whereupon he said (1):
“Among them is a group called the Mālikiyya, who affiliate themselves with a man called Mālik ibn Anas; and among them is a group called the Shāfiʿiyya, who affiliate themselves with a man called al-Shāfiʿī.”
Their specious argument is that all the renowned imams affirm the attributes of Allah Most High, declare that the Quran is the speech of Allah and is not created, and affirm that Allah will be seen in the Hereafter.
This is the position of the Companions and those who followed them with excellence, including members of the Prophet’s Household and others. It is also the position of the imams whose authority is followed, such as Mālik ibn Anas, al-Thawrī, al-Layth ibn Saʿd, al-Awzāʿī, Abū Hanīfa (and al-Shāfiʿī) (2), Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishāq, Dāwūd, Muhammad ibn Khuzayma, Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazī (3), and Abū Bakr