to understand or conceive, for minds differ in their capacities. In the greatness of the Lord Most High, His dominion, His signs, and His creation, there are things that people—or many of them—cannot see in this world, hear the sound of, or conceive. Suffice it to recall that Moses, peace be upon him, despite his exalted standing, fell unconscious when his Lord manifested Himself to the mountain and made it crumble. When he recovered, he said:

“Glory be to You! I repent to You, and I am the first of the believers.” (143) [al-A‘rāf 143]

Yet many people judge certain things to be impossible on rational grounds when they are not, just as they judge other things possible or necessary when they are not so. Thus, most schools, on the strength of rational arguments, deem necessary or possible what others declare impossible, with both sides claiming that reason establishes their position. Consequently, some people suppose that clear rational truths contradict what the Quran and authentic hadith affirm concerning the meanings of Allah’s names and attributes. This is the claim of the Jahmīs, who deny the divine attributes, and those who share some of their views. Those who deny Allah’s being above His creation and similar matters belong to this category. And al-Rāzī, in this book, has