Koran For Dummies

Sohaib Sultan is a freelance journalist and student of the Islamic tradition who has studied the Koran and Islam extensively with Islamic scholars in the United States and Saudi Arabia.

“…I was quickly humbled by this guide, which showed me how much I had misunderstood.  I would recommend this to anyone interested in Islam…”  (Catholic Herald, 26 November 2004) The Qur'an's overall context of hostility to those who disbelieve in Mohammed's prophecy is downplayed in one forthcoming book, The Koran for Dummies by Sohaid Sultan. Under the heading "Discovering the Basic Messages of the Koran," Sultan lists as Mohammed's basic themes "The unity of God," "Worship and service to God," "Prophets to teach and guide," "Completion of past revelations," "Guidance to a spiritual path," "Movement for social change," "Accountability of deeds." All of which sounds pretty harmless—nothing about making war on unbelievers. (Publishers Weekly, May 10, 2004)"...provides an introduction to Islam's holy book." (Publishers Weekly, February 9, 2004)

• Introduction 1About This Book 1Conventions Used in This Book 2Foolish Assumptions 3How This Book Is Organized 4Part I: Revealing the Word of God: The Book 4Part II: Searching for the Soul of the Koran 4Part III: Seeing the Koranic Worldview 4Part IV: Living the Koran 5Part V: Relating the Koran to the World 5Part VI: The Part of Tens 5Icons Used in This Book 5Where to Go from Here 6Part I: Revealing the Word of God: The Book 7Chapter 1: Getting to Know the Koran 9Receiving Revelation Straight from the Source 9Guiding the Way: Prophet Muhammad 10Discovering the Basic Messages of the Koran 11The unity of God 11Worship and service to God 11Prophets to teach and guide 11Completion of past revelations 12Guidance to a spiritual path 12Movement for social change 12Accountability of deeds 13Naming the Revelation 13The Guidance 13The Criterion 14The Proof 14The Reminder 15The Healing 16Hearing the Words: The Audience of the Koran 16Knowing the Essentials about Islam and Muslims 17The Six Pillars of Belief 17The Five Pillars of Islam 18Muslims: The followers of Islam 19Chapter 2: From Revelation to Written Book 21Revealing the Koran to Muhammad 21The beginning of revelation 22The stages of revelation 24The Meccan and Medinan periods 24Transmitting revelation to the community 26Collecting the Koran as a Book 27Conforming the Koran’s dialects 28The Koran in modern-day print 29Memorizing Miracles: Preserving the Koran throughout History 31Experiencing the Koran as Divine Art 32Recitation 32Calligraphy 35Chapter 3: Mapping Out the Structure of the Book 37Discerning the Structure of the Koran 37Ayat 37Surahs 38Juz’ 39Discovering Surah Names and Themes 40Finding Your Way through the Moral Narrative 46Through divine signs 47Through laws 47Through stories of the past 48Simplifying the Moral Narrative of Shorter Surahs 52Chapter 4: Discovering the Language of the Koran 53Arabic: Plain, Clear, and Eloquent 53Digging down to the roots 54Reading translations of the Koran 56Literary Style in the Sacred Scripture 57Key literary elements of the Koran 58Clear and figurative passages 60Hearing the Voice of the Koran 62Chapter 5: Relating the Koran to Abrahamic Revelations 65Previous Revelations: Between Sacred and Corrupted 65Linking the Three Faiths: Common Experiences in the Scriptures 66Uniting faiths with belief in One God 67Bridging the gap between divine laws 67Sharing the legacy of prophetic stories 69Contrasting the Koran with Judeo-Christian Scriptures 70Finding a worldview of history in the Scriptures 70Reforming laws 72Reforming religious rituals 72Extending God’s covenant to all peoples 73Giving a new angle on prophetic stories 73Checking the prophetic pulse of Muhammad in the lBiblical Scripture 75Differing on Mary and the message of Jesus 76Part II: Searching for the Soul of the Koran 79Chapter 6: Interpreting the Koran 81Coming to Know the Guidance 81Having room for interpretation 82Knowing the key terms of Koranic interpretation 82Finding the Tasfir that fits 84Drawing out Interpretations 85Looking at clear and ambiguous passages 85Interpreting outer meanings 86Interpreting inner meanings 88Examining general and specific passages 88Keeping