as clothing, flesh, and other things, such as animal bodies, are divided and partitioned; as animals, fruits, wood, paper, and the like are divided and partitioned; and as an animal is divided and partitioned when semen and other bodily wastes leave it. In this way, offspring resembling it are born from it through the separation of a part of it, such as a man’s semen and a woman’s semen and blood. This is impossible by the consensus of the Muslims. No Hanbalī—indeed, no Muslim, to our knowledge—has said that He is divided or partitioned in this sense.

Nor have they said that He can be divided and partitioned as mountains can be broken apart and scattered, or as heaven can split and break open according to Muslims and others who believe in the great Resurrection—even though this is impossible according to those polytheists and Sabians, philosophers and others, who deny it. Allah has the power to divide and partition created bodies, separating them and tearing them apart.

Ordinarily, these fall into three categories:

The first: soft, moist bodies that are easily divided.

The second: dry, solid bodies that can be divided by force.