He was among the masters of theology (kalam) and legal principles (usul) at Nishapur. His works include al-Jami al-Hilli fi Usul al-Din and al-Radd ala al-Mulhidin in five volumes. He died in 418 AH. See: Ibn Khallikan, Wafayat al-Aʿyan, vol. 1, p. 28; al-Dhahabi, Siyar Aʿlam al-Nubalaʾ, vol. 17, pp. 353–355; Kashshaf, Muʿjam al-Muʾallifin, vol. 1, p. 83. (1) See the introduction above. (2) See the introduction above. (3) This is the argument to which the Shaykh (may God have mercy on him) refers and which he presents as the principal proof of al-Ashʿari and his followers. They maintain that if God’s speech were created, it would necessarily depend on the Divine Essence, making God the locus of accidents—an impossibility. Alternatively, if it were created without a locus, this too is untenable, since it implies a separation between that which subsists by itself and that which does not. This argument appears in Qadi Abu Bakr’s at-Tamhid (pp. 237–238) and is noted by Ibn Furak in Mashkil al-Hadith wa Bayanuh (pp. 469–475). (4) This statement is attributed to Abu al-Maʿali al-Juwayni, though I have found no direct source for this exact report. In his al-Shamil fi Usul al-Din (p. 539), Abu al-Maʿali explains that the core issue is that whatever admits accidents cannot be free from them. He further states in al-Irshad (p. 25): “What demonstrates the impossibility of accidents inhering in the Essence of the Lord (exalted be He) is that, if they did inhere, they would never cease, which inevitably implies His having been created.” See also al-Juwayni, al-Aqidah al-Nizamiyyah (p. 27). A similar formulation appears in Abu Mansur Abd al-Qahir al-Baghdadi’s Usul al-Din (pp. 106, 157). (5) The original reads “yakun.” This reading is supported by manuscripts S and T. (6) In manuscript S: “yuqal.”