Thus this phrase contains an affirmation of the attributes of perfection that He has affirmed for Himself (1), a declaration of His transcendence above every defect, shortcoming, or resemblance, and a clear statement that He is to be described only with what He has described Himself, not with what the creatures (2) ascribe to Him. He then said: “All praise is due to Allah, for no gratitude for any of His favors can be rendered except through another favor from Him. That new favor obliges the one who has expressed thanks for former favors—by rendering that gratitude—to acknowledge a fresh favor that in turn requires him to thank Him for it.” (3) In these words he established that the very act of thanksgiving is itself a favor bestowed by Allah upon the grateful servant, which shows—may Allah have mercy on him—that he affirmed both the divine attributes and the divine decree.

Upon this foundation Islam flourished, as did the foremost generation (4); after them came the tābiʿūn (5) following in their footsteps, and those who followed later adhered to their path. Each earlier generation commended it to those who came after, and the later generations modeled themselves on the former. In all of this they emulated their Prophet and walked upon his way. Allah the Exalted says: “Say, ‘This is my path: I call to Allah upon clear insight—I and whoever follows me’” (Qur’an 12:108). Thus, “whoever follows me,” if it is taken as a conjunction to the pronoun in “I call”