mentioned before it; for this is denied by the Jahmī who says, “Above the heavens there is no Lord to be worshipped, nor any God to whom prayer and prostration are offered.” This is disbelief and folly. The “first” is denied by the Kullābiyyah and those who say that nothing dependent on His will subsists in Him. Among al-Ash‘arī’s followers, from the adherents of Ahmad and others, are those who identify pleasure, anger, joy, and love with will. At other times, they regard them as other eternal attributes distinct from will.

Then, after a lengthy discussion, he said:

This shows that everyone who acknowledges Allah possesses faith commensurate with that acknowledgment. Whoever has not had the proof established against him concerning what the transmitted reports convey does not become a disbeliever by denying it. This shows that the general body of those who pray are believers in Allah and His Messenger, even though their beliefs concerning the One they worship and His attributes differ. The exception is the hypocrite who professes faith with his tongue while inwardly disbelieving in the Messenger: such a person is not a believer.

Everyone who outwardly professes Islam and is not a hypocrite is a believer, possessing faith in proportion to what he has been granted of it. He is among those who will be brought out of the Fire, even if he has only an atom’s weight of faith in his heart. This includes all those who disagree concerning the divine attributes and decree, despite their differing beliefs. If only those who know Allah as His Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, knows Him could enter Paradise, his community would not enter it, for they—or most of them—are incapable of attaining such knowledge. Rather, they will enter Paradise, and their ranks will differ according to their faith and knowledge.