and exalted is He—what, then, is the method prescribed by revelation, to which the Noble Book draws attention and which the Companions—may Allah be pleased with them—adopted?” We reply: “A survey of the Noble Book shows that the methods to which it draws attention, and which it invites everyone to follow, fall into two categories. The first consists in recognizing the care bestowed upon man and the creation of all existing things for his sake. Let us call this the argument from providence. The second method proceeds from the evident origination of the substances of existing things, such as the origination of life in inanimate matter, sensory perception, and intellect. Let us call this the argument from origination.” He then went on to explain each of the two methods.

I say: As for the Muʿtazilites, their method is the method based on accidents. They are its exponents and the group best known for it. Those Ashʿarites who adopted it learned it from them. Methods such as this, and their implications, frequently drew condemnation from