Re: Do Salafis take literal meaning of the Quran?
Additonally I believe there is a common misunderstanding between terminology of classification:
Dhahir means (apparent or evident) it does not mean Maadi (physical, real, tangible)
Sometimes the metaphoric meaning (Majazi) is more dhahir than the physical (Maadi) meaning, because to assume the physical meaning would be to contradict sense or an edict elsewhere. The reverse can be true also.
So for all of the references where the Salaf have said the "dhahir" meaning is to be taken. What do they mean by dhahir? The Maadi or the Majazi?
The opposite of Dhahir is Batin not Mutashabih which is the opposite of Muhkam. Dhahir means the obvious, Batin is unobvious, Mutashabih is an analogous explicative and Muhkam is a definite explicative.