The Study Quran: A Study of the Quran with Classical Commentary

Like fundamentalists of every flavor, radical Islamists come to their wars of ideas armed with proof-texts—those decontextualized bits of scripture that can be strung together in chains to justify whatever one happens to believe. In the current historical moment, this means acts of violence and cruelty in the name of one of the world’s great religions. An irony of our age is that most Western opponents of radical Islam use the same proof texts to justify bigotry against all Muslims. Just Google “Islam and Violence,” and you will find hundreds of proof-text pages with quote after quote from the Quran seeming to justify, and even require, acts of violence—which, of course, happens to be the same thing that most Islamist terrorists believe. Rarely do enemies agree so completely on first principles. The big problem though, is that (like most assertions supported by chains of oversimplified proof texts) the assertion is false. Or, at least, it is not always true, and it is not true in the ways that both violent Muslims and violent anti-Muslims assume when they start mining the Quran for reasons to fight. Into this rhetorical context comes the long-anticipated, ten-years-in-the-making, Harper Study Quran. Based on the wildly successful Harper Study Bible, and edited by practicing Muslims who are also trained and respected scholars, the Study Quran offers itself as an the first English translation to incorporate significant commentary designed to contextualize nearly every ayah (verse) in the sacred book. And I’ll be dag-nabbed if it doesn’t do it. By my rough estimates, about 90% of the book consists of verse-by-verse commentary keyed to the text by a practical (and merciful) two-color printing scheme that keys the text to the notes with bright red numbers. As I read this new Quran (and I read it straight through because I am weird like that), I found that I could not realistically read all of the commentary and still follow any kind of narrative flow. I read most of the text without the commentary, glancing down at the footnotes only when I felt that I needed more context to understand the basic meaning of a passage. The Study Quran supports this kind of reading, but it is really designed for intensive study of a passage or a theme. The editorial apparatus makes this kind of reading very easy. A comprehensive (and multi-colored) index allows readers to follow themes and ideas through the text, and a set of essays at the end of the volume brings together concepts like “Quranic Ethics, Human Rights, and Society” and “Conquest and Conversion, War and Peace in the Quran.” But however one reads it, the Study Quran’s overwhelming strength is that it provides, for nearly every verse in the Quran, both the context of its original recitation and a survey of 1400 years of scholarship. To understand why this is important, consider how the Quran is structured. Unlike the Bible, it contains very little sustained narrative, and the individual surahs (chapters) were not all revealed as discrete units, so each ayah has an independent context of original reception. The Quran, in other words, lends itself to proof texting even better than the Hebrew or Christian Bibles—and that’s saying something. The editors of the Study Quran patiently and painstakingly reconstruct, to the extent possible, the original context of each recitation in the entire book and make that reconstructed context available to any reader willing to devote the time attention required to understand it. The results are remarkable, and they have the wonderful added effect of limiting the ability of both adherents and detractors to manipulate the book’s meaning through uncritical prooftexting. Here is one example (though I wish I had the space for a dozen) of what happens when a passage often used to justify both violence and Islamophobia undergoes the Study Quran’s contextualizing treatment. In the 33rd Ayah of Surah 5 (The Table Spread), we read the following injunction: Verily, the recompense of those who wage war against God and His Messenger, and endeavor to work corruption upon the earth is that they be killed or crucified, or have their hands and feet cut off from opposite sides, or be banished from the land. Pretty gruesome, to be sure, and also pretty clear. But the editors of the Study Quran want us to know two things that no other single-volume English translation will tell us: 1) that this passage was recited in a specific instance and for a specific purpose; and 2) that there is a long tradition of Muslim scholarship and jurisprudence interpreting this verse. The context was a specific and extremely bloody attack upon the Muslim community in Madinah. After accepting a group of Bedouins into the community under the pretense of conversion, Mohammad allowed them to depart