He said: “We answer their fourth argument by citing against them the words of the Most High: ‘And He is Allah in the heavens and on the earth; He knows what you conceal and what you reveal’; and His words: ‘No private conversation takes place among three but He is their fourth, nor among five but He is their sixth, nor among fewer than that or more but He is with them wherever they are’; and His words: ‘And We are closer to him than his jugular vein’ (16); and His words: ‘Indeed, I am with you both; I hear and I see’ (46).”

He said: “As for the detailed interpretation of each of these verses, they have written books on the subject, so we have no need to discuss it.”

I say: There are several points to be made in response to what he has said. First, what he has cited cannot serve as a counterargument. Only someone who does not understand the true nature of a counterargument would argue in this way. For counterarguments are of two kinds: those directed at the conclusion and those directed at the proof.