The compiler of this book, may Allah be pleased with him, said: I asked Abu Bishr, the Linguist, in the City of Peace about the meaning of the Imam, to which he said: The Imam in the language of the Arabs is the one who goes forward people; the Imam is the plumb, that is the plumbing line, by which a building is built; the Imam is the gold that is placed in the house of multiplication that the standard might be derived from it; the Imam is the line that gathers the beads in a knot; the Imam is the guide on a journey at the darkness of the night; and the Imam is the arrow that is made an example for arrows to be made like.