[Introduction to the Critical Edition]
All praise belongs to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and ask His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils within ourselves and from the evil consequences of our deeds. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide, and whomever He allows to stray, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone, without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

To proceed:
Allah—glorified and exalted be He—has favored this community and distinguished it over all other nations with many unique merits granted to no one else. Among these favors is that He Himself guaranteed the preservation of this religion against the tampering of those who would corrupt it. The Almighty said:

“Indeed, it is We who have sent down the Reminder, and indeed, We will surely preserve it.” (1)

Accordingly, Allah revealed this religion to His trustworthy Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—complete and perfected; falsehood can approach it neither from before it nor from behind it.

The noble Companions then put it into practice. Nothing stirred their sound hearts more than the desire to know this religion and to receive it from their noble Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—so they lived in the best of times and the most splendid of circumstances.

After the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—passed away, those noble Companions shouldered the weight of this trust and conveyed it.