The translators’ primary objective was to adhere to the original text of the Promised Messiah(as) as strictly as possible. Contemporary nineteenth century lexicons were utilized to precisely define Urdu, Arabic, and Persian words and phrases. To preserve the author’s writing style, and particularly his points of emphasis, where possible we have retained his original underlined and bold text styling. However, to facilitate readability for an English speaking audience, punctuation and pauses were inserted as considered necessary, and lengthy paragraphs and sentences were broken into smaller ones. Grammatical rules, literary conventions, and presentation were generally applied in conformity to the Oxford Guide to Style.
Please note that, in the translation that follows, words given in parentheses ( ) are the words of the Promised Messiah(as). If any explanatory words or phrases are added by the translators for the purpose of clarification, they are put in square brackets [ ]. Footnotes given by the publisher are marked ‘[Publisher]’.
The Promised Messiah(as) has reproduced numerous pieces of correspondence by others in this book. To ensure that readers can easily distinguish between the Promised Messiah’s(as) words and these documents, we have inserted grey sidebars and side notes alongside the latter, and in some cases, separated out the text or footnote.
References to the Holy Quran contain the name of the surah [i.e. chapter] followed by a chapter:verse citation, e.g. Surah al-Jumu‘ah, 62:4, and count Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim [‘In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful’] as the first verse in every chapter that begins with it. Throughout the book, the Promised Messiah(as) cites his earlier works, such as Barahin-e-Ahmadiyya. In those places, we have given the corresponding page number to the 2008 edition of Ruhani Khaza’in, as the first editions are rare and not easily accessible. Where an English translation of such a book has already been published, we have also tried to give its citation. Where we have included verses from the Bible, all references are taken from the King James Version (KJV).
The following abbreviations have been used:
(sa) sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam, meaning ‘may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him’, is written after the name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad(sa).
(as) ‘alaihis-salam, meaning ‘may peace be on him’, is written after the names of Prophets other than the Holy Prophet Muhammad(sa).
(ra) radiyallahu ‘anhu/‘anha/‘anhum, meaning ‘may Allah be pleased with him/her/them’, is written after the names of the Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad(sa) or of the Promised Messiah(as).
(rta) rahmatullahi ‘alaihi/‘alaiha/‘alaihim, meaning ‘may Allah shower His mercy upon him/her/them’, is written after the names of those deceased, pious Muslims who are not Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad(sa) or of the Promised Messiah(as).
(aba) ayyadahullahu Ta‘ala binasrihil-‘Aziz, meaning ‘may Allah the Almighty help him with His powerful support’, is written after the name of the present head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hadrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad(aba), Khalifatul- Masih V.
Readers are urged to recite the full salutations when reading the book.
In general, we have adopted the system established by the Royal Asiatic Society for our transliteration.