The point here is that those who claim that the soul’s perfection consists in comprehending intelligible things and knowing what is unknown display this confusion concerning the most exalted of existing objects of knowledge—indeed, concerning the One without knowledge and worship of whom souls cannot attain salvation. Yet, because they accepted the philosophers’ corrupt principles, they became entangled with them in their perplexities, and the philosophers began drawing them along, just as heretical esotericists draw people along, group by group.

Philosophy is the inner doctrine of the esotericists. Thus, a measure of heretical deviation has appeared among these people. Few who join them escape some form of deviation concerning Allah’s names and signs, and the distortion of words from their proper contexts.

[The falsity of the philosophers’ claim concerning the soul’s perfection]

The very imposing premise that they made their ultimate objective—namely, that the soul’s perfection consists solely in knowing intelligible things—is false. We have discussed it at length in our treatment of the prophets’ miracles, when addressing their claim that these are powers of the soul. We quoted some of their statements on this subject and demonstrated that their claim that the soul’s perfection consists solely in knowing intelligible things is erroneous and misguided. On this basis, they held that the purpose of revealed laws is either to set worldly affairs right, to refine the soul so that it becomes ready for knowledge, or to provide parables through which the hereafter may be explained in