but an infinite regress of this kind is not impossible on your own view, for you affirm something even more far-reaching concerning the celestial sphere. Whoever reflects on this will realize that these people have offered no argument whatsoever for their position, beyond demanding an answer to their question: “Why did He act after not acting?” Yet demanding evidence is not evidence that what requires proof does not exist. Your not knowing why He brought something into being is therefore no proof that bringing it into being is impossible. Thus, it becomes clear that they had no knowledge that origination was ruled out. There is a difference between knowing that something is impossible or nonexistent and demanding proof of its possibility or an explanation of why it occurred.

This examination shows that these people are as Allah Most High describes:

“Thus We have made for every prophet enemies—devils among mankind and jinn, inspiring one another with embellished speech in order to deceive.” [al-Anʿām 112]

Whoever understands these two points will understand the answer to the various formulations they give this argument, for their underlying content is the same. For example, one of them says: “What makes an originator an originator must either be