to the Jahmiyyah: ‘Allah is Light.’ They replied: ‘He is Light in His entirety.’ We said: ‘Allah says, “And the earth will shine with the light of its Lord.” He has thus informed us—exalted be His praise—that He has light.’ We said to them: ‘Tell us: if, as you claim, Allah is everywhere and He is Light, why is a dark house not illuminated by the light within it, given your claim that Allah is everywhere? And why does a lamp illuminate a dark house when it is brought inside?’ At that point, their lies about Allah became evident.”

Al-Khallāl said: “Yahyā n Abī Tālib narrated to us, saying: ‘We were with ‘Umar ibn Yahyā al-Wāsitī, the nephew of ‘Alī ibn ‘Āsim, and we discussed