among them. The Muslims and their scholars have a greater claim to this testimony than those of earlier and later generations. Indeed, one may say to you: We do not know that these people bore witness to this oneness, for the monotheism found in the books transmitted from them amounts only to negating Allah’s attributes, as the Jahmiyyah do. It is well known that this is not the testimony that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah.

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, taught his community this monotheism, and the Quran is full of it. Yet he did not utter a single word to them implying the negation of Allah’s attributes, nor did any of the Companions, the Successors, or the leading scholars of the religion say such a thing. It is self-evident that they knew the meanings of the Quran better than we do. Even if someone claims to surpass them in philosophy, he cannot claim to surpass them in understanding the intended meaning of the Quran. They learned its wording and meaning from the Messenger, and they conveyed both to those who came after them.

Abū 'Abd al-Rahmān al-Sulamī said: “We were told by those who used to teach us the Quran—'Uthmān ibn 'Affān