to the Quran and the Sunnah and followed what had been sent down to them from their Lord. This means examining the matter: whatever we find the Lord has affirmed for Himself in His Book, we affirm; and whatever we find He has denied of Himself, we deny. Every term found in the Quran and the Sunnah in an affirmative statement is affirmed, and every term found in a negative statement is negated.

As for terms that occur neither in the Quran and the Sunnah nor in the words of the Companions, those who followed them in righteousness, or the other imams of the Muslims—whether in affirmation or negation—and over which people have disputed, these terms are neither affirmed nor denied until their meanings have been investigated. If their meanings belong to what the Lord has affirmed for Himself, they are affirmed; and if they belong to what the Lord has denied of Himself, they are denied.

If we find that a term is used to affirm both truth and falsehood, or to deny both truth and falsehood, or that it is ambiguous and admits both true and false meanings, with its user intending only some of them, yet its unqualified use misleads people or conveys to them both what he intended and what he did not intend, then such terms must not be affirmed or denied without qualification. Examples include the terms “substance,” “body,” “occupying space,” “direction,” and other expressions of this kind. Rarely does anyone use them in affirmation or negation without introducing falsehood into them, even if he intends something true.

The early generations and the imams disapproved of this newly introduced discourse because it includes falsehood, lies, and speaking about Allah without knowledge. Ahmad likewise stated in his refutation of the Jahmiyyah that they fabricate lies about Allah in what they deny of Him and speak about Him without knowledge. And all