any work available to expose these people, lift the veil from their ignorance and accusations, and thus ensure that he who perishes may perish upon clear evidence, and he who lives may live upon clear evidence (1). For that reason it was imperative to answer them by name.

Although I did not repay their aggression and slander in kind, the treatise—despite its scholarly character—was a direct refutation of them. Some readers, especially those who feign displeasure at replying to slanderous opponents, may feel that its tone is somewhat severe. They would prefer to leave such people unaccountable for their ignorance and their false charges against the innocent, imagining that silence toward them embodies the tolerance referred to in the Almighty’s words: “And when the ignorant address them, they respond with words of peace” (2).

They forget—or choose to forget—that such silence only helps those adversaries persist in their own misguidance and in leading others astray, whereas Allah, Mighty and Exalted, says: