In a sound narration recorded in the Ṣaḥīḥ, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:

“No one is more patient with the hurt he hears than Allah. They attribute to Him a child and a partner, yet He continues to provide for them and keep them in good health.”

For this reason Muʿādh ibn Jabal used to say, “Do not show compassion to the Christians, for they have reviled Allah with a revilement no other human being has ever uttered.”

Consequently, this upright, Qur’anic legislation forbade speaking of Allah with the title “son” or “child,” as a preventative measure. It likewise prohibited prostrating to anyone other than Allah, even if intended merely as a greeting, and it forbade praying at sunrise or sunset so that one would not resemble the worshippers of the sun and the moon. Thus, by closing the avenues through which anything might be set up alongside Allah