is not the method of the prophets and their followers; rather, they regard it as forbidden, as we shall report from him. More than one of his earlier and later followers stated the same. Even Abū 'Abd Allāh al-Rāzī explained that knowledge of Allah Most High is not confined to this method attributed to the Ash'arīs. He also explained Abū al-Ma'ālī’s error in saying:

“Know that the first obligation upon a sane adult is to resolve to undertake sound rational inquiry leading to knowledge that the world had a beginning.”

He further explained that the world can be known to have had a beginning through revelation. Much less, then, can it be maintained that the only way to establish the existence of the Creator is to know, through the method he mentioned, that the world had a beginning, and that one must resolve to pursue this method of inquiry. Likewise, al-Ghazālī before him explained that knowledge of Allah can be attained without this method.