And whoever describes Him with what occurs to him from his own thought, has only described himself 1.
And whoever says that He is veiled from His creation, has referred to other than Him.
And whoever says that He is manifest to them such that they see Him, has defined [and limited] Him ('Ayyanahu)2.
But whoever knows Him through the aspect of the manifestation of miracles, and negates what he saw [the physical limit] and affirms what he knew [the Divine Power], then those are the companions of the Commander of the Faithful."
The Almighty said:
{ So wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah.}3 This is an indication pointing to an Existent.
And He said:
{Indeed, your Lord is in observation}4. This is an indication pointing to a Known.
Footnotes
1Thought (Fikr) is the tool of thinking. Its main functions, according to the philosophers, are: Conception (Tasawwur), Judgment (Hukm), and Demonstration (Burhan). The Attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) are above the conceptions and judgments of thought. Erroneous conceptions necessarily lead to erroneous judgments and demonstrations. Whoever inclines toward describing Allah the Almighty with other than what Allah described Himself in His Noble Book—such as His saying: "Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth"—that deviator will not be able to reach the Principles (Usul); rather, he remains wandering in the circle of describing himself—which is limited and incapable of knowing the Sought One.
2The Meaning (Exalted is He) is not seen stripped (Mujarrad) of manifestations. Therefore, whoever says: "He is manifest to them plainly" in a state of abstraction, has made Him a specific entity (Muta'ayyanan), meaning localized in a place.
3Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 115.
4Surah Al-Fajr, Verse 14.