Dr. Salāh al-Dīn al-Munajjid subjected this edition to a brief but severe critique in his article “Problems of the Arabic Literary Heritage,” published in the August 1980 issue of the journal ‘Ālam al-Kutub (The World of Books). He promised to devote a separate article to it, but perhaps he was unable to write it.

(6) Anwar al-Bāz’s edition: This edition was published in 1432 AH by Dār al-Wafā’ and Dār Ibn Hazm in six volumes, critically edited by Anwar al-Bāz. Its cover reads: “Critically edited in full for the first time on the basis of several manuscripts.” He relied on six manuscripts, including some that we used, such as the Rabat, al-Qarawiyyīn, al-Kattāniyya, and al-Zāhiriyya manuscripts. Overall, it is better than the al-Risāla edition in establishing the text. However, the editor did not make proper use of the manuscripts available to him: in many places, he follows the errors of the al-Risāla edition even though his manuscripts contain the correct readings. Here are some examples:

• (1/ 234): “He never made a constant practice of reciting it aloud five times each day and night.” Here he followed the al-Risāla edition, whereas the correct reading, found in most of the manuscript witnesses, is “six times.” See our edition (1/ 228).

• (1/ 245): “Rather, it is an addition by Yazīd ibn Ziyād.” The words “ibn Ziyād” do not occur in the manuscripts; they are among al-Fiqī’s additions. Moreover, they are incorrect: the correct wording is “ibn Abī Ziyād.” See our edition (1/ 247).

• (1/ 306): “Then he says ‘Allah is the Greatest’ as he rises.” The words “then he gave the concluding salutation” have been omitted after this. They are present in the manuscripts and the older editions; they were omitted only from the al-Risāla edition. See our edition (1/ 334).