when they claimed that they were not comfortable with city life. He sent camels with them “for milk and sustenance” and a Muslim camel herder to help them on their way. “Once outside the city, however, they brutally maimed and killed the camelheard and made off with the camels the Prophet had given them to use (293). In context, then, the punishments in the passage were mandated against specific individuals who had acted with impunity to terrorize the Muslim community. And, the editors explain, the verse has NOT normally been interpreted as a general process for dealing with apostates: Given that the perpetrators were also, among other things, apostates . . . since they embraced Islam in the presence of the Prophet, then renounced it through their actions, a small minority have considered the verse to apply to apostates in general. It seems clear, however, that the severe punishments in this verse pertain specifically to those who commit various crimes brazenly and with exceptional brutality, violence and terrorization of innocent people. (293) This contextualizing commentary does not erase the violence in the text, of course. But it does limit its application among those willing to consider things like why a passage was originally given and what it has meant to fourteen centuries of devout Muslim scholars. And these are things that both Muslims and non-Muslims need to understand. For those who believe, as I do, that humanity’s survival into the next century will require us to understand and appreciate each other’s deepest beliefs, The Study Quran is a gift and a treasure. It does not make understanding Islam easy, but it makes it possible—if we are willing to invest the effort it takes to accept the gift and heft the treasure. And for English-speaking Muslims who are not terrorists and radical Islamists (which is about 99.9% of the total), it provides a valuable tool for deepening faith and demonstrating the shallowness of the proof-texters who constantly attack them. In an interview with CNN shortly after the volume’s publication, the lead editor, Seyyed Hossein Nasr argued that “the best way to counter extremism in modern Islam is a revival of classical Islam.” That is a tall order for any single book, but I suspect that, if a revival of classical Islam ever happens in the English-speaking world, the revivalists will all carry copies of the Study Quran–and the revolution will be extensively footnoted.

An epic work concordant with its celestial origins, the Study Quran in panaromic fashion reflects the ever present message of the Sacred as penned by it's traditional authorities only to be rendered imaginable by a vision of Islam as encompassing as Dr. Nasr's to mirror the infitnite depth in finite breadth. This work certainly raises the bar for religious literacy, understanding, and challenges parochial mindsets and interpretations. Dr. Nasr and his editorial team are to be congratulated on this historic achievement in fulfilling the promise of the pertinency of Islam's tradition for not only advancing a metric for Quranic scholarship, but revealing the timeless message of the Quran in a polarized time riddled with misunderstandings, all the while widening the scope of Islam's transcendent and universal vista. After having read a couple hundred of pages: This review is being written after having read over a couple hundred pages of The Study Quran; and there is little doubt in my mind, being an amateur, in the etymological sense of the word, and observer of scholarship in Islamic studies for over past two decades, and gauging the pulse of Muslims in America, that this is the most important study of the Quran in the western hemisphere. Granted, there other valuable translations of the Quran, and works of commentary on the Quran, but what distinguishes this massive, yet manageable, tome—over two-thousand pages, and over a million words—is the spectrum of pre-modern commentaries and those that continue that tradition into the modern period. Thus, the Study Quran establishes itself as one the most important “tools” amongst the Quranic related works for Muslims and non-Muslims to come to terms with the Quran, its message, and its traditional commentary pedigree from within a perspective concordant its spirit, without sacrificing its legal precepts. For this reason alone, Dr. Nasr, and each of the editors, is to be warmly congratulated on publication of this volume that has been nearly ten years in the making. Following a lengthy introduction by Dr. Nasr, who outlines the nature, dimensions, and the meaning of the Quran to Muslims, the heart of the project begins with a translation and running commentary. This verse-by-verse commentary is similar in style to many other classical commentator styles, some which run to dozens of volumes in fine print. Dr. Nasr and his team of editors have surveyed over