ibn Yahya? Everyone who comes to sit with you is being driven away?”

He replied, “How much envy over knowledge besets Muhammad ibn Yahya! Knowledge is a provision from Allah; He grants it to whomever He wills.”

I said, “Is this the question people are circulating about you?”

He answered, “My son, this is an ill-omened question. I witnessed what befell Ahmad ibn Hanbal over it, and I bound myself never to speak about it.”

I said, “The issue is the claim that articulation is created. Al-Bukhari was asked about it and he withheld judgment. When he paused and argued that our actions are created, adducing evidence for that, al-Dhuhli understood that he was thereby endorsing the doctrine of lafz, so he spoke against him and, together with others, held him to the necessary implications of his words. (1)

Al-Bukhari himself said—in the report transmitted by Ghunjar in his History—‘Khalaf ibn Muhammad ibn Ismaʿil narrated to us: I heard Abu ʿAmr Ahmad ibn Nasr al-Naysaburi al-Khaffaf in Bukhara say: One day we were with Abu Ishaq al-Qaysi, and Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazi was with us. The name of Muhammad ibn Ismaʿil al-Bukhari came up, whereupon Muhammad ibn Nasr said, “I heard him say: Whoever alleges that I said, ‘My articulation of the Qur’an is created,’ is a liar, for I never said it.”’

I said to him, ‘Abu ʿAbd Allah, the people have plunged into this matter and talked about it at length.’

He replied, ‘It is nothing other than what I say.’ (2)

Abu ʿAmr al-Khaffaf continued, ‘I went to al-Bukhari and debated some hadiths with him until he was in good spirits. Then I said, “Abu ʿAbd Allah, there is someone here reporting that you have made this statement.” He said, “Abu ʿAmr, memorize what I tell you: Whoever from among the people of …”’