التَّأوِيلُ الإِسمَاعِيلِيُّ لِلعَرشِ وَالكُرسِيّ — العَرشُ وَالكُرسِيّ: كَيفَ تُقرَأُ أَعظَمُ بُنيَتَينِ كَونِيَّتَينِ فِي القُرآنِ [كُرسِيُّ 2:255 وَعَرشُ 7:54] تَأوِيلًا بَاطِنِيًّا عَلَى أَنَّهُمَا المُستَوَيَانِ الأَعلَيَانِ لِسُلطَةِ الإِمَامِ الكَونِيَّةِ وَلِمَاذَا يَشغَلُ الإِمَامُ مَوضِعَ العَرشِ فِي كُلِّ عَصر
In Ismaili ta'wil, al-Arsh wal-Kursi (العَرشُ وَالكُرسِيّ — The Throne and the Footstool; *arsh*: throne, the highest cosmic structure; *kursi*: footstool, seat, or chair — a lower cosmic structure; the Quranic references: 2:255 [Ayat al-Kursi, the Throne Verse]: 'His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth'; 7:54 'Then He settled on the Arsh [istawwa 'ala al-'arsh]'; 20:5 'The Most Merciful settled [istawa] on the Throne'; the Kursi and Arsh in classical tafsir: [1] some scholars: kursi = God's literal footstool [below the arsh]; arsh = God's literal throne [the highest created thing]; [2] other scholars: kursi = God's knowledge [ilm]; arsh = God's dominion [mulk]; [3] the Ash'ari/Hanbali bi-la kayf position: affirm both without explaining their modality; in Ismaili cosmology: the arsh and kursi are the two highest levels of the created cosmic hierarchy: [1] al-Arsh = al-Aql al-Kulli [the Universal Intellect] — the first emanation from divine command [amr]; [2] al-Kursi = al-Nafs al-Kulliyya [the Universal Soul] — the second emanation, subordinate to the Aql; the emanation chain: divine command [amr] → Aql al-Kulli [arsh] → Nafs al-Kulliyya [kursi] → lower hudud [spiritual beings] → the world; the Imam's position: the Imam is the earthly actualizer of the Aql al-Kulli [arsh] in each age; the Imam's position corresponds to the cosmic arsh — the highest integrative function in the created order; 2:255 'His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth' in ta'wil: the Imam's knowledge [kursi] encompasses all created reality; the breadth of the Imam's ta'wil covers the zahir and batin of the entire cosmos; 7:54 'istawa 'ala al-'arsh' in ta'wil: not God sitting on a throne; the Imam assuming the arsh-function — the highest ordering principle — in each age; the 'istawa' controversy: the literalist/Ash'ari debate about whether istawa means 'to sit,' 'to settle,' or 'to be established' is resolved in ta'wil by specifying what the arsh IS: the cosmic function, not a piece of furniture; the Imam's 'settling' on the arsh is his assumption of the integrative ordering function for that age's creation) is the Ismaili cosmological map of the highest divine-creation interface.
The Ayat al-Kursi (2:255) is arguably the most memorized and reverenced verse in the Quran. Its central image — “His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth” — generated extensive theological debate about what the kursi actually is and how it relates to the arsh (throne) mentioned in 7:54.
Classical scholars proposed two broad interpretations:
- Literalist: The kursi is God’s actual footstool (below the throne); the arsh is God’s actual throne; both are real cosmic structures far beyond human comprehension
- Metaphorical: The kursi represents God’s knowledge; the arsh represents God’s dominion
The Ash’ari/Hanbali mainstream affirmed both without specifying the modality (bi-la kayf): they are real, but we don’t ask how.
The Ismaili Cosmological Map
Ismaili cosmology provides a precise structural answer. The arsh and kursi are the two highest levels of the emanated universe:
Al-Arsh = al-Aql al-Kulli (Universal Intellect): The first and highest emanation from divine command. It is the integrating intelligence of the entire created order — perfect, non-material, holding the template of all knowledge.
Al-Kursi = al-Nafs al-Kulliyya (Universal Soul): The second emanation, subordinate to the Aql. It receives the Aql’s knowledge and activates it through the lower levels of creation.
Below these two: the lower hudud (ranks) of the spiritual hierarchy, then the physical world.
The Imam at the Arsh-Function
The Imam in each age corresponds to the Aql al-Kulli in function — not in metaphysical identity, but in role. The Imam’s ta’wil is the integration of all knowledge (zahir and batin) for that age; the Imam’s presence orders the spiritual reality of the community the way the Aql al-Kulli orders the cosmos.
When 7:54 says “He settled on the Throne” (istawa ‘ala al-‘arsh), the ta’wil: the Imam’s assumption of the arsh-function — the ordering, integrating authority — in each historical age is the earthly actualization of what this verse encodes.
See also: Ismaili Cosmology Hudud Al Din, Ismaili Tawil Of Al Yad Allah, Bayah And Walayah, Ismaili Tawil Of Al Aql Wal Nafs, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation