premise, he meant to deny likeness in every respect, this is a point of agreement and does not help his argument. If he meant to deny likeness in certain respects, he has already stated that its existence is agreed upon; he therefore did not intend to deny it, nor did he offer any proof against it.
As for the statement he attributed to some of his opponents—“We cannot conceive of a being that is neither connected nor separate unless we find something comparable to it”—we have already explained that neither someone who knows such a being to be impossible nor someone who knows it to be possible would say this. Only someone who suspends judgment and seeks something comparable would say it.
Al-Rāzī himself has stated that no rational person seeks something comparable in every respect. He has also stated that likeness in certain respects is affirmed of the Lord, glorified and exalted is He, by the agreement of Muslims, let alone of anyone else. This opponent of his seeks only something comparable in certain respects. Since what he seeks is acknowledged by the agreement of Muslims, his statement cannot be unsound. Thus, one of two things must follow: either no one has made this statement, or it is