three dozen of these commentaries, hence studying hundreds of volumes, which reflect the traditional paradigm of commentary traditions from various points of view, whether theological, legal, philological, philosophical, or mystical. Then they synthesize these perspectives into a series of brief comments, often with reference to the traditional commentators. Some of these synthesized comments run into several pages for just a handful of verses of the Quran. Thus, the editors reveal depth of possible meanings and present to readers context, inter-texuality, subtext, and ultimately meanings that move from their outward meaning to their inward meaning of the text. The final sections of the Study Quran, contain quiet literally, a book within a book, with a series of essays on various topics of the Quran; a deeply useful Index; citation of Hadith (oral traditions of the Prophet Muhammad) found in the text; and maps of the region of Arabia where the Quran was revealed. As to the essays, they are like a series of peaks in the valley of the Quran itself they help synthesize various topics found across the Quran that cannot be fully exposited in the commentary. Thus, the reader can gain a fuller view of a particular subject by reading an essay, or use the index and read through the variety of verses and comments related in order to a certain topic. The Study Quran is useful tool for personal study, group study, in both informal and formal academic settings. For Muslims, in addition to the function that the Study Quran can play for non-Muslims, it first and foremost aids in establishing a relationship with God. By knowing God’s word on one level, brings one closer to Him. And it reveals to Muslims the vast array of interpretations to the Quran, especially amongst the pre-Modern Islamic scholarship. Hence, for Muslims who have been largely fed Islam at the level of the common denominator, the Study Quran presents various linguistic and symbolic subtlety of the text, along with clarifying its meanings within a range of opinions. In the process of reading the Study Quran, which includes interpretations from various perspectives of Islam, like Sunnism, Shi’ism, and Sufism, for Muslims it underscores that all these perspectives in the abode of Islam originate and return to the Quran, and that no one interpretation holds a monopoly. Rather it reveals the level of sincerity and intellectual fortitude exemplified by the commentators to understand God’s word, as opposed to delimiting it for ideological ends--one only has to read the biographies of these commentators to realize their level of sincerity, and in many cases sanctity. Thus, various interpretations that appear in opposition can be held and respected since they are grounded in a reading of the fount of Islam itself, the Quran. And yet at the same time, confirm a particular classical understanding promoted by a certain perspective. Therefore, the Study Quran balances its interpretations between an outward understanding of a verse and its inward, and between particular points of view, and a universal center that looks out to the vista of understanding. This is very helpful since many Muslims themselves, arrogate orthodoxy to themselves at the exclusion of others, perhaps as a psycho-social reaction to the lack of authentic human experience in the modern world and desire for stability in a liquid sociology. Regardless of the cause, the effect is that Muslims today, even amongst themselves have reduced orthodoxy to certain interpretations, scholars, schools, and the like, thereby explicitly or implicitly reducing the expression of Islam, in both spirit and form to a few localized geographic or intellectual strains. The net effect is that Muslims often conflate unity for uniformity, and thus, breed suspicion and paranoia for those Muslims that may not think or practice like them—the same contours of thinking can be applied between religions as well. Let it be clear, Sunnis have differed amongst themselves, as with Shi’ites, as with Sufis, and yet there have been also large areas of agreement—even across perspectives, borrowing from each other; hence, neither should these similarities and differences be exaggerated or marginalized, but understood within its rightful context; nevertheless, I do concede it is not possible to generalize without the risk of distortion on this subject given its complexity. That said, for our context today, it behooves us to envision orthodoxy, in a post-traditional anthropology, to allow for intellectual confirmation for the particular and exclusivist tendencies, while at the same time provide deeper insights into the universal nature of Truth as such (i.e. ineffable)—this is between perspectives within a religion, or between religions themselves—hence, the sense of orthodoxy must operate on a higher plane of discourse then