Allah Sits Crossed Legged

Aboo Yaʿla Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥussain ibn al-Farra, commonly known as Al-Qadi Aboo Yaʿla, was a prominent Hanbali scholar and one of the early 'Sunni' jurists who played dynamic roles in formulating a systematic legal framework and constitutional on the theory of Islamic system of government during the first half of the 5th/11th Century in Baghdad. 

In his famous works he has recorded the following narration;

Narrated to us Abu Muammad ibn Al-Hassan from Alee ibn Umar Al-Tammar from his book from Jafar ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Al-Hakam Al-Wasity from Ahmad ibn Alee Al-Abbar Abul Abbas from Muhammad ibn Ishaq Al-Saghani from Ibraheem ibn Al-Mundhir Al-Hizami who said narrated to us Muhammad ibn Fulaih from his father from Sa'eed ibn Al-Harth from Ubaid bin Hunayn who said:  ‘I was sitting in the Masjid when (the companion) Qatada ibn al-Nu'man arrived. Then he sat and kept discussing with people. Then the people angry against him, then he said: ‘O son of Hunayn let us move to the (companion) Aboo Sa'eed al Khudri, I heard that he is ill’. 

Then two of us went together, until we came upon Aboo Sa’eed. We met him sitting, placing his right leg over the left. We greeted him and sat. Then, Qatadah pinched Aboo Saeed’s leg. Aboo Sa’eed said, ‘Praise be to Allah! My brother you hurt me’. Qatadah answered: ‘I did this on purpose, ‘Messenger of Allah (swt) said, ‘Verily when Allah concluded creating His creation, He sat, and then placed one of His legs over the other’’. Then He said: ‘It is wrong for anyone to sit like this’. Aboo Sa’eed said: ‘No offense. By Allah, I never did it again!’’.

Footnote: Aboo Yala said: Aboo Muhammad al-Khalal said: ‘This Hadeeth chain is Hasan (Reliable), according to the standards of  Muslim and Bukhari’.

Source: Ibtal al-taʾwilat li-Ahbar al-Sifat. Vol. 1, Pg. # 189.