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When discussing theological topics in Islam, theorizing about Allah is constrained by two strictures: He is Bila Kayf (Don’t ask how) and Bila Shabah (Dissimilar to anyone).

We must keep these strictures in mind when addressing a doctrinal dispute that arose during the caliphate of Al-Ma’mun (813–833). According to Encyclopedia Britannica, he was an Abbasid caliph who ruled 200 years after Muhammad’s death and adopted Mu’tazilite rationalist theology. The Mu’tazilites urged Muslims to use their ‘aql (mind or reason) rather than naql (tradition or revelation) alone. Their purpose was to correct the notion among Muslims that the Qur’an was Uncreated.

Al-Ma’mun used force to impose his view, refusing to leave the matter to deliberation among the Imams. At the time, Imam Hanbal was a prominent and respected Imam who professed and defended the Uncreatedness of the Qur’an. For that stand, Al-Ma’mun imprisoned him, thereby precipitating the Mihnat al-Qur’an (Ordeal of the Qur’an).

According to the book, Sacred Editors:

“The Mu'tazilites had argued that the Qur'an, as God's speech, was created rather than eternal.

“In 827 CE, al-Ma'mun issued a public letter declaring the Qur'an to be created and requiring acknowledgment of this doctrine from judges and religious officials. The letter framed this requirement in terms of the caliph's duty to promote true belief and prevent the spread of theological error. Al-Ma'mun argued that those who claimed the Qur'an was uncreated were effectively asserting the existence of multiple eternal beings, thus compromising the fundamental Islamic principle of divine unity.

“Perhaps most significantly, the mihna contributed to the crystallization of distinctive approaches to religious authority that would become characteristic of Sunni Islamic culture. The elevation of hadith-based scholarship, the emphasis on scholarly consensus as a source of religious legitimacy, and the development of autonomous religious institutions all reflected responses to the challenges raised during this period.

“Understanding the mihna also reveals the contingent nature of theological development within Islamic tradition. The positions that came to be regarded as orthodox emerged not simply from abstract theological reasoning but from complex interactions between intellectual conviction, political circumstance, and social pressure. This recognition can inspire both greater appreciation for the courage and insight of earlier scholars and greater humility about the relationship between theological truth and historical development.

“The mihna came to an abrupt end in 848 CE when Caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847-861) reversed his predecessors' policies and declared the Qur'an to be uncreated. This reversal reflected both the practical failure of the mihna to achieve theological consensus and changing political circumstances that made accommodation with traditionalist scholars more advantageous than continued confrontation.”

To posit an uncreated Qur’an is nonsensical for several reasons:

First, the copy of the Qur’an I have indicates the city where each Surah (chapter) descended upon Muhammad: Al-Fatiha (The Opener) was revealed in Mecca, and Al-Baqarah (The Cow) was revealed in Medina. Both cities are in the Arabian Peninsula, a created place.

Second, Muhammad was born in 570 and died in 632. He claimed his call at 40, and his work ended when he died at 62. All of this occurred in history, long after the heavens and Earth were created.

Third, the Qur’an frequently mentions historical figures such as Adam, Abraham, Lot, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Pharaoh, Moses, Saul, David, and Solomon, as well as several prophets and the Apostles. All but one of these figures were Adam’s descendants, and Adam was a created being.

Fourth, Surah 1:5 says, “You [alone] we worship and You [alone] we ask for help.” The subject of this verse appears to be created beings, neither eternal nor singular.

Fifth and finally, there was no logical response to Al-Ma'mun’s argument that “those who claimed the Qur'an was uncreated were effectively asserting the existence of multiple eternal beings, thus compromising the fundamental Islamic principle of divine unity.”

Therefore, the “uncreatedness of the Qur’an” is illogical.