mere dogmatic and or discursive theology towards the "via negativa," especially if it is to dovetail exclusivity with inclusivity in relative harmony which was implicit more or less in the spirit of traditional Islam. But today such implicit moorings require explication due to the fracturing of the human spirit writ large, where various Islamic perspectives are interacting with each other in the public sphere, and that confusion persists due to lack of meaningful exchange, some due in part to religious chauvinism. Hence, the Study Quran widens the scope of orthodoxy for Muslims, confirming exclusivist views along side inclusivity, all while challenging fringe distortions, by raising the discourse along intellectual and spiritual trajectories. For Muslims the Study Quran is a much needed platform from which to consider and discuss these subjects, come to understand various views without prejudice; and, though it is natural for Muslims to differ with each other even then, at least recognize it for what it is, maintain constancy in their own view, while still harbor care and love for their fellow Muslims since they too return to the Quran. In effect, by reading the Study Quran, the Muslim should feel a sense of humility towards other views, since it is not the only view, and yet, pride in their view, since it is a view in the broader tapestry of the tradition in Islam. So, Muslims maybe wondering who is an orthodox or not? It is those who are spiritually, ethically, and morally advanced than you—those with God consciousness, regardless of tribal affiliation. Other approaches of orthodoxy very easily veer off into tribalism or are marred with Judeo-Christian subtext, as with the complex term “religion.” Now, some will take umbrage with the fact an outmoded use of English is employed to translate. I am aware that most things written today for the average reader is at an middle to high-school grade reading level—and that is a conservative estimation. Hence, the masses constantly seek to read everything at some homogenized level. However, I think the translation is eloquent and flows masterfully; akin to reading Shakespeare—which most educated people have read at some point in their experience. Thus, as opposed to succumbing to vulgar populism, which will obsolete in the few years, it would be better to retain a timeless English prose, with a touch of poetry, similar to Shakespearean English. Put another way, a sacred text, requires as close to a sacred sensibility in form in the target language to express the aura of distinction between the sacred and profane. To those that complain about the language, my recommendation is that they elevate their reading capacity, and perhaps their consciousness (and practically keep a dictionary handy). If some want to read “newspeak” Quran, there are plenty around for ease—which maybe also an indication of how some Muslims approach Islam, as a matter of intellectual laziness and lack of literary taste. And in some cases contributes to the dumbing down of Islam, and hence, dumb thoughts of some Muslims, as with dumb actions committed by them. Upon receiving the Study Quran, many will quickly note the beauty and aesthetic quality of the production of the text. This is to reclaim the once beautiful production of texts and binding in the Islamic world, and revive it to some extent in the modern period. Many Qurans available are printed usually on cheap paper and poor binding, with little care for detail. This artistic presentation of the Quran is entirely different, and exceeds expectations. However, some will gripe about the paper quality, that it is too thin. I believe the paper quality is perfect for the tome, especially since an important target audience are students that seek to gain some sense of the Quran through its classical commentators. Hence, it is portable for students who may be moving from one class to the next. The paper quality is on par, if not better, than that used in the hefty Norton Anthology to Literature volumes (students who study the humanities in the West will be familiar with these tomes); and thus, for how thin is the paper the quality is durable to the extent that the ink of one side does distort the text on the other side. To conclude, I mentioned earlier that the Study Quran is a tool, albeit an important one in understanding the Quran from the traditional Islamic perspective; a perspective that rarely gains the necessary attention in the West due to political ideologies or intellectual ideologies antithetical to the spirit of Quran itself. The Study Quran is one means of studying the sacred script of over a billion peoples, and to obtain a taste of the ways in which it has been experienced and commented by those down through the past 1400 years. Many people in this day of instant gratification, info-glut, with googlesque mentality, seek