the exegetes’ explanation of His word al-Samad as meaning “the One who has no hollow within Him,” they would say, “This is the interpretation of the corporealists.” It is well known, however, that this is the interpretation of the Companions and Successors, and it has also been transmitted in a report traced back to the Prophet. This interpretation is more widely attested in their statements than the interpretation of al-Samad as “the Master,” although both are true.

Thus, if the evidence furnished by His name al-Samad that He is a body, and by His name al-Qayyūm that He is separate from the world in direction, is far stronger in many respects than the evidence he cited in support of negation, then the falsity of the position of those who deny His attributes becomes clear. This is to say nothing of His other names, which indicate this still more clearly, such as al-ʿAlī (the Most High), al-Aʿlā (the Highest), al-ʿAzīm (the Magnificent), al-Kabīr (the Most Great), and others.

The twentieth argument: Concerning his statement, “Just as the philosopher says, ‘The celestial sphere