from Him it originates and to Him it returns.” Some of them disputed whether it truly originates from Him and returns to Him, and they demanded an explanation.

I said: This wording is the well-known, reliably transmitted statement of the early generations, as related by ʿAmr ibn Dinar, who said: “For seventy years I have met people saying, ‘Allah is the Creator and everything apart from Him is created—except the Qur’an, for it is the speech of Allah, uncreated; from Him it began and to Him it returns.’” (1) Moreover, more than one scholar (2) has collected the narrations on this point from the Prophet ﷺ, his Companions, and the Successors (3).

As for its meaning: His words (4) “from Him it began” mean that He is the One who spoke it, and He sent it down from His own presence; it is not, as the Jahmiyyah claim, something created in the air or elsewhere, originating from anyone other than Him (5).

And “to Him it returns” means that, at the end of time, it will be withdrawn from both the written copies and people’s hearts, so that not a single word remains in hearts and not a single letter remains in the manuscripts (6).

The majority of those present accepted this explanation, and the objectors fell silent.