The Book of Revelations: A Sourcebook of Themes from the Holy Qur'an (Education Project)

I have been a fan of Kabir Helminski ever since reading his Rumi translations. This is an amazing translation and commentary on selected verses of the Quran. I have bought 2 copies for myself (one to keep at home and one at work) as well as 2 to let friends borrow. Even if you just have 5 minutes you can read a small Ayat and the associated commentary. Truly life changing and inspirational; would recommend for Muslims and non Muslims alike.

I am enjoying how accessible this book is for Westerners like me who are interested in establishing a true understanding of the Qur'an. As always, Dr. Helminski's commentary is lucid, intelligent, heartfelt and inspiring. His choice of translations is brilliant, and helps reveal the beauty of what Rumi famously called the "shy bride" of meaning inside the words.

This tafseer has opened my heart to the words of Allah like never before. Each passage is deeply thought-provoking and pierces the heart. I am happy to have found such a compilation of themes and tafseer on the Quran.

I recently took part in a series of lectures and discussions of Islam at my local library, and bought this book to expand my knowledge of the subject. I tried some years ago to simply read a translation of the Qu'ran on my own and found it repetitious and tedious on the whole. I had tried to read through the Bible when I was younger, and found that much of it was also tedious and seemingly irrelevant to modern life, but many parts were full of wisdom, relevance and meaning. So I assumed that the same would be true of just about any sacred scriptures, and wanted to revisit the Qu'ran with guidance of someone knowledgeable about Islam. This book is a good way to approach that project. It consists of short selected passages on themes commonly treated in the Qu'ran, each with a brief commentary and expansion on the meanings and relevance of that passage. It is somewhat like a book of devotional readings or short sermons on selected scriptural texts. After reading through these, a few at a time, I feel that I am at least somewhat familiar with quite a bit of what the Qu'ran really teaches, as explained by educated Muslim believers. People of one faith cannot hope to grasp the teachings of another faith unless they hear it from the inside view - the view of believers. I read this book, not because I want to convert, but because I want to know and understand what Islam means to Muslims. A Bible quotation that means a lot to me could, I believe, fit just as well in a Muslim setting: 'What does the Lord require of thee, O man, but to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.'

An amazing source of knowledge for anyone wishing to increase their knowledge and understanding of the Qur'an. Like many Muslims in this I learned to read Arabic to read the original Qur’an, but not understand it. This book gives excellent commentary for well-respected Muslin as well as academic scholars. As you can see one of the authors is a PhD, and two others are doctors.The great thing I like about this book is from the first page Islam is correctly portrayed as a religion of peace and acceptance. I covers topics of how SHOULD incorporate and tolerate all religious beliefs. It does also talk about Jihad (holy war); as well this is always to be an absolute last resort and the condemnation for people using this incorrectly or for their own agendas.This book is not just for Muslims it is for everyone with a real interest in Islam. This is not written as a book to convert people, but to actually understand true Islamic beliefs. Questions like, why Muslims pray 5 times a day, the major theological difference between Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, I did leave out Hinduism as the differences between Hindu and Muslim beliefs are more oblivious. Why Muslims hold the Qur'an in relevance? Why do we fast during Ramadan?this is not a quick read this is not a book that you can read just to finish. Like the Qur'an it is not in a "littoral" order. The best was to read this is a Surah at a time with the commentary and let the information digest.I would recommend this book to anyone. I am a Muslim and brought up in a Muslim family, the great thing about this book for me was I was able to find answer to question I had, or answer question my friends or my much more importantly what my children asked me. Remember these Surahs are the way in which the authors have interpreted them so you might not agree with everything, but listening these people definitely gives a great starting point.

Excellent book easy to understand and well worth adding to any library.