something that contradicts it”—then that group could counter them in kind, saying:

“Rather, we affirm our knowledge acquired with inescapable certainty and challenge yours with our knowledge acquired through reasoning.”

Moreover, it is well known that someone whom the Messenger addressed directly knows with inescapable certainty things about his intent that others do not know. Whoever knows more about the evidence indicating a speaker’s intent understands that intent better than others, even if the speaker is not a prophet—so how much more so with the prophets?

For grammarians understand the intent of al-Khalīl and Sībawayh better than physicians do; physicians understand the intent of Hippocrates and Galen better than grammarians do; and jurists understand the intent of the four imams and others better than physicians