This work is a masterful analysis of the topic of pledging spiritual allegiance [bay‘ah] to a spiritual guide or mentor. Whilst oft misunderstood and misrepresented in our times, the roots of this practice undeniably spring from the Prophetic era. Bringing together in one work countless citations from the Qur’an and sunnah as well as the early and latter day scholars of the Muslim nation, the Indian scholar-sage of the twelfth hijri century, Imam Ahmad Rida presents a robust argument for the preservation of this beneficial practice in modern times whilst at the same time highlighting various damaging trends that have sullied it in recent times.

Topics covered include the categories of salvation and how it is attained, types of spiritual guides, types of spiritual allegiances and much more. Translated into English by Yusuf Murray with a beneficial foreword by Shaykh Ismaeel de Silva, the combination of scholarly erudition, spiritual insight and relevant citations in this work combine to grant the reader a unique glimpse into ‘The Reality of Spiritual Allegiance’.