In the Shadow of the Sword: The Birth of Islam and the Rise of the Global Arab Empire


Tom Holland - 2012
      No less significant than the collapse of the Roman Republic or the Persian invasion of Greece, the evolution of the Arab empire is one of the supreme narratives of ancient history, a story dazzlingly rich in drama, character, and achievement.  Just like the Romans, the Arabs came from nowhere to carve out a stupefyingly vast dominion—except that they achieved their conquests not over the course of centuries as the Romans did but in a matter of decades. Just like the Greeks during the Persian wars, they overcame seemingly insuperable odds to emerge triumphant against the greatest empire of the day—not by standing on the defensive, however, but by hurling themselves against all who lay in their path.

The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History


Michael H. Hart - 1978
    Needless to say, the critics were wrong, and to date more than 60,000 copies of the book have been sold. Hart believed that in the intervening years the influence of some of his original selections had grown or lessened and that new names loomed large on the world stage. Thus, the publications of this revised and updated edition of The 100.As before, Hart's yardstick is influence: not the greatest people, but the most influential, the people who swayed the destinies of millions of human beings, determined the rise and fall of civilizations, changed the course of history. With incisive biographies, Hart describes their careers and contributions. Explaining his ratings, he presents a new perspective on history, gathering together the vital facts about the world's greatest religious and political leaders, inventors, writers, philosophers, explorers, artists, and innovators--from Asoka to Zoroaster. Most of the biographies are accompanied by photographs or sketches. Hart's selections may be surprising to some. Neither Jesus nor Marx, but Muhammad, is designated as the most influential person in human history. The writer's arguments may challenge and perhaps convince readers, but whether or not they agree with him, his manner of ranking is both informative and entertaining. The 100, revised and updated, is truly a monumental work. It promises to be just as controversial, just as thought-provoking, and just as successful as its predecessor--a perfect addition to any history or philosophy reference section.

Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam Is Reshaping the World


Shadi Hamid - 2016
    Divides among citizens aren't just about power but are products of fundamental disagreements over the very nature and purpose of the modern nation state—and the vexing problem of religion’s role in public life. Hamid argues for a new understanding of how Islam and Islamism shape politics by examining different models of reckoning with the problem of religion and state, including the terrifying—and alarmingly successful—example of ISIS.With unprecedented access to Islamist activists and leaders across the region, Hamid offers a panoramic and ambitious interpretation of the region's descent into violence. Islamic Exceptionalism is a vital contribution to our understanding of Islam's past and present, and its outsized role in modern politics. We don't have to like it, but we have to understand it—because Islam, as a religion and as an idea, will continue to be a force that shapes not just the region, but the West as well in the decades to come.

Questioning Islam: Tough Questions & Honest Answers About the Muslim Religion


Peter Townsend - 2014
    Among these questions the most important one of all sometimes gets lost: Is Islam true? With his new book author Peter Townsend invites you to accompany him on a journey through the foundational texts of the Muslim religion. In the process the truth-claims of Islam will be respectfully, honestly and impartially evaluated. Along the way the following questions will be asked: - Can the traditional Islamic historical accounts be trusted? - Is the Qur'an a 'Perfect Book, Perfectly Preserved'? - Was Muhammad indeed a 'Beautiful Pattern of Conduct'? The answers to these questions will not be sought from modern commentaries on Islam. Instead Questioning Islam goes straight to the classic sources of Islam namely the Qur'an, hadiths (traditions) and biographies of Muhammad. Questioning Islam is not an attempt to promote any other belief system or ideology. Its focus is simply on asking the hard questions about Islam that are all too often ignored or swept under the carpet. Simply put, if you have ever wondered whether the truth-claims of Islam can withstand critical scrutiny then this book is for you!