one place for everything to be sought and found, even the sacred, and holy. The Study Quran resists this since it is limited by only surveying a little more than three dozen commentaries, under the editorial eyes of five individuals, for a nearly decade; and thus, is not perfect; but neither is any commentary perfect or the "final" word. Just like any “study” it will be revised and parts reconsidered upon re-reading the commentaries; only the timeless word of God stands the test of time, and with Him is its ultimate of meanings. Instead, what the Study Quran conveys is an important intention, that each verse has various meanings of depths, and thus challenges any Muslim perspective that promotes one interpretation to the expense of the others; and it portends that classical scholars from various perspectives considered alternate and opposing points of view—something I believe Muslims today could benefit; often, concluding with “God knows better”—and this is something I believe Muslims can also benefit. This work will not be without its critics given the sheer immensity of the research that went into it; and I invite them critique the work constructively. Not destructively by cherry picking certain verses without considering the full range of verses and commentary related to a particular theme or topic (the index comes in handy here); this attitude is only revealing of their souls. Or, raise paranoia, and suspicion with regard to Dr. Nasr, in that he is a Shi’a, and envisions the heart of all authentic revelations with the eye of the heart in light of the eternal wisdom that originates in the bosom of the One Divine, termed usually as the perennial philosophy (Ar. al-Din al-Hanifa, al-Hikma al-Khalida, Javidan Khairad); to them I say, you cannot reject that which was never offered to you. If this sounds elitist, then consider why must you assume yourself and your intellect to be common denominator of all Islam from time immemorial; or, is your metric, quoting R.W. Emerson, “The difference from me, is the measure of insanity”? If this is the case, then you have larger issues to deal with than critiquing the Study Quran, like your own ego. I recommend, instead help the Study Quran editorial team, in order for it to become a better and useful text for the needs of Muslims and Non-Muslims. Or, publish another Study Quran, hence another tool in the service of seekers and students. Since the work’s publication there has been much reaction on the part of Muslims and Non-Muslims, and rightfully so; since, perhaps the greatest insult is to be ignored. And whether you agree or disagree with Dr. Nasr’s philosophical position (and by philosophy I do not mean man-made rationalist/scientific discursive constructs, but transcendent wisdom that flows from the niche of prophecy [see Dr. Nasr's philosophical works, in particular Knowledge and the Sacred]), and his editors, going forward, any study of the Quran cannot ignore him and his work, especially if they are to validate the traditional perspective, the various perspective that have unfolded in time and space, and to defend the tradition from perspectives that aim to deconstruct it with a host "isms" generated in the post-medieval period. However, those who seek Truth-in-itself, will understand its place in relationship to themselves; and if you seek a particular truth as it relates to certain people, a certain mode of "Islam," in certain times and places, then such is your Rizq (divine apportionment), and you will derive your ordained benefit. Either way, I will give Frithjof Schuon the final word on this subject, when he says, "if there were no human margin, no abrogation would be possible."

As an avid and humble student of Islamic teachings for many years who has sat at the feet of various Traditional scholars of Islamic law (fiqh), Quranic exegesis (tafsir) and Prophetic traditions (hadith) as well as Islamic spirituality (tassawuf) and learned from them intermittently, I fully endorse the Study Qur'an. In this process I have read various Commentaries of the Qur'an in English (from Mawdudi's Tafisr, to Ma'ariful Qur'an, to Allamah Tabatabai's al-Mizan, to Yusuf Ali, etc). After reading over 300 pages of this commentary already, I have found that this Study Qur'an is the best Tafsir/Commentary to date in the English language. And this for the following reasons: It is a very eloquent English translation of the Qur'an which, comparable to the eloquence of the King James Version of the Bible. It includes diverse sources of commentary, from commentary traditions within Islamic civilization, namely Sunni, Shiite commentaries from authorities ranging from those who were legalists (fuqaha), theologians, (mutakalimun), philologists, as well as spiritual authorities or saints. It is of no wonder that such a vast array of deeply informed perspectives (both