the verbal noun is impossible. This would be like saying: “One who prays without prayer, one who fasts without fasting, or one who speaks without speech.”

Thus, when it is said, “There can be no speaker except through speech (1), nor anyone who prays except through prayer,” the intended meaning is not that there are two things here (2)—the first being prayer and the second a state caused by prayer. Rather, one who prays must necessarily have prayer.

They rejected the statement of those who negate the attributes, who say: “He is Living but has no life, Knowing but has no knowledge, and Powerful but has no power.”

Therefore, if someone says, “He is Living, Knowing, and Powerful by virtue of His essence,” intending thereby that His essence necessarily entails His life, knowledge, and power and that He does not depend in this respect upon anything other than Himself, then this is the position of those who affirm the attributes. (3 If, however, he intends thereby that His essence is bare, possessing neither life, knowledge, nor power, then this is the position 3) (3) that is objectionable among (4) the positions of those who negate the attributes.

The Mu‘tazilah had already (5) preceded this man in making this statement, and I found this very wording in the writings of Abū al-Husayn (6) al-Basrī. Nevertheless, whoever carefully considers the writings of Abū al-Husayn (7) and others like him will find that he is compelled to affirm the attributes and that he cannot draw any substantive distinction between his position and that of those who affirm them. For he affirms His being Living, His being Knowing, and His being Powerful; he does not regard this as identical to that, nor that as identical to this, nor these things