and each part suits the other, bears witness to the other, and logically entails the other, the discourse is considered mutashabih (internally harmonious)—in contrast to contradictory speech whose components negate one another.

This comprehensive tashābuh does not conflict with comprehensive iḥkām (overall precision); on the contrary, it attests to it. Sound, perfectly constructed speech corroborates itself; its parts never clash.

Specific iḥkām, however, is the opposite of specific tashābuh. Specific tashābuh arises when one thing resembles another from one angle while differing from it in another, so that some people imagine the two to be identical or equivalent, though they are not. Iḥkām here means drawing a clear line between them so that neither is mistaken for the other. Such resemblance exists only because the two share a common element while a separating factor remains.

Similarity, therefore, can be relative. Some people fail to discern the dividing line and so find the matter confused, while others succeed in doing so. A tashābuh that eludes clear distinction may thus be a relational matter, bewildering some people while