to Africa) and al-Fatāwā.
In this undertaking we have gathered every book of the Shaykh that we were able to locate; not a single book or treatise of his has been left out. We prepared a critical edition of those for which we could find any dependable manuscript source, and we revised the remainder, until the collection was completed in 19 volumes.
From the start of the project until it stood on its own feet, the work took roughly three years, all while we were engaged in other scholarly ventures. This is one of the fruits of the cooperation shown by everyone who participated in the endeavor. A full explanation will appear under “The Work Plan for this Project.”
We would like to note the following points:
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The Islamic Fiqh Academy in Jeddah, operating under the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, is pleased to include the publication of the works of the eminent scholar al-Shanqīṭī among its releases, for they contain the knowledge and scholarly rigor that accord with the aims for which the Academy was founded.
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Among Allah’s favors is the agreement of Shaykh Sulaymān ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz al-Rājihī to finance this project through his charitable foundation—may Allah reward him with goodness.
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For the time being we have sufficed with a concise biography of our Shaykh in the preface to the project, until circumstances allow the preparation of a full, comprehensive biography befitting his stature—may Allah have mercy on him.
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Following this preface is a detailed account of the stages of the work in