what has been stated above, so the Lord would have a cause for His existence, which is impossible.

If He were finite in every direction, He would have a shape and magnitude. His particular shape and magnitude would be determined either by His own essence or by something external. In the former case, all bodies would necessarily share that shape and magnitude, since they share the same nature. In the latter case, the Lord would depend on something other than Himself for His existence, which is impossible.”

[Ibn Taymiyyah’s commentary]

I say:

One might ask: “Why could His particular shape and magnitude not be determined by His own essence?”

His statement that this would necessarily entail all bodies sharing that shape and magnitude, because they share the same nature, holds only if it is conceded that all bodies have the same nature. But this is not conceded; indeed, it is false, and its falsity is evident both necessarily and through sensory perception. The nature of fire is not the nature of water, nor is the nature of animals the nature of plants. This argument rests on the view that bodies are identical in their essential reality. If this were correct, it would render all these arguments unnecessary. In his book, when discussing the view of those who maintain the homogeneity of