The Devils Deception by Imam Ibn AL-Jawzi

Chapter Five: Devil's Deception in Matters of Creed (al- 'aqd'id) and Religion
gument and debate when Sophists have not admitted to the reality
of anything, or to the confirmation of anything. So how could you
talk to someone who says: I am not sure whether or not you are
talking to me? How could you debate with someone who claims
that he is not sure whether he exists or not? And how could you
debate someone who believes that talking is the same as being silent
with respect to proving an argument? And that truth is of the same
status are falsehood?
Only those who admit to something are worthy of debating. That
to which they confess is used to prove that which they deny. As for
those who confess to nothing, debating with them is worthless."
Abu'l-Wafa' Ibn 'Aqil attempted to refute this argument (of al­
Nubakhtt) saying: 'This argument is fruitless:' We should never give
up on treating those Sophists, for they have been afflicted with nothing
more than a case of compulsive disorder, from which we must
not give up on treating them. They are individuals whose attitudes
made them go out of control. Our example and their example is
that of a man who had a son who was cross-eyed in one of his eyes,
so he sees two moons in the sky and therefore, has no doubt that
there are two moons in the sky. His father told him: there is only one
moon, and the problem is with your eyes, cover your defective eye
and look at the sky again. When the son did so, he saw only one
moon. Then the father asked him to cover his healthy eye. He did
and saw two moons. Hence, he believed that what his father told
him was true.
92) MuJ:iammad Ibn 'Isa al-Naqqam said: 'A son of SaliJ:i Ibn
'Abdu'l-Quddus died, so Abu'l-Hudhayl and al-Naqqam went
to visit him.' They found him burning from sorrow. So Abu'l­
Hudhayl told SaliJ:i: I see no reason for your sorrow. You believe
that people and plants are the same. Salil responded: I
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