and divine transcendence is one of the ways in which you have followed the Mu‘tazilah, who deny the divine attributes. They have interpreted monotheism in a manner unsupported by the Book and the Sunnah and never stated by any of the early generations of this community or its imams, as will be discussed, Allah Most High willing. They claim that anyone who affirms the attributes is not a monotheist, because, in their view, the One is that in which no distinction whatsoever between one thing and another can be conceived, whereas the existence of attributes entails multiplicity. What they describe as one applies only to something nonexistent whose existence is impossible, as will be explained.

It is well known that the monotheism with which Allah sent His Messenger and which He revealed in His Book, and the affirmation of His transcendence with which Allah sent His Messenger and which He revealed in His Book, are what the Book, the Sunnah, and scholarly consensus indicate. This includes worshipping Allah alone, without any partner. Whoever worships another besides Him is a polytheist, not a monotheist, even if he acknowledges that Allah is the Creator of everything. As Allah Most High says:

“Most of them do not believe in Allah without associating others with Him. (106)”
[Yūsuf: 106]

And He Most High says:

“If you asked them who created the heavens and the earth, they would surely say, ‘Allah.’”
[Luqmān: 25]

And He Most High says:

“Say, ‘To whom belong the earth and whoever is in it, if you know?’ (84) They will say, ‘To Allah.’ Say, ‘Then will you not take heed?’ (85)”
[al-Mu’minūn: 84–85]

And He Most High says:

“Your God is one God.”
[al-Baqarah: 163]

And He Most High says:

“Allah has said, ‘Do not take two gods. He is only one God.’”
[al-Nahl: 51]

There are many other verses like these.

As for interpreting monotheism in a way that entails denying the attributes or denying His being above the Throne—indeed, in a way that entails denying something even broader than that—this is something