رياض الصالحين


يحيى بن شرف النووي
    Covering every aspect of Islamic belief and moral conduct, it selects approximately 2000 hadith from the six major collections: Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi, An-Nasai and Ibn Majah. It serves as an excellent hadith primer and daily reader. Wide range of topics: sincerity of purpose, spending in the way of Allah, rules of fasting, seeking knowledge, attending funerals and safeguarding the Qur'aan. Arabic text as well as English translation are presented here in this handsome hardcover two volume set.Riyad-us-Saliheen comprises of about 2000 ahadiths in 372 Chapters and 19 Sections: The Book of Good Manners - The Book about the Etiquette of Eating - The Book of Dress -The Book of the Etiquette of Sleeping, Lying and Sitting, etc.- The book of Greetings - The Book of Visiting the Sick - The Book of Etiquette of Traveling - The Book of Virtues - The Book of I'tikaf - The Book of Hajj - The Book of Jihad - The Book of Knowledge - The Book of Praise and Gratitude to Allah - The Book of Supplicating Allah to Exalt the Mention of Allah's Messenger (PBUH) - The Book of the Remembrance of Allah - The Book of Du'a (Supplications) - The Book of the Prohibited Actions - The Book of Miscellaneous Ahadith of Significant values - and The Book of Forgiveness.رابط التحميل:http://www.waqfeya.com/book.php?bid=5160

If the Oceans Were Ink: An Unlikely Friendship and a Journey to the Heart of the Quran


Carla Power - 2015
    A spirited, compelling read."-Azadeh Moaveni, author of Lipstick JihadIf the Oceans Were Ink is Carla Power's eye-opening story of how she and her longtime friend Sheikh Mohammad Akram Nadwi found a way to confront ugly stereotypes and persistent misperceptions that were cleaving their communities. Their friendship-between a secular American and a madrasa-trained sheikh-had always seemed unlikely, but now they were frustrated and bewildered by the battles being fought in their names. Both knew that a close look at the Quran would reveal a faith that preached peace and not mass murder; respect for women and not oppression. And so they embarked on a yearlong journey through the controversial text.A journalist who grew up in the Midwest and the Middle East, Power offers her unique vantage point on the Quran's most provocative verses as she debates with Akram at cafes, family gatherings, and packed lecture halls, conversations filled with both good humor and powerful insights. Their story takes them to madrasas in India and pilgrimage sites in Mecca, as they encounter politicians and jihadis, feminist activists and conservative scholars. Armed with a new understanding of each other's worldviews, Power and Akram offer eye-opening perspectives, destroy long-held myths, and reveal startling connections between worlds that have seemed hopelessly divided for far too long.

The World's Religions


Huston Smith - 1958
    He convincingly conveys the unique appeal and gifts of each of the traditions and reveals their hold on the human heart and imagination.

The Divine Reality: God, Islam and the Mirage of Atheism


Hamza Andreas Tzortzis - 2016
    Join him on an existential, spiritual and rational journey that articulates powerful arguments for the existence of God, the Qur'an, the Prophethood of Muhammad and why we must know, love and worship God. He addresses academic and popular objections while showing how contemporary atheism is based on false assumptions about reality, which leads to incoherent answers to life's important questions.Does hope, happiness and human value make sense without the Divine? Do we have an ultimate purpose? Can we have consciousness and rational minds without God? Did the universe come from nothing? Does evil and suffering negate Divine mercy? Has scientific progress led to the denial of God? Are revelation and prophethood myths? Is God worthy of our worship? If you want to know how the Islamic intellectual and spiritual tradition answers these questions then this is the book for you.Hamza Andreas Tzortzis's new book presents a much needed comprehensive account of Islamic theism that draws upon Western and Islamic thought.

اللامذهبية: أخطر بدعة تهدد الشريعة الإسلامية


محمد سعيد رمضان البوطي - 1985
    This misleading call, which scholars have termed al-la madhhabiyya, was presented as ‘following the Quran and the Sunna’ and caused much confusion amongst ordinary muslims. One of the sources for the spread of this innovation was a book written by Muhammad Sultan al-Ma‘sumi al-Khajnadi al-Makki, which was translated and distributed to English and published as as ‘Should a Muslim Follow a Particular Madhhab?’ and ‘The Blind Following of Madhhabs’. It was in response to this book, taught and revered by prominent opponents of the schools of law, that Shaykh al-Buti first wrote his ground breaking work. Later editions of this work, the translation of which we have before us, included the aftermath of various debates Shaykh al-Buti was subsequently challenged to by his opponents and also incorporated counter-replies to the likes of Shaykh Nasir al-Din al-Albani, Muhammad ‘Id `Abbasi, Mahmud Mahdi al-Istanbuli and Khayr al-Din Wanli.This book is a decisive refutation of those who call to the misguidance of abandoning the schools of law, for it is the most dangerous innovation threatening the Sacred Law.

