Middle East Religions category: 3324 books

Until the attacks of September 11, 2001, few Americans knew anything about Islam, let alone about the distinctions between Sunni and Shiæa, the Sufi and Wahhabi, the origins of the Holy QurÆan and Shariæa law, and the respect that all Muslims, even secular ones, harbor for the prophet Muhammad,...

Prophecy, politics, and the birth of a religion More than a billion people consider themselves Muslim. It is the world’s second-largest religion. Yet Western portrayals of the Islamic mind are often flawed. Islam for the Western Mind is an intensive look--from a Christian perspective--at...

"Indispensable reading for anyone who wants a wider understanding of the Islamic world, of its history and its politics." —Financial Times Aatish Taseer's fractured upbringing left him with many questions about his own identity. Raised by his Sikh mother in Delhi, his father, a...

A journalist explores his family’s history to reveal the hybrid cultural and political landscape of Pakistan, the world’s first Islamic democracy ** ** Shahan Mufti’s family history, which he can trace back fourteen hundred years to the inner circle of the prophet Muhammad, offers an enlightened...

This impressive biographical work deftly weaves translated accounts from authentic Ottoman Turkish texts with ancient lore, resulting in a compelling, unforgettable portrait of the founder of Islam as seen through the eyes of Muslims around the world. Since the 7th century, the biography of Islam's Prophet...

“The finest Orientalist of his generation” (Wall Street Journal) rewrites everything we thought we knew about the modern history of the Islamic world. In this “stylishly written, surprisingly moving chronicle” (Harper’s), Christopher de Bellaigue presents an absorbing account of the...

How do people in the African diaspora practice Islam? While the term "Black Muslim" may conjure images of Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali, millions of African-descended Muslims around the globe have no connection to the American-based Nation of Islam. The Call of Bilal is a penetrating account...

From a preeminent scholar of Islamic history, the authoritative history of caliphates from their beginnings in the 7th century to the modern day In Caliphate, Islamic historian Hugh Kennedy dissects the idea of the caliphate and its history, and explores how it became used and abused today....

For years, many have debated the relationship between religion and politics. In Secularism in Afghanistan, author Shukoor Zardushtian directs the discussion to Afghanistan, examining the role of religion in society in general and in Afghanistan in particular and analyzing the conflicts that arise...

Five times a day, close to a billion people turn to the Ka’aba in submission to Allah/God. In the seventeenth century the religion of Islam was revealed to the prophet Mohammad through the Holy Koran. Since then, Islam has spread to every center of the world. Starting with the life of the...

This critical review of the history of America's relations with Iran shows how little of the two countries' long and complicated relationship is reflected in the foundational axioms of the "Great Satan" myth. The author explains why meaningful and equitable relations can begin only after the two nations have arrived at a common, critical, and accurate reading of the past.

If Westerners know a single Islamic term, it is likely to be jihad, the Arabic word for "holy war." The image of Islam as an inherently aggressive and xenophobic religion has long prevailed in the West and can at times appear to be substantiated by current events. L. Carl Brown challenges...

Ranging from the time of the infallible Imams, to the contemporary era, this book provides a comprehensive overview of Shi’i religious and political authority, focusing on Iran and Lebanon, without limiting the discourse to Khomeini’s version of an Islamic State. Utilising untapped Arabic...

Imam Abü Hamid al-Ghazalı is perhaps the most celebrated Muslim theologian of medieval Islam yet little attention has been paid to his personal theology. This book sets out to investigate the relationship between law and politics in the writings of Ghazalı and aims to establish the extent to which...