the Messenger. As for someone who prescribes a religion that Allah has not authorized, it is clear that the foundations which necessarily entail it cannot have been transmitted from the Prophet. Such a religion is false, and whatever necessarily entails falsehood is itself false, just as whatever necessarily follows from truth is true.

This distinction also clarifies what the early generations and the imams meant when they condemned speculative theology and its practitioners: their condemnation applies to those who reason with unsound proofs or argue in support of false doctrines. But whoever speaks the truth that Allah has authorized, both in his conclusions and in his evidence, belongs among the people of knowledge and faith.

“Allah speaks the truth, and He guides to the right way.”

Addressing people who use a particular terminology in their own terminology and language is not objectionable—provided there is a need for it and the meanings conveyed are sound. This is like addressing non-Arabs, such as the Romans, Persians, and Turks, in their own languages and customary usage: doing so is permissible and commendable when needed. The imams disapproved of it only when there was no need for it.

Thus the Prophet said to Umm Khālid, daughter of Khālid ibn Saʿīd ibn al-ʿĀs—a young girl born in Abyssinia because her father was among those who had emigrated there:

“O Umm Khālid, this is sanā.”

Sanā means “beautiful” in the language of Abyssinia; he used it because she spoke that language. Likewise, the Quran and hadith are translated for those who need translation in order to understand them. A Muslim may also read whatever he needs from the books and writings of other nations in their own languages and translate them into Arabic. Similarly, the Prophet instructed Zayd ibn Thābit to learn the Jews’ written language so that he could read and write for him in it, since he did not trust the Jews in this matter.