So they fetched a saw and set it on the very parting of his hair—right down the middle of his body. They began with the head, then the neck, then the back, until he was split into two pieces, one half falling here and the other there. Yet even that did not turn him away from his religion. He refused to recant and was content to suffer that gruesome death rather than abandon his faith—what Allah wills comes to pass!

After that they brought the blind man who had once sat with the king, who had believed in Allah and disbelieved in the king. He too was ordered to renounce his faith, and he likewise refused. They treated him exactly as they had treated the monk, but it did not shake him from his religion. This shows that a person must be steadfast.

The question, however, is whether one is required to endure death, or whether it is allowed to utter a word of disbelief to ward off coercion while the heart remains at peace with faith, though he may, if he wishes, stand firm and refuse even if it leads to his death. This applies when the matter concerns the individual alone—for example, he is told, “Prostrate to the idol.” If he refuses and is killed, or if he prostrates under duress and is spared, the choice is his.

But if the matter concerns the religion itself—meaning that his act of disbelief would harm the faith—then he must remain patient even if he is killed, as in fighting in the path of Allah. The combatant presses on though he may be slain, because he wants Allah’s word to be supreme. Likewise, if he is an imam for the people and is forced to utter words of disbelief, it is not permissible for him to do so, especially in times of tribulation; rather, he must be steadfast even if he is killed.

The same occurred with Imam Ahmad ibn Ḥanbal—may Allah have mercy on him—when he was tested