in Mecca, with idols he brought from Syria, from al-Balqā’, which at that time was home to the polytheist Sabians, the predecessors of Abū Ma‘shar and his associates. Likewise, some among the Children of Israel worshipped idols, as Allah—exalted and holy is He—has mentioned in His Book. This practice arose among them only in connection with their neighbors, the polytheist Sabians, the predecessors of Abū Ma‘shar and his associates.

If, then, the origins of the doctrine they called tashbīh (likening Allah to creation) can be traced only to followers of a scripture revealed from heaven, and the People of the Book were not the first to introduce polytheism, it follows that polytheism was not first introduced by those whom they called adherents of tashbīh.