Chapter on al-Bida’

5. It is narrated from Ahmad ibn Mahran from ‘Abdal ‘Azim ibn ‘Abdallah al-Hassani from Ali ibn Asbat from Khalaf ibn Hammad from ibn Maskan from Malik al-Juhanni who has said the following. “I asked Imam abu ‘Abdallah عليه السلام about the words of Allah “Does he not remember that We created him when he did not exist?” (19:67) The Imam عليه السلام said, “It means that he did not exist in a definit or in the form of a being.” I asked the Imam about the words of Allah, “There was certainly a time when there was no mention of the human being” (76:1) The Imam said, “ It was definit but not mentioned.”