My Methodology for Verifying the Book

1. I designated the manuscripts with alphabetical symbols in chronological order, beginning with the earliest.
2. I established the text in accordance with the accepted rules of modern orthography, without drawing attention to the manuscripts’ differences in such matters as the writing of hamzas, the rendering of the tāʾ as open or closed, and the like.
3. Where the manuscripts differ in the spelling or vocalization of a word, I inserted in the main text the reading that appears stronger. In choosing between variants I relied on the author’s context and on the commentaries and marginalia of scholars on the book. If these offered no clear preference, I consulted other likely arbiters—works on language, grammar, hadith terminology, biographical dictionaries, and so forth.
4. I have pointed out instances that are clearly slips or obvious misreadings in the reliable manuscripts, considering that sufficient without listing the readings found in the remaining copies.
5. I omitted mention of the evident errors found only in manuscripts (A) and (Ṭ) because of the abundance of mistakes introduced by their copyists.
6. If one of the manuscripts contains a word that is unclear and potentially erroneous—