Taymiyyah—had he been afforded the chance to compose an independent volume on the Prophet’s biography ﷺ—would have fashioned a marvelous, peerless work, among the most comprehensive and reliable ever written on the subject.

Perhaps this is what impelled the eminent Ibn al-Qayyim to summarize the bulk of its statements at the beginning of his magnificent book Zad al-Maʿad, elaborate upon them, and then proceed in the same manner his teacher had adopted when discussing the Prophet’s life and guidance ﷺ.

This graceful principle dealing with the Prophet’s clothing, weaponry, and mounts—despite its brevity—collects a wealth of foundational juristic topics needed in the chapters of attire and food, a field that has been lost between excess and neglect.

The Prophet ﷺ said, “Eat, drink, and give charity without arrogance or extravagance, for Allah loves to see the effect of His blessing upon His servants.” (1)

As for confirming the book’s attribution to the author: it was written during his lifetime, may Allah have mercy on him. Anyone who looks at the manuscript’s title page will be certain of this, for the copyist wrote: “A reply to a legal query regarding the Prophet’s dress ﷺ by the learned, practicing Imām, Shaykh Taqi al-Din Abū al-ʿAbbās Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah al-Harrānī—may Allah grant the Muslims continued benefit through his life.”