al-Ashbal al-Zuhayri in his annotation on it. He cited several corroborating reports for it, declaring one of them authentic, from the hadith of Abu Jahm; it is documented in al-Rawd through the narration of Ahmad and others.

A point of benefit: Ibn ʿAbd al-Barr said after the hadith:

“The meaning is that two people dispute over a verse: one of them denies and rejects it, or comes to doubt it. That is the disputation which constitutes disbelief.

“As for disagreement over the rulings and meanings of the Quran, the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, differed over much of that. This makes clear to you that the disputation which constitutes disbelief is denial and doubt, as Allah, Exalted is He, says: ‘Those who disbelieve will not cease to be in doubt concerning it’ [al-Hajj 22:55]. Contentious disputation and quarrelling are both impermissible, and both are universally condemned. The early generations, may Allah have mercy on them, forbade disputation concerning Allah, mighty and majestic, with regard to His attributes and names.

“As for jurisprudence, they unanimously agreed upon debate and scholarly discussion concerning it, because it is a field of knowledge in which subsidiary matters must be referred back to foundational principles, due to the need for this. Beliefs are not so, for Allah, mighty and majestic, is described only as He has described Himself, as His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, has described Him, or as the Muslim community has reached consensus concerning. There is nothing comparable to Him such that He could be apprehended by analogy or profound speculation. We have been forbidden to contemplate Allah and commanded to contemplate His creation, which points to Him (1).”

3448 — “Whoever learns archery and then abandons it is not one of us, or he has disobeyed.”

Recorded by Muslim (6/52), Abu ʿAwanah (5/102–103), al-Bayhaqi in al-Sunan (10/13), al-Ruwayani in his Musnad (1/163/195), and al-Tabarani in al-Muʿjam