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Fatwa CenterImagining that Allaah is in front of us during the Prayer
Question
Salam wa alakum, please answer according to the Quran, when you worship Allah are you to imagine him in front of us, or how shall your state of mind be, are we supposed imagine what he looks like when worshiping?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
Al-Ihsaan (perfection) in one's worship is to worship Allaah as if he sees Him and it is confirmed that the Prophet said about Al-Ihsaan: “…It is to worship Allaah as if you see Him…” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] Moreover, the Prophet ordered ‘Abdullaah Ibn ‘Umar to attain this quality of Ihsaan in his worship as he told him: “Worship Allaah as if you see Him.” [Ahmad] The meaning is that a person should worship Allaah in this manner, which is to think that one is near to Him and that he is close to Him as if he sees Him. This is an indication that “a worshipper imagines this condition in his worship.”
Indeed, this was the case with the Salaf (the righteous predecessors); for example, ‘Urwah Ibn Az-Zubayr, proposed to marry the daughter of Ibn ‘Umar while they were in Tawaaf and he did not answer him, then later he (Ibn ‘Umar) met him and apologized to him saying: “In Tawaaf, we used to imagine Allaah between (close to) our eyes.”
Therefore, one should imagine that he is in front of Allaah while performing an act of worship and that Allaah is watching him; Allaah Says (what means): {… Indeed Allaah is ever, over you, an Observer.}[Quran 4:1] Allaah also Says (what means): {Who sees you when you arise. And your movement among those who prostrate.}[Quran 26:218-219] In another verse, Allaah Says (what means): {And, [O Muhammad ], you are not [engaged] in any matter or recite any of the Quran and you [people] do not do any deed except that We are witness over you when you are involved in it.}[Quran 10:61]
However, this does not mean that one should imagine his Lord on a particular image or a particular form because it is known that there is nothing like Allaah. Moreover, it was reported that the Prophet said: “Think about the signs of Allaah and do not think about Allaah (His Entity).” [Al-Bayhaqi and At-Tabaraani - Al-Albaani graded it Hasan (good)]
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen 
said: “We should know that the Creator is not like the creature, neither in His Entity nor in His Names and Attributes, {There is nothing like unto Him and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer.}[Quran 42:11] Therefore, it is not permissible at all to imagine how one of the Attributes of Allaah is or to believe that the Attributes of Allaah are like the attributes of the creatures.” Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen also said: “It is not permissible at all to imagine how the Entity of Allaah or any of His Attributes is.” For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 85048, 90390 and 83717.
Allaah Knows best.
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