(1) The author opens this treatise with the basmala—Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful)—following the pattern set by the Book of Allah, for it is the first phrase that meets the reader’s eye in the mushaf and appears before every surah. Beginning letters, books and treatises with the basmala thus imitates the Quran, and the Prophet, peace be upon him, likewise placed it at the head of his letters to governors, rulers and peoples across the earth when inviting them to Islam. He would also commence his spoken addresses with the basmala, demonstrating that opening with it is a prophetic sunnah. The same practice is found in the letter of Sulayman to Bilqis, queen of Sheba, which the Quran quotes: “It is from Sulayman, and it is: Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim: ‘Do not exalt yourselves above me, but come to me in submission.’” (Surah al-Naml 27:29-31).