that this abridged epistle is in fact drawn from Shaykh al-Islam’s own words, for his distinctive tone and his habit of lengthy excursus in the passages reproduced here mirror exactly the style and digressions found throughout his other works.

4 – Shaykh Sulaymān al-Ṣanīʿ (may Allah have mercy on him) was regarded as one of the foremost experts on the writings of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah. After reading the treatise he did not hesitate to ascribe it to Ibn Taymiyyah; he even copied it with his own hand and, on the flyleaf, added a reference indicating that this copy is an abridgement of the Shaykh’s original text.

5 – Within this epitome are several internal cross-references in which Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) states that he has discussed a given point in detail elsewhere in his corpus. One such example is the abridger’s citation of the Shaykh’s words: “We have explained—elsewhere—that a person’s religion is judged by his own conduct, not by that of his ancestors.” Shaykh al-Islam spoke truly, for he has treated this issue at length