circumstances behind revelation in mind 90Abrogating passages 90Chapter 7: Understanding Interpretations of the Koran Today 93Getting to Know Famous Commentators of the Koran 93Among the companions 94In successive generations 95Classic works of Koranic interpretation 96Influential Movements of the Twentieth Century 98Mawdudi: Framework for a movement 99Qutub: The controversial revolutionary 101Muhammad Rida: The influential reformer 103Muhammad al-Ghazali: Thematic Tafsir 103Another School of Thought: The Shi’ites 104Ali 104Two famous Shi’ite Koranic interpreters 105Part III: Seeing the Koranic Worldview 107Chapter 8: Meeting God, Prophets, and Mankind 109Conceptualizing God 109“A” is for “Allah” 109Exploring the concept of God 110Experiencing God through divine attributes 113Knowing God 117Prophets of God: Preaching a Divine Message 119Prophets and messengers 119Abraham: Beloved Friend of God and Father of Faith 120Moses: The Liberator 122Jesus: The Spirit of God 125The Status and Nature of Man 128Human nature through Adam 129The purpose of human life 131Chapter 9: Divining Nature, the Universe, and the Unseen 133The Divine Ways of Nature 133Patterns of creation 134God’s creations in the skies 134Earthly creations 136Inheriting the Earth: The Role of Mankind in Nature 139The Unseen World: Angels versus Satan 140The angels: Pure creations of God 141Satan: An avowed enemy 142Accounting for the Soul 143The Day of Judgment 143The eternal bliss of heaven 144Hell: Torment of the fire 145God’s Mercy, God’s Wrath: Reconciling the two 145Chapter 10: Taking the Koranic View of Other Faith Traditions 147Islam: One Religion under God 147A brotherhood of Muslims 148Limits to an inclusive theology 149Honoring Freedom of Choice and Respecting Diversity 151Protecting freedom of choice 152Embracing diversity as the Will of God 152Examining Some Controversial Passages on Interfaith Relations 153Fighting against “unbelievers” 154Forbidding “friendship” with People of the Book 156Part IV: Living the Koran 157Chapter 11: Following in the Footsteps of Muhammad 159The Scripture Speaks about Muhammad 159Servant of God and mortal man 160Muhammad’s divine mission 160Muhammad as the best example for humanity 161Muhammad’s mercy for humanity 161Muhammad as a seal of the prophets 162Doing as God and His Messenger Do 163Looking at Some Key Prophetic Sayings 165Muhammad speaks about God 165Muhammad speaks about virtue 166Chapter 12: Putting Meaning into Ritual 169Declaring Faith: More than Just Words 170Conversing with the Divine: Prayer 170Understanding the purpose of prayer 171Approaching prayer: Purity of mind and body 172Let the prayer begin! 175Raising the Soul over the Ego: Fasting 180Remembering and thanking God 180Enjoying the communal aspects of fasting 182Purifying Wealth, Uplifting the Needy: Almsgiving 183Opening your wallet and improving the world 183Receiving alms 184Journeying to the House of God: Pilgrimage 186Following the path of Abraham 186Journeying through the pilgrimage 186Chapter 13: Understanding the Koranic View of Self 191Connecting the Three Dots of Self Awareness 191The wild horse and the rider 192The three states of self 193The Seven Gates to the Heart 194The ears and tongue 194The eyes 195The hands and legs 196The stomach 197The sexual organs 197Blessed Is the Baby’s Soul, a Soul without Sin 198The Soul’s Journey: From Pre-Birth to the Hereafter 199Pre-worldly existence 199Earthly life 199The grave 200The Day of Judgment 200The final abode 201The Muslim Self: A State of Being 201The Kafir: A Faithless Self 202Chapter 14: Achieving Koranic Ethics and Morality 203Discovering Ethical Principles in the Koran 203Preserving religion 203Preserving life 204Preserving lineage 205Preserving property 206Preserving honor 206Leading the Life of Good Virtue and Character 207Discouraged behaviors 207Encouraged behaviors 210Purifying the Heart 212Remembering the Divine: Dhikr 212Following God’s laws 213Keeping company with pious people 214Controlling passion and struggling for good 214Chapter 15: Raising a Family the Koranic Way 215Healthy Family Equals Healthy Society 215Looking for a Spouse: Let the Search Begin 216Looking beyond the surface 216Making sure the marriage is legal 217Giving