Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
Islam is the religion of Allah that He has chosen for all people, as the final message of the heavenly scriptures, completing the noble moral principles and respecting human nature and dignity. Every question deserves to be asked freely, and there is an answer in Islam for every topic, as the Islamic approach is comprehensive and based on dialogue, wisdom, and engaging in the best arguments. Allah says {what means}: "Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best" [An-Nahl, 125]. Children in the family should be given the right to think and seek answers to their inquiries, and it is a mistake to discourage them from doing so.
When a child asks, "Where is Allah?" the answer should be that Allah is greater than everything, more magnificent than any place, and nothing can encompass Him. He, the Exalted, is beyond all limitations, as He says in the Quran {what means}: "There is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing" [Ash-Shura, 11]. Parents, educators, and teachers should instill in children that Allah is not like His creations and is exalted above any descriptions that do not befit His majesty. The explanation should be given using terms that are appropriate for the child’s intellectual and cognitive level, ensuring their understanding grows with reverence and clarity.
As for the ruling on using the phrase "Where is Allah?", it is generally not permissible in Islamic law. The literal meaning of the word "where" is a question about location, and it is not appropriate to attribute a physical place to Allah, as He cannot be confined to any space. However, if the term "where" is used metaphorically to inquire about Allah's status or rank, then it is permissible. This metaphorical usage is supported by an incident involving Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), where he addressed Sa'sa'a bin Suhan, saying: "O people, this blubberer does not know what Allah is or where Allah is..." This implies that the person's excessive talk reflects ignorance of Allah's omniscience and that He hears every speech and knows what occurs everywhere.
The phrase "Where is Allah?" also appears in the hadith of the slave girl, in which the following is mentioned: The man said: "I had a slave girl who was tending my sheep near Uhud and Jawwāniyya. One day, I checked on her and saw that a wolf had taken one of the sheep from her flock. As I am a human being, I became angry as others would, and I slapped her hard. Then I came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he considered it a serious matter. I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, should I not free her?' He said, '(Bring her to me).' So I brought her to him, and he said to her, 'Where is Allah?' She said, 'In the sky.' He said, 'Who am I?' She said, 'You are the Messenger of Allah.' He said, 'Free her, for she is a believer.'" (Narrated by Muslim).
Al-Hafiz Ibn Furak, in his explanation of this hadith (p. 158, with slight adaptation), stated:
"The apparent meaning in the language indicates that the word 'where' is used to ask about location, and this is the original meaning of the word. However, they also used it to inquire about the status of the person being asked, in a different sense. For example, they would say, when inquiring about someone's status, 'Where is so-and-so with respect to you?' or 'Where is so-and-so with respect to the leader?' They also used it to ask about the distinction between two ranks by saying, 'Where is so-and-so in relation to so-and-so?' They don't mean location or physical place, but rather they are asking about the rank and status. Since this is well-known in the language, it is possible to say that the meaning of the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) question 'Where is Allah?' was to inquire about His status and greatness in the slave girl's heart, meaning that Allah is of high status and exalted position."
It is stated in Ma'ālim al-Sunan by al-Khattabi (1/222):
"This question (i.e., 'Where is Allah?') was about a sign of faith and the characteristic of its people, not a question about the essence of faith or its true nature. If a disbeliever wanted to transition from disbelief to Islam and only described the faith with the limited amount that the slave girl mentioned, he would not become a Muslim with that alone. He would still need to testify that there is no god worthy of worship but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and renounce the religion he previously believed in."
Imam al-Nawawi stated in his Sharh of Sahih Muslim :
"The saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him): 'Where is Allah?' and she replied: 'In the sky,' and he said: 'Who am I?' and she replied: 'You are the Messenger of Allah,' and he said: 'Free her, for she is a believer,' this hadith is among the hadiths concerning the attributes of Allah. There are two opinions regarding it, which have been mentioned several times in the Book of Faith/Kitab Al-Iman.
One opinion is to believe in it without delving into its meaning, while believing that Allah is not like anything else and is free from the attributes of creation. The second opinion is to interpret it in a manner befitting Him. Those who take this view say that the purpose was to test her to see if she was a monotheist who acknowledged that the Creator and Sustainer is Allah alone, and that when someone calls upon Him, they turn their attention to the sky, just as a person praying faces the Kaaba. This does not mean that He is limited to the sky, just as He is not confined to the direction of the Kaaba. Rather, it is because the sky is the direction of those who invoke Allah, just as the Kaaba is the direction of those who pray. When she said 'in the sky,' it indicated that she was a monotheist and not an idolater."
Accordingly, Allah The Almighty is exalted beyond being confined by place, nor should He be asked about with the literal meaning of "Where," which implies a question about location, for He is the Creator of both time and space. It is necessary to impart this understanding to children and to respond to their questions in a manner appropriate to their level of comprehension, helping them to realize that Allah is free from any resemblance to His creation. And Allah The Almighty knows best.
