A Gift for An-Nadwah — Page ix
PUBLISHERS' NOTE The words in the text in normal brackets () and in be- tween the long dashes-are the words of the Promised Messiahas and if any explanatory words or phrases are added by the translator for the purpose of clarification, they are put in square brackets [ ]. The name of Muhammadsa, the Holy Prophet of Islam, has been followed by the symbol sa, which is an abbreviation for the salutation Şallallahu 'Alaihi Wasallam (may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The names of other Proph- ets and Messengers are followed by the symbol as, an abbre- viation for 'Alaihissalām (on whom be peace). The actual salutations have not generally been set out in full, but they should nevertheless, be understood as being repeated in full in each case. The symbol ra is used with the name of the companions of the Holy Prophetsa and those of the Promised Messiahas. It stands for Radi Allahu 'an- hu/'anha/'anhum (May Allah be pleased with him/with her/with them). rh stands for Rahimahullāhu Taʻālā (may Allah have mercy on him). at stands for Ayyadahullāhu Taʻālā (May Allah, the Mighty help him). 1 In transliterating Arabic words we have followed the fol- lowing system adopted by the Royal Asiatic Society. ث ح خ at the beginning of a word, pronounced as a, i, u preceded by a very slight aspiration, like h in the English word 'honour'. th, pronounced like th in the English word 'thing'. h, a guttural aspirate, stronger than h. kh, pronounced like the Scotch ch in 'loch'. ix