The changes were of various length and nature...

The changes were of various length and nature: in some instances, words, phrases and sentences were changed or added to further explain the problem;[^1] in some cases, the rulings have changed;[^2] and in three cases, the items were deleted completely.[^3] Moreover, in some instances I had asked for further elaboration that was kindly provided by the Committee.[^4] I have also taken the liberty of changing the placement of certain rulings so that similar issues are found in the same section.

For the same reason, in Part Two, I have switched the sequence of two chapters: Chapter 8 ("Youths' Issues") and Chapter 9 ("Women's Issues) since women's issues are much closer to issues of Chapter 7 on "Marriage". Interestingly this is the order that the author himself has listed pages 31 and 136 of the Arabic but has somehow changed it in the final printing.

I have written some footnotes to clarify the meaning and have also added a short list of "Frequently Used Terms" at the beginning of each chapter. I pray to Almighty Allah to accept this work as a humble attempt in simplifying His laws for the Muslims in non-Muslim societies, and may He reward the author and grant long life to the Ayatullah as-Sistani on whose expert opinion this book is based.

Toronto Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi Shawwal 1419 / February 1999 [^1]: See for example items 16m 20, 23, 29-30 on p. 37-39; item 11, p. 56; item 96, p. 100; item 178, p. 149; item 301, p. 203; item 383, p. 251. All page numbers in this note refer to the first Arabic edition. [^2]: See, for example, item 114 on p. 110 on sighting of the new moon. [^3]: See item 218 (p. 168), item 285 (p. 191), and item 269 (p. 187) in the first edition.

[^4]: See item 115 in this translation on the criterion of following the moon sighted in a city west of your own city. Previous…