The Shape of Adam, may Allah exalt his mention:

It was narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Allah, The Almighty, created Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, in His picture, sixty cubits (about 30 meters) in height. When He created him, He said (to him), "Go and greet that group of angels sitting there, and listen what they will say in reply to you, for that will be your greeting and the greeting of your offspring." Adam (went and) said, 'As-Salamu Alaykum (Peace be upon you).' They replied, 'As-Salamu-'Alayka wa Rahmatullah (Peace and Allah's Mercy be on you) So they increased 'Wa Rahmatullah.' The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, added 'So whoever will enter Paradise, will be of the shape and picture of Adam. Since then the creation of Adam's (offspring) (i.e. stature of human beings is being diminished continuously) to the present time." (1).

It was also narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “When any one of you fights his brother, let him avoid the face, for Allah, The Almighty, created Adam in His image.(2)”  (3).

Breathing soul into Adam, may Allah exalt his mention:

 It was also narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Maalik, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “When the breath of the soul was breathed into Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, it moved and fluttered and went into his head and so he sneezed and said, “Al-Hamdu-lillah Rabb Al-‘Aalameen’ (all praise is for Allah, the Lord of the worlds), so Allah, The Almighty, said: "May Allah have mercy on you.” (4).

Teaching Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, all the names (of everything):

It was also narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Maalik, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "On the Day of Resurrection, Allah, The Almighty, will assemble the believers and they will say, 'Let us ask somebody to intercede for us with our Lord.' So they will go to Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, and say, 'You are the father of all the people, and Allah, The Almighty, created you with His Own Hands, and ordered the angels to prostrate to you, and taught you the names of all things; so please intercede for us with your Lord, so that He may relieve us from this place of ours.' Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, will say, 'I am not fit for this (i.e. intercession for you).' Then Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, will remember his sin and feel ashamed thereof. He, may Allah exalt his mention, will say, 'Go to Noah, for he was the first Messenger, Allah sent to the inhabitants of the earth…" (5). The wording is reported by Imam Al-Bukhaari.

It was narrated on the authority of Abu Hurairah, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “If the son of Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, reads verse of As-Sajdah [Surat of the Quran 32], the Shaytan (Satan) cries and says: ‘Woe to me from Adam, He was ordered to prostate and prostrated and he gets Paradise, and I was ordered to prostrate and I refused so I get the Hellfire.” (6). The wording of the Hadeeth is reported by Imam Muslim.

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(1) It was reported by Imam Al-Bukhaari, No. (3326 and 6227) and Imam Muslim, No. (2841).

(2) It was reported by Imam Muslim, No. (2612).

(3) Below is important commentary upon the meaning of the Hadeeth:

Form is expressed to refer to the attribute. Thus the meaning will be that Allah, The Almighty, created Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, on His attributes such as life, knowledge, ability, hearing, seeing, and will.

Accordingly, it is clear that the form or image is like all the other divine attributes. Any attribute which Allah, The Almighty, has affirmed in the Revelation, we must affirm it and believe in it. As it was stated in the two Saheeh books of Al-Bukhaari and Muslim that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "The first group of people who will enter Paradise, will be glittering like the full moon and those who will follow them, will glitter like the most brilliant star in the sky. They will not urinate, relieve nature, spit, or have any nasal secretions. Their combs will be of gold, and their sweat will smell like musk. The aloes-wood will be used in their centers. Their wives will be houris. All of them will look alike and will resemble their father Adam (in stature), sixty cubits tall." Saheeh Al-Bukhaari [along with Sharh Al-Fat-h], the book of Prophets, the Chapter: The creation of Adam and his offspring (6/417) No. (3326), Saheeh Muslim (along with Sharh An-Nawawi), the book of Paradise, its Description, its Bounties and its Inhabitants Paradise, the chapter of The Attributes Of Paradise And Its People, And Their Glorifying Allah Every Morning And Evening (9/3947), No. (7018).

This means that they will be like the light, brightness and beautifulness of the full moon (so they are likened to the moon, but without resembling it. So just because a thing is said to be in the image of a thing it does not mean that it is like it in all aspects). Thus the Prophet’s, peace be upon him, words, “Indeed Allah The Almighty created Adam in His image” means that Allah created Adam according to the attributes of Allah, The Almighty. Allah, The Almighty, singled out Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, amongst all other created being by making him have a lot of His Attributes i.e. that he has the basics of the attributes along with the confirmed belief that the attribute of the created being does not mean that it is like that of Allah in all aspects. To explain more, Allah, The Almighty, is hearing and Adam has the same attribute, Allah has a face and Adam has a face, Allah has two hands and Adam has the same. Allah is powerful, able, talking and wise and has also the attribute of anger, pleasure, laugh and the like of the reported attributes.

Accordingly, This Hadeeth has no unfamiliarity as it was stated by the prominent Imam Ibn Qutaybah, may Allaah have mercy on him: "People found it strange and thus did not accept it." [Sharh Al-‘Aqeedah Al-Waasitiyyah by Shaykh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah, Muhammad Saalih Al-‘Uthaymeen (1/109)]

Amongst the scholars who stated this opinion also is Ishaaq ibn Rahawiyyah and Imam Ahmad. It was reported that Ishaaq ibn Mansoor Al-Kusj said: "I said to Imam Ahmad, Do you not adopt such Hadeeth 'When any one of you fights let him avoid the face, for Allaah created Adam in the image of His Face? Ahmad said, 'It is Saheeh (authentic) Hadeeth.'

