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All praise belongs to Allah alone and peace be upon His chosen servants.

I will now proceed:

I recently came across an announcement and a letter addressed to me by As-Sayyid ‘Abdur Razzaq al-Qadiri al-Baghdadi from Hyderabad Deccan. Upon reading the announcement, I discovered it to be from a fellow believer who was attempting to intimidate me, as if he were a powerful king seeking to strike fear in an apostate, disbeliever, or transgressor. He has unsheathed his sword in an attempt to kill me—attacking aggressively, fuming with rage, bursting with fury, glaring with anger.

He appears to me like someone who is unaware of the means to acquire true knowledge and one who has not yet grasped the art of investigating and distinguishing the truth. He accuses me of disbelief and maligns me and counts me among those who have disbelieved or apostatized. He desires to be the foremost of those who curse me and attempt to annihilate me. Moreover, he has caused conflict and doubt to arise in the hearts of some, resulting in them falling prey to the machinations of the Whisperer.

Therefore, it occurred to me that in this treatise I should write that which will benefit him and the Arabs of the two Holy Cities, and that which will delight the beholders. First, I shall copy out his announcement and letter, after which I shall reply to it in the best manner.

Dear reader, examine it with a favourable disposition; may Allah increase you in righteousness and integrity. Rejoice for that which has been bestowed upon you! May it prove to be a blessing for you. Indeed, my success comes from Allah alone, the Helper and the Ultimate Support.