Introduction to the Qur’an

Description

For people of the Muslim faith—nearly 25 percent of the world’s population—the Qur’an represents the most intimate and direct experience of the divine. For the Islamic faithful, the Qur’an is the eternal and perfect word of God, and it lies at the very heart of their understanding of themselves and the world. And yet, many non-Muslims have little familiarity with or understanding of this influential text. As a result, myths and misconceptions about the Qur’an and how it functions in the Islamic faith abound. In an increasingly global society, it has never been more important to understand the complicated history and message of the Qur’an, and its significance to millions of believers around the world. Professor Biography......Page 3 Course Scope......Page 5 Lecture 1—Finding a Path into the Qur’an......Page 7 What Is the Qur’an?......Page 9 Avenues of Approach......Page 11 Religious Context of Mecca circa AD 610......Page 16 Judaism in Arabia......Page 18 Byzantine and Other Christianities......Page 19 Sassanid Zoroastrianism and Ahura Mazdā......Page 22 Orality and Poetry in Arabia......Page 24 Lecture 3—The Qur’an Becomes a “Book”......Page 27 Experiencing the Qur’an......Page 28 The Literary Qur’an......Page 30 Theology of the Text......Page 34 The Contemporary Qur’an......Page 35 Lecture 4—From Mecca to Medina: The Revelation Transforms......Page 37 The Meccan Suras......Page 38 Muḥammad in Medina......Page 41 The Qur’anic Vision of God......Page 46 Tawhid, the Oneness of God......Page 48 God as Author......Page 50 God as Named and Unnameable......Page 52 God as Creator......Page 56 Obedience and Disobedience......Page 60 The Silence of Eve......Page 63 Yawm ad-Din: Idea, History, and Context......Page 66 Descriptions of Judgment Day......Page 68 The Garden......Page 69 The Fire......Page 71 Lecture 8—Abraham, Moses, and Qur’anic Faith......Page 75 Abraham and Ishmael......Page 76 The Story of Moses......Page 79 Lecture 9—Prophethood in the Qur’an: Jesus and Others......Page 84 Noah......Page 85 Joseph......Page 87 ʿIsā ibn Maryam......Page 89 al-Rūh Allah, the Spirit of Allah......Page 90 Lecture 10—From the Qur’an to Islam: Creating a Practice......Page 94 Sunnah, Hadith, and Ijtihād......Page 95 Pillar 1: The Shahāda......Page 96 Pillar 2: Salat......Page 98 Pillar 3: The Zakāt......Page 99 Pillar 4: Ramadan and Ṣawm......Page 100 Pillar 5: The Hajj......Page 102 Lecture 11—Sharia and Jihad: The Qur’an as Legal Text......Page 105 Starting with Definitions......Page 106 Interpreting Sharia......Page 108 Interpreting Jihad......Page 109 Lecture 12—Qur’anic Philosophy, Theology, and Mysticism......Page 113 Theology: Kalām......Page 114 Philosophy: Falsafah......Page 116 Sufism: Taṣawwuf......Page 118 Bibliography......Page 123