At Mashad airport...

At Mashad airport, I suggested to him that it would be better to go first to Ayatullah Milani's house to pay our respects to him; because then we could stay, up to the last possible moment, in devotion at the holy shrine of the Imam, without any extraneous thought and then proceed to the airport direct from there.

Soon after our arrival at Ayatullah Milani's place, his grandson, Hujjatul-Islam Fazil Milani brought an American brother to me who wanted to enter the fold of true Islam; and requested me to teach the American youth important matters of Shi'ism, so that when he recited Kalimah, he would understand what was involved in it and what responsibilities he was taking upon himself. Hard-pressed though I was for time, I spent more than one and half hour with the young man and he became Shi'a.

Understandably, I had to select only very essential Matters to teach him in that short time; and that experience again drew my attention to the six important things mentioned by late Shaykh Ja'far Shushtari. Since then many brothers engaged in tabligh work have asked for a small booklet giving a list of what they should teach a new convert when he decides to become a Muslim.

Hopefully the first three chapters of this booklet will serve as a guide to those parents whose children are reaching the age of majority, as well as to those missionaries who bring someone into the fold of true Islam. It would show them the minimum that their wards should believe in and act upon the moment they become baligh or are converted. It is not a literal translation. Many fine details have been omitted and the arrangement of subjects has been drastically changed.

Also it appeared necessary to elaborate many ideas and add a lot of details here and there to make the topics intelligible to an english reader who is neither well-versed in Islamic theology nor familiar with its terminologies. The list of the major sins and of some Zaruriyat-e­ deen and Zaruriyat al-madh-hab have been taken from other books. As mentioned above, late Ayatullah Brojardi had written foot-notes on the original book.

While translating, I have followed his foot-notes, and, wherever necessary, have changed them to the ruling of Ayatullah Sayyid Abul-Qasim al-Khoui. This booklet was started at Mombasa on 22nd Shaban, 1405 (13th May, 1985); but what with one thing or the other, could not be completed till today, when I have been at Nakuru for about a month. As good luck would have it, my host here Haji Husain A. M.