after clear proofs had come to them’ (Āl ʿImrān 105).
Our Lord is one, our Book is one, our Prophet is one, and the fundamentals of the religion do not admit of division or dissension.
I shall speak only that which brings the Muslims together, and it is something upon which the early generations are unanimously agreed. If the assembly concurs, then praise be to Allah; otherwise, whoever opposes me after this I will (1) disclose the secrets to him, tear away the veils, and lay bare those corrupt doctrines that have undermined religions and nations.
I will ride post-haste to the ruler of the day and inform him of matters I will not mention in this session, for speech in times of peace is one thing, and speech in times of war is another.
I also said: There is no doubt that people dispute; one says, ‘I am a Hanbali,’ another says, ‘I am an Ashʿari,’ and among them arise division, turmoil (2) and conflict over matters whose reality they do not understand.
I have brought what makes clear (3) the convergence of the schools regarding what I have just mentioned, and I have brought the book Tabyīn Kadhib al-Muftarī fīmā yunsab (4) ilā al-Shaykh Abī al-Hasan al-Ashʿarī (Exposing the Lie of the Slanderer Concerning What Is Attributed (5) to Shaykh Abū al-Hasan al-Ashʿarī), authored by the ḥāfiẓ Abū al-Qāsim Ibn ʿAsākir.