Thus, among the differing views people have expressed concerning the explanation and interpretation of the Quran, no one may accept one view rather than another without knowledge, nor reject any of them without fully comprehending it. This is possible only if he knows the true meaning intended by the verse, thereby knowing that whatever contradicts it is false, and so rejecting the falsehood he fully comprehends. But if he does not know its meaning and does not fully comprehend any of these views, he may not reject any of them, even though some of these contradictory views are certainly false. On that basis, someone who denies the Quran would be no different from someone who rejects contradictory views, and someone who denies the truth would be no different from someone who rejects falsehood. The falsity of a necessary consequence demonstrates the falsity of the premise that entails it.

Moreover, if he proceeds on his belief that only Allah knows the meanings of verses conveying information, he must reject the claims of everyone who cites such a Quranic verse as evidence for any matter concerning belief in Allah and the Last Day, as well as everyone who explains such verses. The same consequence necessarily follows regarding the hadiths of the Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.

If he says, “The ambiguous passages comprise only some of those conveying information,” he must provide a clear distinction between Quranic verses whose meanings can be known and those whose meanings cannot be known—not by an angel brought near to Allah, nor a prophet sent by Him, nor any of the Companions, nor anyone else. Yet it is well known that no one can provide a dividing criterion between passages whose meanings some people can know and those whose meanings no one can know. Whatever criterion he might propose would prove untenable. It is therefore clear that the ambiguous passages are not those