Customer Reviews

The Koran For Dummies

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This books gives an insight into the Qu'ran and the Islamic religion. It is broken into sections that explain various aspects of life using the spritual and life practice guidance of the Koran. The author repeatly explains that the laws and language of the Koran is misinterpreted yet one cannot help but feel he is rationalizing. Still, I believe we get a good sense of Islamic law and the Koran, and frankly, some of the core concepts make much sense as the true words brought forth by Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed. I have bought a translation of the Qu'ran and following the reading of Dummies, will begin to tackle it. I would suggest to readers to find other sources to compare and contrast opinions; The complexities of the Islamic tradition need to be examined through the eyes of more than one source.

I saw this book on my sister's desk and casually picked it not expecting much from a "for dummies" type book. However, I was quite pleased by the surprising quality of this book. I've read many of the intro to Islam and Quran type books, and would have to say this is probably the best, and it clearly beats out and of the other "for Dummies," "for Idiot's," "for beginners," etc, books on Islam.

Sohaib Sultan manages to not only introduce basic concepts about Islam and the Quran, but he takes the reader through many deeper and more complicated issues - all without sacrificing an ounce of clarity or readability. What emerges is an engaging, readable, and surprisingly in depth survey of Islam. The book is also remarkably through and even-handed. Flip through it at the bookstore (or using the "look inside" feature), my guess is you'll be impressed - something that will likely only increase when you read the author's bio and see that he was only 23 when he finished the book.

I attempted to read the Qu'ran on my own a few years back and found it to be one of the most difficult and incomprehensible texts I have ever encountered. Besides the difficulty of translating 7th century Arabic to English, the Qu'ran does not follow a linear narrative such as most Westerners are used to. But instead has its own method of organization and logic which Sohaib Sultan does an excellent job of explaining. So this book does serve as a helpful guide to understanding the Qu'ran, though most Westerners will still likely find the Qu'ran a hard book to comprehend. But, of course, the Bible has it's challenges as well.

Sultan is a moderate American Muslim and clearly intends to present the Qu'ran and Islam in the most positive light. But he is also honest about some of the harsher aspects of what the Qu'ran says that are difficult for most non-Muslims to accept. For instance, the Qu'ran prescribes the amputation of one or both hands for thieves and execution by stoning for several other crimes including murder, rape and even adultery. The Qu'ran also strictly forbids alcohol, gambling and pork.

The Bible contains some similarly extreme punishments for homosexuals, adulterers and others as well as an even stricter code of dietary regulations. But while many modern Jews and Christians are inclined to interpret the Bible metaphorically, virtually all orthodox Muslims believe the Qu'ran to the perfect and indisputable word of God for all times and all circumstances. The Qu'ran also places much emphasis on the Day Of Judgement, when the righteous will go to Paradise while the wicked are left to suffer the agonies of Hell, which the Qu'ran decribes in lengthy and often very gory detail. To his credit, Sultan does state that all this is part of the Islamic belief system though he does accentuate the merciful and benevolent aspects of God who is always willing to forgive those who give up their sinful ways and follow the righteous path of Islam. In this respect Islam and Christianity are similar.

Most Muslims are moderate in their political beliefs and its only a small percentage of fanatics who make up terroist groups such as Al-Qaeda. But because of Islam's insistence on a strict, literal interpretation of the Qu'ran most orthodox Muslims are inherently "fundamentalist" and thus committed to following the beliefs and social norms of 7th century Arabia. Obviously, this makes it more difficult for many Muslims to adjust to modern life and especially the concept of a secular, democractic society which includes the separation of Church and State.

With over one billion Muslims worldwide it is essential that Islam and the West find some common ground where all will be able to live in peace and mutual respect. This is, of course, a tremendously difficult challenge. But one that must be accomplished.

Sohaib's book is the best one out there for Islam. I am an American born Muslim, and I did not know anything about my religion, until I read this book. It's worth every penny.



Go Sohaib,
NS.

I bought "the Koran for Dummies" because I needed a companion to guide me through a reading of the Quran (alternative spelling) in order to assess the many claims that wing nuts on the web have been passing around around concerning Islam and Moslems. I figured that if I had a better understanding of the Quran I could either accept or reject/modify those claims. So far (I have read only seven chapters) the book has been excellent and has given me a better understanding of the links of the Quran to the Torah and the Bible as well as those areas where it differs from them. To date I have yet to find any written passages that would justify the extremist behavior of Islamist terrorists. More Americans need to read this book and the Quran so that we can quell reactionary behavior among some of our fellow Americans and to facilitate a more tolerant and accepting attitude toward other world religions.

Creating a book that is accessible to a Western audience and at the same time does not dilute traditional/classical Islamic studies, is not an easy feat. The author navigates this balancing act with aplomb. Western readers will find many of their questions about Islam answered here. Recomended.

I expected a better book from dummies. The Author has tried to preach Islam, detailed the different sects of Muslims and their differences which are much beyond the scope of the study of Quran (Koran). I wish the author had stuck to Quran and its proper interpretation.
The tips and facts are good but the supportive material is lengthy. The author sways away from the topic.
The author has been awe struck by the magnanimity of the project and limited by the limitation of his knowledge and grasp of the subject

This book is one of the best introductions to Islam one can find.

I bought this book few weeks ago. The simple and direct language of this book helped me understand the Islamic concepts clearly and also cleared a few misconception which I had. Its written in such a way that everyone can get a good understanding of Quran.

Highly recommended!!!

Good job Sohaib.


Suhail Ahmad

This is a very good book but I believe it is missing a few points to understand the Quran clearly. When a person having no background in Arabic reads the translation of Quran he finds the writing to be boring and dull. He also fails to see consistency in text, one time the text says one thing and then it abruptly changes to something else.

Considering the first part of the question why a user finds Quran to be boring and dull, the basic reason is that the style of Quran is spoken (more precisely extempore speech) not written. It actually talks to the reader. If care is not taken while converting this vocal style to written then the whole text loses its charm.

The listener will even better understand the speech given at a particular time if he has some idea of the circumstances under which it was delivered. But if that same speech is broken down into small chunks and then translated into another language it will loose all of its beauty and charm. The same is with Quran. The translation must have to be so good that it should preserve its extempore style, otherwise the reader will find it dull and boring.

As per my knowledge there is only one translation in Urdu by Maulana Moududi that addresses this issue. There seems to be no translation available English that compares with it.

So in essence till such time a better translation ( I don't mean word by word or verse by verse) is available in English, to get to the sprit of Quran one must have a basic understanding of Arabic language. On internet there are several courses available that claim to teach Arabic within a very short span of time.

Now coming to the second part of the question when one reads Quran he fails to find consistency in the text as the topics change rapidly. It is basically due to the fact that Quran is not like any other book. If a user knows these three questions: What is its topic? What is its main subject? And what is its aim and purpose? He can find the consistency in thought and theme.

The topic of this book is us, the humans. It explains the purpose behind our creation and it also explains in detail the gauge of our success and failure.

Its main subject revolves around correcting the misconceptions humans have about this life and hereafter.

Its aim is to call upon everyone to the righteous/lawful way of their Lord which mankind has obliterated/lost.

Whosoever reads Quran keeping in view the abovementioned points will clearly see that its all seemingly different subjects revolve and refer to the main topic in a very consistent and coherent way. You may envisage it as all kinds of pearls, diamonds, rubies and emeralds enhancing the beauty of a necklace.