and not exaggerate and go to excess. For to do so is to decry divine power. It is to be dissatisfied with the perfection and beauty in creation, which caused al-Ghazali to declare: "There could be nothing better in the sphere of contingency than what exists, [^14] and to belittle them.

[^14]:al-Ghazālī, Iḥyā' 'Ulūm al-Dīn (Cairo: 1356/1937), iv, 2509. In this work, the phrase is "There could be nothing more beautiful, perfect, or complete in the sphere of contingency than what is." The much-quoted aphorism that appears in the text above is in fact a composite of variations of the phrase in others of al-Ghazali's works.

Gentle reader! Sometimes comparisons (temsil) serve as proofs (bürhan). See! Just as the value and properties of diamonds, gold, silver, lead, iron, and so on are all different; so the value of the aims of religion and their proofs are all different. If the place of one is the imagination, the place of another is the conscience, and of yet another the inner heart. If when engaged in commerce someone gives a diamond or a piece of gold instead of a fish-scale or ten para, he will be judged incompetent and denied right of disposal; or if the reverse is the case, he will rightly be sent packing. Similarly, those, who lacking discernment, fail to distinguish between the truths of religion and do not accord to each the right and respect it deserves; who do not recognise the stamp of the Shari'a on each of its ordinances, and even arrest the motion of the components of that vast factory, each on its own axis — they resemble an apprentice who sees a tiny cogwheel in a huge, smoothly-running machine and because it appears incongruous to his superficial view, is deceived by his arrogance although he has no knowledge of engineering, and attempts to alter its fine-tuning in order to correct it, so overturns the order of the factory and ruins it.

To Conclude: Each of the Shari'a's ordinances bears the Lawgiver's stamp of approval. The stamp has to be read. An ordinance is in need of nothing to give it value over and above the stamp. And it stands in no need whatsoever of the embellishments or interference of the verbose exaggerations of those addicted to excess. Take note! How ugly in the view of truth are those exaggerators when