from Him that does not sleep, and encompassed it with a pillar from Him that cannot be harmed. Its pillars do not weaken over days, nor do its landmarks perish over the length of ages. Its follower does not stray from the straight highway, (1) nor does its companion wander from the paths of guidance. Whoever follows it attains triumph and guidance, and whoever deviates from it strays and goes astray. It is their sanctuary to which they resort during disagreement, their stronghold in which they seek refuge during afflictions, (2) their fortress by which they fortify themselves against the whisperings of the devil, the wisdom of their Lord by which they judge, the decisive verdict between them to which they yield and from whose satisfaction they proceed, and His rope by holding fast to which they protect themselves from destruction.

O Allah, grant us success in arriving at the correct word regarding its decisive (muḥkam) and ambiguous (mutashābih), its lawful (ḥalāl) and prohibited (ḥarām), its general (ʿāmm) and specific (khāṣṣ), its concise (mujmal) and explained (mufassar), its abrogating (nāsikh) and abrogated (mansūkh), its apparent (ẓāhir) and hidden (bāṭin), and the interpretation (taʾwīl) of its verse(s) and the explanation of its difficult passages. Inspire us to hold fast to it, to adhere firmly to its decisive verses, and to remain steadfast in submission to its ambiguous verses. Enable us to be thankful for what You have blessed us with of its preservation and the knowledge of its limits. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication, Ever Near, answering prayers. And may Allah send blessings upon Muhammad, the Prophet, and his family, and grant them peace.

Know, O servants of Allah—may Allah have mercy upon you—that the most deserving thing to which attention should be devoted in knowledge, and the ultimate aim reached in understanding, is that in whose knowledge lies Allah's pleasure, and which leads the scholar thereof to the path of rectitude. The most comprehensive source for its seeker is the Book of Allah, wherein there is no doubt, and His revelation wherein there is no uncertainty. Its recited reader earns abundant treasure and sublime reward—falsehood cannot approach it from before it or from behind it; it is a revelation from One Wise and Praiseworthy (3).

And we—in explaining its interpretation (taʾwīl) and clarifying its meanings—shall compose, if Allah wills, a book that comprehends everything people need of its knowledge, comprehensive, and replacing all other books