The author then states that whoever wishes to set out on this journey must keep company with “the dead who are alive in the world,” for traveling in their company will carry him to his destination. By contrast, he must beware of keeping company with “the living who, among people, are dead,” for they will block his path. He should stand firmly at the Almighty’s command: “Show forgiveness, enjoin what is right, and turn away from the ignorant” (Al-Aʿraf 7:199), pondering the verse’s call to courteous dealing with people, to discharging Allah’s rights regarding them, and to remaining safe from their harm.

Scattered throughout the epistle are inquiries into various Qur’anic verses and hadiths, clarifications of the reality of this migration, its requirements and effects, and the ways people divide in relation to it. These discussions entice the reader to benefit from them and to walk the straight path on his journey to Allah—the supreme goal of every penitent servant.

Printings of this epistle
Because of the epistle’s importance and the noble meanings it contains, it has been published several times under different titles. The first bore the title “The Tabuki Epistle,” reviewed and supervised by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Zahir Abu al-Samh, imam and preacher of the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, and was issued by the Salafi Press in Mecca in 1347 AH. It was also printed under the titles “Provision of the Emigrant to His Lord” and “The Gift of the Beloveds in Interpreting the Almighty’s words: ‘Help one another in righteousness and piety, and do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in punishment’ (Al-Ma’idah 5:2).” Subsequent editions relied on the first printing without consulting the manuscript sources, so slips, distortions, and omissions multiplied until the text became obscure.