression, and it is not appropriate to make it the subject of discussion, because there is nothing comparable to Allah تعالى, and none of His creation encompasses Him.
The nobility of knowledge is determined by the nobility of what is known, and there is nothing greater than knowledge of Allah تعالى, His Names, His Attributes, and His Actions.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿So know that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah﴾ [Muhammad: 19].
For this reason, learning Allah’s Names and Attributes and understanding their meanings is among the causes of increased faith in Allah, as well as reverence and love for Him.
Isma'il ibn Muhammad, known as Qawwam al-Asfahani رحمه الله, stated while explaining the importance of knowing Allah’s Names and their meanings that knowing Allah and His Names is among the greatest matters that a Muslim should concern himself with, because a servant’s knowledge of his Lord leads him to glorify Him and worship Him with insight.
Accordingly, learning what has been established in the Qur’an and Sunnah concerning Allah’s Attributes is not a marginal branch of knowledge. Rather, it is connected to the foundation of a servant’s knowledge of his Lord. Each person learns according to his need, ability, and level of knowledge and faith.
There is no established expression in Islamic creed called “the actual physical location of Allah تعالى,” and such ambiguous expressions should not be used concerning Allah تعالى.
What is required is to affirm what Allah has affirmed for Himself and what His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم affirmed for Him, while declaring Allah free from resemblance to His creation.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿There is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing﴾ [Ash-Shura: 11].
Among this is what has been established concerning Allah’s exaltation above His creation and His establishment above His Throne.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿He is the One Who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then established Himself above the Throne. He knows what enters the earth and what comes out of it, what descends from the heaven and what ascends into it. And He is with you wherever you are. And Allah sees all that you do﴾ [Al-Hadid: 4].
Ahl al-Sunnah affirm Allah’s exaltation above His creation and His establishment above His Throne, while also affirming His being with His servants. They do not say that Allah indwells any part of His creation.
What is meant by Allah’s exaltation is that He is above His creation, established above His Throne, and that none of His creation encompasses Him. He is independent of all His creation, while all creation is dependent upon Him.
This does not mean that the heaven or the Throne surrounds or confines Allah تعالى. Allah سبحانه وتعالى is the Creator of the Throne and the heavens, and He is independent of all His creation.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله stated that when the early generations said that Allah is above the Throne and in the heaven, above everything, they did not mean that anything encompasses Him or serves as a container for Him. Rather, Allah تعالى is above His creation, independent of them, while they are all dependent upon Him.
Asking about Allah تعالى, His Names, and His Attributes is not prohibited in itself when the purpose is to seek knowledge and understand what has come in the Qur’an and Sunnah.
It is reported in the Sunnah that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked a slave woman:
“Where is Allah?”
She replied: “In the heaven.” He صلى الله عليه وسلم then said to her master:
“Free her, for she is a believer.”
Narrated by Muslim (537).
This hadith is among the texts cited by Ahl al-Sunnah as evidence for the affirmation of Allah’s exaltation.
However, one should distinguish between asking about an attribute as it has come in the revealed texts and entering into questions about the modality and exact nature of the attribute in a manner that resembles the attributes of created beings. Its modality is known only to Allah تعالى.
A Muslim is required to believe in what has come in the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم, including belief in what has been established concerning Allah’s Attributes.
As for the details, terminology, and precise theological discussions, they are not equally obligatory upon all people. Rather, each person learns what he needs for sound belief and worship and increases his knowledge according to his ability and need.
Therefore, this issue should not be turned into a source of obsessive doubts or arguments that distract a Muslim from his obligations and worship.
What matters is that the Muslim affirms what has been established by Allah and His Messenger, declares Allah تعالى free from resemblance to created beings, and does not delve into the modality of His Attributes.
Knowing about Allah’s exaltation and His establishment above His Throne is one of the matters of Islamic creed indicated by the Qur’an and Sunnah. Therefore, learning it and believing in it is important.
However, it is not correct to express it using the phrase “the actual physical location of Allah تعالى,” because it is not a scriptural expression and may suggest incorrect meanings.
The obligation is to believe that Allah تعالى is above His creation, established above His Throne, while declaring Him free from resemblance to created beings, and without believing that anything from His creation encompasses or confines Him.
As for ordinary Muslims, they learn from these matters what is necessary for the soundness of their belief and what they need. They are not required to delve into subtle terminology or theological debates that they have no need for.
And Allah تعالى knows best.