ibn Hāzim, who related it with his chain of transmission. He said:
“The affairs of this community will continue to go reasonably well or smoothly so long as they do not discuss children and predestination.”

Al-Marwazī also related: ‘Amr ibn Zurārah narrated to us: Ismā‘īl ibn ‘Ulayyah informed us, from Ibn ‘Awān, who said:
“I was with al-Qāsim ibn Muhammad when a man came to him and asked: ‘What took place between Qatādah and Hafs ibn ‘Umar concerning the children of the polytheists?’

“He said: ‘Did Rabī‘ah al-Ra’y also speak about this?’

“Al-Qāsim said: ‘If Allah has stopped at a certain point, then stop there and go no further.’”

He said: “It was as though a fire had been extinguished.”

[Ibn Taymiyyah’s commentary]

I say: Ibn ‘Abbās, may Allah be pleased with him, delivered this address in Basra. Accounts have reached us of the knowledge that he and other Companions possessed concerning what would happen in this community, and of their warnings against the causes of strife. One example is the report Ahmad mentioned in his letter to al-Mutawakkil about Ibn ‘Abbās and ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb, when those versed in reciting the Quran became numerous, and both men feared that the community would fall into disagreement and division. When most people delve into difficult questions, they do not grasp their true nature. When they dispute over them, conflicting desires and conjectures arise among them, leading to division and strife.