As for the majority, who maintain that Allah has a ruling in the reality of the matter, [the scholar] knew it in one of his two positions but did not know it in the position that contradicted it. His failure to know it, despite having exercised independent reasoning, is forgiven, while he is rewarded for intending the truth and striving to seek it. Hence, some of them liken the conflicting conclusions reached by scholars through independent reasoning to the abrogating and abrogated rulings in the revealed laws of the prophets. There remains, however, this distinction: both the abrogating and the abrogated ruling were established by a divine pronouncement as Allah’s ruling, both in reality and outwardly, unlike one of a scholar’s two contradictory positions.

This applies to someone who fears Allah in what he says, whose piety and adherence to the sound path are known.

As for the adherents of caprice and contentious disputation, they are blameworthy for their contradictions, because they speak without knowledge and without a sound intention to pursue what ought to be pursued.

Accordingly, the necessary implications of a person’s statements are of two kinds:

The first is the necessary implication of a true statement of his. He must accept this, for the necessary implication of the truth is itself true. It may be attributed to him if it is known that he would not refuse to accept it once it became clear to him. Much of what people attribute to the positions of the imams falls into this category.

The second is the necessary implication of a statement of his that is not true. He is not required to accept this, for the most that can be said is that he has contradicted himself—and I have explained that every scholar other than the prophets falls into contradiction. Then, if it is known that he would accept the implication once it became clear to him, it may be attributed to him. Otherwise, it is not permissible to attribute to him a position that he would reject if its unsoundness became apparent to him merely because he said something that entails it, when he was unaware of the unsoundness of that statement and is not bound to accept its implication.