In Rahawiyyah said: 'It is Saheeh and no one rejects it except the innovators or those who have limited knowledge [Al-Ibaanah ‘An Sharee‘at Al-Firqah An-Naajiyyah wamujaanabat Al-Firq Al-Mathmoomah, Abu ‘Abdullah ibn Bath, Ibid, 3/266]

This is the opinion of Ahl As-Sunnah; Rather, Sheykh Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allaah have mercy upon him, supported this opinion and made a lengthy discussion regarding it saying: “There was no dispute among the Salaf of the first three generations that the pronoun in the Hadeeth refers to Allaah, and it is narrated through many Isnaads from many of the Sahaabah. The contexts of the Ahaadeeth all indicate that." [Bayaan Talbees Al-Jahmeeyah, Ibn Taymiyyah, the sixth section (2/396)].

At-Tabaraani said in Kitaab As-Sunnah: ‘Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal said: "A man said to my father, there was a man saying: Allah, The Almighty, created Adam on His image meaning the image of man. Imam Ahmad said, He is liar and this is the opinion Al-Jahmiyyah and there is no benefit in such saying." (Aqeedat Ahl Al-Imaan fi Khalq Adam ala Soorat Ar-Rahmaan, Hamood ibn ‘Abdullah At-Tuwajri, p. 64 and onward).

Sheykh Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allaah have mercy upon him, stated thirteen points for refuting the opinion that views that the pronoun refers to others than Allah, The Almighty, and nine points for refuting the opinion that views the pronoun refers to Adam, may Allah exalt his mention. (Refer to them in Aqeedat Ahl Al-Imaan fi Khalq Adam ala Soorat Ar-Rahmaan, Hamood ibn ‘Abdullah At-Tuwajri, p. 64 and onward).

This also is supported by what was reported from Al-‘Amash from Habeeb ibn Abi Thaabit from ‘Ataa' from ibn ‘Umar: “Do not say ‘May Allaah deform your face’ [a form of cursing in Arabic], for Adam was created in the image of Ar-Rahmaan (i.e. Allah, The Almighty)." [It was reported by ‘Abdullah ibn Ahmad in As-Suunah (1/268) No. (498), Ibn Abi ‘Aasim in As-Sunnah) 417 (and it was also reported by Ibn Khuzaymah in Tawheed wa Ithbaat Sifaat Ar-Rab, Jala wa ‘Ala (1/85), and Al-Ajurri in the book As-Sharee‘ah (2/107) and Daaraqutni in As-Sifaat (1 / 37) No. (45 and 48), and Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Asmaa' wa As-Sifaat (2/64), No. (640) all of them are from the route of Jareer from Al-‘Amash].

This is an explicit text that Allah, The Almighty, created Adam, may Allah exalt his mention, on His Exalted Image. This text does not accept interpretation and whoever does this, then he went far away from the right opinion because many scholars have deemed it Saheeh such as Imam Ahmad, Ishaaq, Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Hajar. Also, come contemporary scholars explained that this is the opinion of Ahl As-Sunnah such as Ibn Baaz and Ibn ‘Uthaymeen. For more information, kindly refer to (Ahadeeth Al-‘Aqeedah Al-Mutawahmah Ishkaliha fi As-Saheehayn, Sulaymaan Ad-Dibaykhi, p. 125 and onward).

It is as Ibn Qutaybah said: “That Allaah should have an image is no stranger than His having two hands, fingers or eyes. Rather those are readily accepted because they are mentioned in the Qur’aan, but this idea (image or form) is regarded as strange because it is not mentioned in the Qur’aan. But we believe in them all, but we do not discuss how any of them are.” [Ta’weel Mukhtalif Al-Hadeeth by Abu Muhammad ibn Qutaybah Ad-Daynoori, p. 206

Ath-Thahabi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said in As-Siyar while speaking about Muhammad ibn Ishaaq ibn Khuzaymah, who adopt the idea of interpreting the Hadeeth of the image: "His book is At-Tawheeh in a big volume and he interpreted in it the Hadeeth of the image; however, excused those who interpreted some attributes. As for our Salaf (righteous predecessors), then never interpreted it. Rather, they believed, stopped and entrusted the knowledge of this for Allah, The Almighty, and His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. If we deemed all those who made a mistake in his Ijtihaad (i.e. legal reasoning) while he has sound faith and seeks to follow truth innovator, then no scholar will be safe from this. may Allaah have mercy upon all out of His Generosity." [Siyar A‘laam An-Nubalaa' 14/374-376]  

(4) It was reported by At-Timithi, No. 3368, Ibn Sa‘d in his book At-Tabaqaat (1/27-28), Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Asmaa' wa As-Sifaat (p. 324 and 325), Al-Haakim (1/64) (2/325) (4/263) (2/585-586), At-Tabari in At-Tareekh (1/96), Ibn Abi ‘Aasim in As-Sunnah, No. (203, 205, 206) and Ibn Hibbaan as in Al-Mawaarid (2082). At-Tirmithi said: "Hasan Ghareeb (good and strange) Hadeeth and Al-Haakim said: "It is Saheeh (authentic) according to the conditions of Imam Muslim and Ath-Thahabi agreed with him."

(5) It was reported by Imam Al-Bukhaari Hadeeth No. (4476, 6565, 7410, 7440 and 7510) and imam Muslim, Hadeeth No. (193).

(6) It was reported by Imam Muslim No. (81).

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