nor did what befell Muhammad ibn Ismaʿil al-Bukhari take place—his banishment and expulsion from his homeland—except because of interpretation; nor were the caliphs and kings of Islam who were slain put to death for anything other than interpretation; nor did what befell Shaykh al-Islam ʿAbd Allah Abū (1) Ismaʿil al-Ansari occur, with his execution being sought on more than twenty occasions, except because of interpretation; nor did the leading scholars of Sunnah and hadith suffer what they suffered (2)—being imprisoned, driven from place to place, and expelled from their lands—save on the pretext of interpretation; nor was Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah subjected by his opponents to repeated imprisonment (3), and his death demanded more than twenty times, for any reason other than interpretation.

So may Allah combat false interpretation (4) and its partisans, and restore to His religion, His Book, His Messenger, and His supporters the rights they deserve. How many of Islam’s fortresses have they razed, how many of its pillars have they demolished, how many of its foundations have they uprooted! Indeed, they have left it thinner than a threadbare garment that the years and the buffeting winds have relentlessly worn away.

Were we to expand this single chapter and fully recount what interpretation has inflicted upon religions, revealed laws, and the very fabric of the world, it would fill several volumes. What we have offered is but a hint, sufficient for the discerning to realize what lies beyond it. And with Allah lies all success.