Islam and Science: Religious Orthodoxy and the Battle for Rationality


Pervez Hoodbhoy - 1991
    Hoodbhoy, a nuclear physicist, eloquently and usefully draws attention to the plight of science and technology in the Muslim world and to the need to do something about it. The book also makes some other helpful insights here and there about why, after centuries of brilliant achievements, science suffered such a fate in the Muslim world. But the book also suffers from some very serious flaws in its view of Islam and analysis of Islamic history.

Allah: A Christian Response


Miroslav Volf - 2011
    In a penetrating exploration of every side of the issue, from New York Times headlines on terrorism to passages in the Koran and excerpts from the Gospels, Volf makes an unprecedented argument for effecting a unified understanding between Islam and Christianity. In the tradition of Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s Islam in the Modern World, Volf’s Allah is essential reading for students of the evolving political science of the twenty-first century.

The Essential Rumi


Rumi
    This revised and expanded edition of The Essential Rumi includes a new introduction by Coleman Barks and more than 80 never-before-published poems.Through his lyrical translations, Coleman Barks has been instrumental in bringing this exquisite literature to a remarkably wide range of readers, making the ecstatic, spiritual poetry of thirteenth-century Sufi Mystic Rumi more popular than ever.The Essential Rumi continues to be the bestselling of all Rumi books, and the definitive selection of his beautiful, mystical poetry.

No God but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam


Reza Aslan - 2005
    This updated edition addresses the events of the past decade, analyzing how they have influenced Islam’s position in modern culture. Aslan explores what the popular demonstrations pushing for democracy in the Middle East mean for the future of Islam in the region, how the Internet and social media have affected Islam’s evolution, and how the war on terror has altered the geopolitical balance of power in the Middle East. He also provides an update on the contemporary Muslim women’s movement, a discussion of the controversy over veiling in Europe, an in-depth history of Jihadism, and a look at how Muslims living in North America and Europe are changing the face of Islam. Timely and persuasive, No god but God is an elegantly written account that explains this magnificent yet misunderstood faith.

الإسلام يتحدى: مدخل علمي إلى الإيمان


Maulana Wahiduddin Khan - 1985
    After a thorough investigation of the subject, the writer has reached the conclusion that religious teachings are, academically, valid and as understandable and intellectually acceptable as any of the theories propounded by men of science. ". . . in the fourteen hundred years of Islamic history, innumerable books on Islam have appeared. There are just few books calling mankind to God. They are clearly distinguishable from the rest because of the clarity and force with they make their appeal. Without doubt, this book is one of that kind." Al-AHRAM,(Cairo)>

Towards Understanding Islam


Abul A'la Maududi - 1977
    That is why I have avoided discussion over the minute details and have endeavoured to portray the entire picture of Islam in one perspective. Moreover, I have not confined myself to stating what we Muslims believe in and stand for, but have also tried to explain the rational bases of our beliefs. Similarly I have not only presented the Islamic modes of worship and the outlines of the Islamic way of life but have also tried to unveil the wisdom behind them. I hope this small treatise will go a long way to satisfy the intellectual cravings of the Muslim youth and will help the non-Muslims in understanding our real position.' (from the foreword by Mawdudi)'Ours is an age of anxiety and restlessness. A change is imperceptibly overtaking the world. The old order is disintegrating; the new one is, however, yet to come. And history tells us that such ages of restlessness have also been periods of birth for new movements and cultures. The world is in the grip of a tension and awaits a twentieth-century renaissance of man.A significant feature of the present century is the new and wide-spread trend of Islam revival. After a long period of stagnation the world of Islam is rising from its stupor. A new awakening has appeared on the horizon; a new life is being infused into the community of Islam. This trend is visible in every country and at every place and has within it the possibilities of its becoming the harbinger of a new age' (from the Editor Preface)----------------About the Author Mawlana Mawdudi occupies a pivotal position in the movement for Islamic rebirth in the 20th century. He started his revolutionary mission at a time when the Western civilization was at the height of its intellectual and political power and when almost the entire Muslim world was in the grip of the western colonial rule. The demise of the Ottoman Caliphate had extinguished the last apparent hope of the Muslim Ummah. The clouds of gloom were cast upon the Muslim world. The horizon looked dark and dismal. It was in this background that a young scholar Mawdudi raised a clarion call for Islamic revival and reassertion. He invited the Muslims to the real source of their strength : The Qur'an and Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. He awakened the Muslims to a new goal and mission to live and to die for Islam