Understanding the Qur'an: Themes and Style

by Muhammad Abdel Haleem

Overview

NEW PAPERBACK EDITION OF THE HIGHLY ACCLAIMED GUIDE TO THE QUR’AN AND ITS INTERPRETATION BY A WORLD AUTHORITY ON ISLAM The tenets of Islam cannot be grasped without a proper understanding of theQur’an. In this important introduction, now revised and updated for a newpaperback edition, Muhammad Abdel Haleem examines the Qur’an’s majorrecurrent themes - life and eternity, marriage and divorce, peace and war, waterand nourishment - and for the first time considers these elements in thecontext of Qur’anic linguistic style. With a fresh insight into the background ofthe Qur’an, Professor Haleem examines the context and circumstances leadingto the development of the suras (chapters) and the ayahs (verses) and theconstruction of the Qur’an itself. He shows that popular conceptions of Islamicattitudes to women, marriage and divorce, conflict and society, all differ radicallyfrom the true teachings of the Qur’an. Understanding the Qur’angoes on toexplore the ways in which the Judaic and Christian traditions, as reflected in theBible, may be compared to Qur’anic approaches to similar themes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780857730374
Publisher:	I.B.Tauris
Publication date:	09/30/2010
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	386,045
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Muhammad Abdel Haleem is Professor of Islamic Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. His Introduction to the Qur'an is also published by I.B.Tauris.

Table of Contents

Preface vii

1 The Qur'an 1

2 Al-Fatiha: The Opening of the Qur'an 15

3 Water in the Qur'an 31

4 Marriage and Divorce 44

5 War and Peace in the Qur'an 61

6 Tolerance in Islam 73

7 Life and Beyond 84

8 Paradise in the Qur'an 96

9 The Face, Divine and Human, in the Qur'an 110

10 Adam and Eve in the Qur'an and the Bible 126

11 The Story of Joseph in the Qur'an and the Bible 141

12 The Qur'an Explains Itself: Surat al-Rahman 161

13 Dynamic Style: Iltifat and Some Other Features 187

Conclusion 215

Notes 217

Index 231

Editorial Reviews

Both for students and for general readers interested in the foundation of Islam, Haleem (Islamic studies, U. of London) explores the document's major recurring themes of life and eternity, marriage and divorce, peace and war, and water and its symbolism, and places them within the context of the linguistic style. He also shows how the Judaic and Christian traditions, as reflected in the Bible, compare to Qur'anic approaches to similar themes. Assumes no knowledge of Arabic. Distributed in the US by St. Martin's Press. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)

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