LessonsDivine Speech: Eternal Attribute, Inner Speech and Its RelationsQuiz

Inner speech (kalām nafsī): God's eternal attribute, subsisting in the divine essence and not composed of letters or sounds.
Articulated speech (kalām lafẓī): the wording and oral or written expression signifying it; human recitation and writing occur in time.
Relations of speech: the diverse functions of command, prohibition, report, and others, which do not negate the unity of the attribute.

This distinction also matters when the term Qur'an is used for eternal divine speech and for its recited or written expression. Before affirming or denying “createdness,” one must identify whether the issue is the divine attribute, textual wording, a person's recitation, or writing.

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The resulting distinction and Qur’anic expression

Divine Speech: Eternal Attribute, Inner Speech and Its Relations

Inner speech (kalām nafsī): God's eternal attribute, subsisting in the divine essence and not composed of letters or sounds.
Articulated speech (kalām lafẓī): the wording and oral or written expression signifying it; human recitation and writing occur in time.
Relations of speech: the diverse functions of command, prohibition, report, and others, which do not negate the unity of the attribute.

This distinction also matters when the term Qur'an is used for eternal divine speech and for its recited or written expression. Before affirming or denying “createdness,” one must identify whether the issue is the divine attribute, textual wording, a person's recitation, or writing.