"I have to be honest with you. Islam is on very thin ice with me...Through our screaming self-pity and our conspicuous silences, we Muslims are conspiring against ourselves. We're in crisis and we're dragging the rest of the world with us. If ever there was a moment for an Islamic reformation, it's now. For the love of God, what are we doing about it?" In blunt, provocative, and deeply personal terms, Irshad Manji unearths the troubling cornerstones...

Insight into Life is the real religion, which alone can help man to understand Life.' Hazrat Inayat Khan The Sufis have been using carefully constructed stories for teaching purposes for thousands of years. Though on the surface these often appear to be little more than fairy or folk tales, the Sufis hold that they enshrine - in their characters, plots and imagery - patterns and relationships that nurture a part of the mind not reachable in more conventional...

"An extensive manual describing the Hajj?a journey that enlightens the significance of human existence and submission?this guidebook offers advice for those undertaking the holy voyage and gives the meanings behind its rituals. With special attention to the people who make the journey?approximately three million Muslims a year?this reference illuminates the importance of one of the fundamental forms of Islamic worship as a social and cosmic transformation."--...

"Praying for health is a significant Islamic custom alongside seeking medical treatment, and has become a vital part of Muslim culture. There are two areas of focus in this book: the methodology and criteria of praying for health, and the results of a study on the effect of prayer on Muslim patients' well-being. This study was conducted at Brigham and Women's Hospital, a Harvard Medical School teaching affiliate in Boston, MA. Twenty-Five Remedies,...

"The blessed days, nights, and months are each a distinctive sign of islam. They are celebrated by Muslims all around the world in due respect to their unique worth and sanctity that make them distinct from the rest of the year. Muslims commemorate Prophet Noah and his tireless messengership every year by cooking Ashura pudding and sharing it with their neighbors; they remember the great model of Abraham as the firend of God who displayed the greates...

"Despite heightened interest in the study of the Muslim faith, for many people Islam remains shrouded in mystery and confusion. What really is Shariah law? How is a Muslim to understand Jihad? Does Islam oppose Western values such as free speech or freedom of religion? What place do women have according to Islam? Understanding that this confusion has as much to do with the behavior and words of Muslims as it does with allegations made by anti-Islam...

"Jihad is one of the most loaded and misunderstood terms in the news today. Contrary to popular understanding, the term does not mean "holy war." Nor does it simply refer to the inner spiritual struggle. This book, judiciously balanced, accessibly written, and highly relevant to today's events, unravels the tangled historical, intellectual, and political meanings of jihad. Looking closely at a range of sources from sacred Islamic texts to modern interpretations,...

"For years, the image of the Muslim woman in America has been clouded with secrecy, as mysterious as the face behind the veil. Is she garbed in the traditional hijab and chador? Is she subservient to a male-dominated culture and religion, with few rights and little freedom? Does she grocery shop, do her nails, go to college, have sex? Who are these women? In this extraordinary and moving book, journalist Donna Gehrke-White provides a rare, revealing...

"This brief survey text tells the story of Islam. Gabriel Said Reynolds organizes his study in three parts in order to tell of Muhammad's early life and rise to power, of the origins and development of the Qur'an, with a distinctive, if unique, juxtaposition between the Qur'an and biblical literature, and concluding with an overview of modern and fundamentalist narratives of Islam's origin, which reveals how those who represent Islam's future begin...

"Objective and illuminating, this treatise, written by Sufi leader Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi, presents a fundamental analysis of spiritual practice. Underscoring the importance of silence, seclusion, hunger, and vigilance, this guide demonstrates that these activities are both physical and spiritual. Providing the necessary tools for an enlightened life, this dual-language edition incorporates the first critical edition of the Arabic text, gathered from...