Did Prophet Muhammad See Allah?

Praise be to Allah.

Most of the Companions were of the view that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not see Allah with his eyes on the night of the Mi`raj. 

It was narrated that `Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “Whoever told you that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw his Lord was lying. He said that no vision can grasp him [Al-An`am 6:103]…” (Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Al-Tawhid, 6832)

It was narrated that Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “I asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), `Did you see your Lord?’ He said, ‘He is veiled by Light, how could I see Him.’” (Narrated by Muslim, Al-Iman, 261) 

It was narrated that Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “ ‘The (Prophet’s) heart belied not what he saw, and indeed he saw Him at a second descent.’ [An-Najm 53:11-12] (This means that) he saw Him twice with his heart.” (Narrated by Muslim, Al-Iman, 258).   

Ibn Al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

“ `Uthman ibn Sa`id Al-Darimi said in his book Al-Ru’yah that there was consensus among the Companions that he [the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)] did not see his Lord on the night of the Miذraj. Some of them excluded Ibn `Abbas and said that he was not one of those who said that. Our Shaykh says that this does not go against the facts, for Ibn `Abbas did not say that he saw Him with the eyes in his head, and Ahmad relied upon this in one of the two reports narrated from him, where he says that he saw Him but he did not say that that was with the eyes in his head. The wording used by Ahmad is the same as that used by Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both). What indicates that what our Shaykh said about the meaning of the hadeeth of Abu Dharr is correct is the fact that in another hadeeth he said that His veil is Light.  And Allah knows best what the Light is that is mentioned in the hadeeth of Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) where it says, `I saw Light.’” (Ijtima` Al-Juyush Al-Islamiyyah, vol. 1, p. 12)

Shaykh Al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Chapter: with regard to seeing Allah, what was proven in an authentic report from Ibn `Abbas is that he said: `Muhammad saw his Lord with his heart twice, and `Aishah denied that he had seen Him. Some people reconciled these two reports by saying that `Aishah denied that he saw Him with his eyes and Ibn `Abbas affirmed that he saw Him with his heart. Some versions of the report narrated from Ibn `Abbas refers to seeing without specifying how, and others indicate that it was with the heart. Sometimes he says that Muhammad saw his Lord, and sometimes he says that Muhammad saw Him. There is no clear statement from Ibn `Abbas which says that he saw Him with his eyes. Similarly Imam Ahmad sometimes says that he saw Him and sometimes says that he saw Him with his heart. No one whom Ahmad heard said that he saw Him with his eyes. But some of his companions heard some of the words that did not specify how, and understood from that that he had seen Him with his eyes, just as some people heard the words of Ibn `Abbas that did not specify how, and understood from that that he had seen Him with his eyes. But there is nothing in the evidence to prove that he saw Him with his eyes, and that was not narrated from any of the Companions. There is nothing in the Quran or Sunnah to indicate that, rather the authentic texts which indicate that he did not see Him are more definitive. In Sahih Muslim it is narrated that Abu Dharr said: `I asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), “Did you see your Lord?” He said, “He is veiled with Light, how could I see Him?”’ And Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

`Glorified (and Exalted) be He (Allah) [above all that (evil) they associate with Him]

Who took His slave (Muhammad) for a journey by night from Al-Masjid Al-Haram (at Makkah) to Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem), the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show him (Muhammad) of Our Ayat (proofs, evidences, lessons, signs, etc.)’ [Al-Isra’ 17:1]

If he had seen Him with his own eyes, He would have mentioned that. The same applies to the words “Will you then dispute with him (Muhammad) about what he saw [during the Mi’raj]?” [An-Najm 53:12 – interpretation of the meaning]. If he had seen Him with his own eyes, that would have been mentioned. 

It is proven from the authentic texts and from the consensus of the Salaf (first generations) of this Ummah that no one can see Allah with his eyes in this world , with the exception of the claim made by some that our Prophet Muhammad alone saw Him. But they agreed that the believers will see Allah on the Day of Resurrection with their own eyes just as they see the sun and the moon (in this world).” 

For more details, please refer to the following answers: 156077 , 12478 , 14525 , 2734 , and 14096 .

And Allah knows best.