equal time: Polygamy for men 218Celebrating Marriage as the Basis of Family 219Practically speaking: Basic functions within a marriage 220Intimacy: Both spiritual and physical 222Preserving modesty through Scriptural teaching 223Bringing Up Children 224Treating parents well: The best act of piety 225Raising children with wisdom 226Parental responsibilities to their children 227A Matter of Inheritance: Who Gets What 228Tackling Divorce in the Koran 229Part V: Relating the Koran to the World 231Chapter 16: Connecting the Koran to Society 233Divining a Community of the Middle Path 233Having a balanced approach to the Divine 234Balancing the worldly and the spiritual in society 234Managing justice and mercy in society 235Avoiding extremes in religious practice and manners 236Witnessing the Truth 237Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil 238Uniting a Community with the Rope of God 240Equality of mankind before God 240The brotherhood of man 241Leadership and Citizenship in the Koran 243Forming a political identity 244Governing by the Book 245Living up to citizenship 246Receiving the rights of citizenship 247Non-Muslims living in Muslim lands 249Jihad: Struggling in the Path of God 252Struggling against evil 252Jihad as armed struggle 253Chapter 17: Purifying Society through Islamic Law 255Defining Shariah 256Extracting and Interpreting Sacred Law 257Searching for Rulings and Principals 258In the Koran 258In the prophetic tradition 261In the consensus of the scholars 263In juristic analogy 264Exploring the Contents of the Sacred Law 264Understanding the Islamic Penal Code 265Punishing murder 266Punishing the spreading of violence 267Punishing theft 268Preventing unlawful sexual relations 269Looking at the Four Schools of Law 270The Hanafi School of Law 270The Maliki School of Law 271The Shafi’i School of Law 271The Hanbali School 272Chapter 18: Struggling for God: Jihad 273Finding the Spirit of Jihad 274Defending life and religion 274Defending human rights and freedom of worship 275Dispelling the myths behind passage 9:5 276Connecting Qital with Islamic Law 279Understanding Martyrdom 279Looking at Jihad in today’s World 280Chapter 19: Discussing Women in the Koran 283Finding Equality in the Scripture 284Eve: A model for gender equality 284The Virgin Mary: A divinely inspired woman 286Other famous and infamous women in the Koran 288Discerning Women’s Rights in Divine Law 290Right to inheritance 291Right to own property, manage business, and control wealth 291Right to work and equal pay 292Right to education 292Right to social and political participation 293Rights of marriage 293Right to initiate divorce 293Right to bear witness to business transactions 294Chapter 20: The Koran and Modernity 295Differentiating between Modernity and Modern Culture 295Promoting Social Progress 296Focusing on Issues of Modernity 297Science 298The arts 298Human rights 299Economics and free trade 300Morality and secularism 301Imagining an Islamic Democracy 302Debating the rule of law between citizenry and God 303Expressing the will of the people through elections 305Holding public officials responsible 305Liberty and Koranic ideals 306Social equality and Islamic law 307Part VI: The Part of Tens 309Chapter 21: Ten Misconceptions about the Koran 311Misconception #1: Muhammad Wrote the Koran 311Misconception #2: The Koran Is Incoherent and Unorganized 312Misconception #3: The Koran Is Void of Reason 313Misconception #4: The Koran Espouses Polytheism 314Misconception #5: The Koran Says That God Belongs to One People 315Misconception #6: God Is Wrathful and Unloving in the Koran 316Misconception #7: The Koran Preaches Fatalism 316Misconception #8: Jihad Means “Holy War” 317Misconception #9: The Koran Discourages Interfaith Dialogue and Cooperation 318Misconception #10: The Scripture Values Men More than Women 319Chapter 22: Ten Ways to Dig Deeper into the Koran 321Comparing “Translations” 321Listening to the Koran 323Looking at Different Interpretations 324Reading Books 325Studying Arabic 326Studying the Koran 326Surfing Web Sites 327Taking Classes 328Talking to Muslims 328Visiting Your Local Mosque 329Appendix A: Glossary of Koranic Terms 331Appendix B: Finding Prophets in the Koran 339Index 341