When something is great, if a person knows it with true knowledge and values it properly in himself, he truly magnifies it. It is said, "And they did not appraise Allah with true appraisal." It is recited with emphasis, meaning: "And they did not magnify Him as He deserves to be magnified." Then He alerted them to His greatness and the majesty of His affair in a figurative manner by saying, "And the earth all together is His grasp on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens are folded in His right hand." The purpose of this statement, if taken as it is in its entirety, is to depict His greatness and to clarify the essence of His majesty, nothing more, without implying anything about the grasp or the right hand. [Mahamud said: "The purpose of this statement is to depict His greatness, glorified and exalted is He, and to clarify the essence of His majesty without implying anything about the grasp or the right hand in terms of reality or metaphor. Likewise, it is the case with what is narrated from the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him: that a scholar came to him and said: 'O Abu al-Qasim, indeed Allah holds the heavens on one finger, the earth on one finger, the mountains on one finger, the trees on one finger, and all of creation on one finger, then He shakes them and says: I am the King.' The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, laughed and was astonished by what the scholar said, then he recited this verse in confirmation of him. The most eloquent of the Arabs laughed because he understood from it only what the scholars of rhetoric understand, without any depiction of holding or shaking or anything like that. However, his understanding was focused first and last on the essence and summary that indicates the overwhelming power that cannot be comprehended by the listener except by expressing it in such a figurative manner. He then said: 'Most of the words of the prophets and the heavenly books and their principles are figurative, and in this regard, many have stumbled in the past.' This is his statement." Ahmad said: "What he meant by the expression of figurative language here is representation, and the expression is misleading and inappropriate in this context in any way. Allah knows best." To the extent of reality or metaphor, likewise is the ruling of what is narrated that Gabriel [The term 'Gabriel' here is said to be incorrect; it is actually a scholar from the scholars of the Jews, not Gabriel. This is indicated by what is in al-Bukhari, Muslim, and al-Tirmidhi, as noted in the margin. It is supported by the fact that 'O Abu al-Qasim' is a common way for the Jews to address him.] came to the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, and said: 'O Abu al-Qasim, indeed Allah holds the heavens on one finger, the earth on one finger, the mountains on one finger, the trees on one finger, and all of creation on one finger, then He shakes them and says: I am the King.' [This is agreed upon from the narration of Ibn Mas'ud. Note: It has been pointed out that the mention of Gabriel is a misrepresentation. What is correct is that 'a scholar from the Jews came' or 'a Jew' or 'a man from the people of the Book.'] The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, laughed in amazement at what he said, then recited in confirmation of him, "And they did not appraise Allah with true appraisal..." The reason he laughed, the most eloquent of the Arabs, blessings and peace be upon him, and was astonished is that he understood from it only what the scholars of rhetoric understand, without any conception of holding or finger or shaking or anything like that. However, his understanding was focused first and last on the essence and summary that indicates the overwhelming power, and that the great actions that bewilder minds and thoughts and cannot be comprehended by imaginations are easy for Him, and the listener cannot grasp them except by expressing them in such a figurative manner. You will not find a field in the science of rhetoric more delicate, subtle, or gentle than this field, nor more beneficial and helpful in interpreting the ambiguous words of Allah, glorified and exalted is He, in the Qur'an and other heavenly books and the words of the prophets. Most of it and its principles are figurative, and many have stumbled in it in the past. And those who have stumbled have not been answered except due to their lack of care in research and inquiry, until they realize that among the precise sciences there is a science that, if they valued it properly, they would not be unaware that all sciences are dependent on it and rely on it, as none can resolve their complicated knots or untie their difficult bindings except it. How many verses from the verses of revelation and hadith from the Messenger have been oppressed and subjected to poor interpretations and weak explanations, because those who interpret are not from this science in any way, nor do they know anything about it.

What the woman contemplates in her spinning when she twists it. Hence it is said: So-and-so does not know the front from the back. (A) And the intended meaning of the earth is the seven earths. There are two witnesses for this: His saying 'all together' and His saying 'and the heavens.' Because the place is one of magnification and glorification, it necessitates exaggeration. With the intention of gathering and confirming it with 'all,' He followed 'all' with confirmation before the news came, so that it is known from the beginning that the news which comes does not pertain to one earth, but to all the earths. And the 'qabda' is the instance of grasping. I grasped a handful from the trace of the Messenger. And the 'qabda' - with a Dhamma - is the amount grasped in the palm. It is also said: Give me a handful of such-and-such: meaning the handful is named after the source, as it was narrated: 'I did not find it like this.' Ahmad, Ishaq, and Abu Ya'la narrated from the narration of Sahl from Abdullah ibn Yazid from a shaykh he met, that Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib heard Abu al-Darda say, 'The Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, prohibited eating every sudden catch and theft, and every animal with fangs from the beasts.' Abu Ya'la narrated it from the narration of the African, and it was narrated by al-Darimi, al-Tabarani, and al-Nasa'i in the Kunya from the narration of Abu Aws from al-Zuhri from Abu Idris from Abu Thalabah, with the wording, 'He prohibited the sudden catch, the theft, and every animal with fangs from the beasts.' It is said that he prohibited the catch of the beast, [His saying 'He prohibited the catch of the beast' means: and the intended meaning is its catch. (A)] and both meanings are possible. The meaning is: and all the earths are a handful, meaning: they are of such a nature that He grasps them in one handful. This means that the earths, despite their vastness and expanse, do not amount to more than one handful of His hands, as if He grasps them in one handful, just as you say: the camel is a meal of Luqman, and the little is a sip of it, meaning: it is of its meal and of its sip, indicating that they do not suffice except for a unique meal from His meals, and a single sip from His sips.

And if the meaning of the handful is intended, it is apparent, because the meaning is that all the earths together are the amount that He can grasp with one hand.

If you say: What is the reason for the reading of the one who read 'QABDATUHU' in the accusative? I say: He made it a circumstance resembling the temporary with the ambiguous:

'MA'TWIYYATUN' from the folding which is the opposite of spreading, as Allah, glorified and exalted is He, said: 'On the Day We fold the heaven like the folding of a scroll for the books.' And the custom of folding the scroll is that he folds it with his right hand. It is said: 'Qabdatuhu' means His dominion without opposition or rival, and 'with His right hand' means with His power. It is said: 'Ma'twiyyatun' with His right hand, annihilated by His decree, because He swore to annihilate it. And whoever catches a whiff of this knowledge from us, let him present this interpretation to amuse himself with astonishment at it and at its speaker, then let him weep out of zeal for the words of Allah, the miraculous in its eloquence, and what He has tested him with from its like, and heavier than it upon the soul, and piercing to the liver is the documentation of the scholars' words, and their approval of it, and its narration upon the branches of the pulpits, and the attraction of shaking with it from the listeners. And it was read:

'MA'TWIYYATUN' upon the arrangement of the heavens in the judgment of the earth, and their entering under the handful, and the accusative 'MA'TWIYYATUN' upon the state. Glorified and exalted is He, how far removed is His power and greatness from what is attributed to Him of partners.