in the least; for any knowledge that is religiously obligatory must be broadcast and made public, and it is the duty of the Muslim community to preserve it. Knowledge dealing with the merits of deeds, provided its chains of transmission are sound, must likewise be conveyed and its dissemination emphatically encouraged, and the ummah ought to transmit it. As for merely permissible learning, there is no obligation to spread it, nor should anyone engage in it except the select among the scholars.

Knowledge whose study and propagation are forbidden includes: ʿilm al-awāʾil (the lore of the ancients); the philosophers’ ilāhiyyāt (metaphysics) and much—indeed, most—of their practical disciplines; the science of sorcery; sīmiyāʾ (talismanic magic); kīmiyāʾ (alchemy); shaʿbadhah (conjuring and sleight-of-hand); deceptive stratagems; the circulation of fabricated hadiths; the many spurious or objectionable tales, such as the invented epic of al-Baṭṭāl and the like; the Rasāʾil Ikhwān al-Ṣafāʾ (Epistles of the Brethren of Purity); and any poetry that encroaches irreverently upon the sanctity of the Prophet. False sciences are exceedingly numerous, so beware of them. Should an intelligent person be tried with consulting them out of mere curiosity or for awareness, let him keep it to a bare minimum, read them in private, seek Allah’s forgiveness, take refuge in tawḥīd (pure monotheism), and pray for well-being in matters of religion.

Many forged reports on the divine attributes have also circulated; it is unlawful to disseminate them except to warn people against believing them. If they can be eradicated altogether, so much the better.

O Allah, preserve our faith for us; there is no power except through Allah.

Another report that was challenged in the case of Nuʿaym ibn Ḥammād runs as follows. He said:

“Ibn al-Mubārak narrated to us, from Maʿmar, from al-Zuhrī, from Muḥammad ibn Jubayr, who heard ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ say: ‘The world will not end until it is ruled by a man from Qaḥṭān.⦗1⦘’”

Muʿāwiyah exclaimed, “What is this? I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say, ‘This authority will remain with Quraysh; no one will contend with them over it without Allah casting him flat on his face.’”

It was also transmitted by Shuʿbah, from al-Zuhrī, who said: “Muḥammad ibn…"