- Their claim that the authentic reports of the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—do not convey certain knowledge and that, at best, they provide only probability.
- Their claim that, whenever reason appears to conflict with the explicit texts of revelation, reason must be preferred and revelation disregarded (1).
This chapter is the very heart of the book and the ultimate aim for which it was written; everything before it is but an introduction.
The author states: “These four idols are what have wrought such havoc upon Islam. They have effaced its traces, erased its landmarks, razed its foundations, stripped the divine texts of their sanctity in people’s hearts, and opened the door for every heretic and atheist to assail them. Whenever someone adduces proof from the Book of Allah or the Sunnah of His Messenger, the opponent immediately clings to one of these idols, seeks refuge in it, and turns it into a shield to block the path of Allah.
By His might, power, grace, and favor, Allah Most High has shattered these idols, one by one, through the tongues of the deputies of His messengers and the heirs of His prophets. The supporters of Allah and His Messenger have never ceased to cry out against their devotees from every corner of the earth, pelting them with the meteors of revelation and the proofs of sound reason. We, for our part, shall address each of these idols in turn.”
As for the first idol—namely their assertion that the revealed texts are merely verbal indicators which yield no certainty—he refuted it from seventy-three distinct angles, leaving them neither proof nor the faintest semblance of a doubt.