mainstream, popular, and otherwise) took about 10 years to collate and integrate into one volume of commentary. The Study Quran is a monumental intellectual achievement in Islamic studies in the West, and truly anywhere in the world! To be sure, no single commentary on the Qur'an, even a commentary which brings diverse levels of Islamic references and commentaries to its own commentary, can be fully complete. That is not possible when considering the infinite wisdom contained in the eternal Word of God as manifested in the Qur'an for those who believe in it. However, the Study Qur'an is a kind of watershed event of intellectual achievement for Islamic studies and for Islam as a religious tradition in the West. It is a sign that Western Muslims (both born Muslim and converts) are living the wisdom of Islam and applying it to the current context of the West and Western civilization, and striving to live harmoniously with their surroundings without compromising their Islamic principles. The quality of bringing together in an inclusive spirit, diverse and divergent scholarly Muslims views of various Quranic verses is unique to this Study Qur'an and is a response to this very need in Islamic discourse in the West. This is the case, whether we look at the Study Qur'an from an Academic point of view or from a purely Muslim point of view. In this sense the Study Qur'an is a most welcome commentary on the Qur'an in the context of all other commentaries in English. It is a great step in the right direction of bringing the depth and breadth of the wisdom of Qur'anic and Islamic teachings to a wider audience, both Muslims and non-Muslims. I hope the next edition includes the actually Sacred Arabic text of the Qur'an. Yet, the challenge of including that, on top of a text which includes one million words is truly difficult. To those who may criticize the Study Qur'an for certain or perceived intellectual or theological biases of the editors, through cherry picking verses here and there and reacting to how those verses were presented, especially if the dominant voice or perspective in the commentaries in those contexts do not fit one's view, is to do a major disservice to the text of the Study Qur'an. Again, I welcome the Study Qur'an and deeply admire it for all the great qualities it has and brings to the table of Qur'an and Islamic studies. I also see it as an ongoing contribution to the field, which deserves critical appraisals from all sides, Academic, non-Academic, Muslims and seekers or believers of other Faith and Wisdom Traditions. May God bless the editors for their effort, which was obviously a labor of love, intellectual erudition, and faith.

Absolutely essential and excellent for tadabur/ deeper reflection of the Noble Quran. It offers numerous viewpoints of earlier tafsir including Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir and Tabari including many others. Almost every surah has its own footnote with explanation and analysis. Very deeply researched and a monumental contribution.

In The Name of ALMIGHTY GOD, THE ONE AND ONLY, THE ABSOLUTE. By the Grace and Favour of ALMIGHTY GOD, I am a Sufi Twelver Shia Islamic Scholar and I have the following to say about this book: By the Grace and Favour of ALMIGHTY GOD, THE ONE AND ONLY, THE ABSOLUTE, this is an excelent Translation of The Holy Quran. Every person, muslim and non-muslim should have a copy of this Translation of The Holy Quran. The commentary is very good, and it has a taste of Sufism in it. It is a very long commentary, being this a positive thing, and covers all the Chapters of the Holy Book. GOD willing, this will make the reader familiar with the contents of the Holy Quran and It's Message. The Holy Quran is the last Message from ALMIGHTY GOD to all Humanity until the Day of Judgement. ALMIGHTY GOD revealed the Holy Quran to Prophet Muhammad, the last Prophet sent by GOD after who there will come no more Prophets until the Day of Judgement, when ALMIGHTY GOD will judge mankind for their actions. ALMIGHTY GOD gave The Quran to Angel Gabriel and this noble Angel brought the Holy Quran to Prophet Muhammad. The Revelation of the Quran lasted for 23 years, starting when Prophet Muhammad was 40 years old, and ending when he was 63 years old, a few months before his death. By ALMIGHTY GOD's Order, Whenever Gabriel brought a Piece of the Quran to Muhammad, Gabriel would indicate to Muhammad where to place that piece in the Quran until the last Revelation. Then, by GOD's Order, Gabriel taught Muhammad to give the Quran the form It has now, as ALMIGHTY GOD, THE ONE AND ONLY, THE ABSOLUTE, says in the Quran, Chapter 75, Verse 17. So Prophet Muhammad left the Holy Quran in the form It has now. ALMIGHTY GOD, THE ONE, THE ABSOLUTE, says in the Holy Quran, Chapter 54, Verses 17, 22, 32 and 40, that HE made the Quran very easy to understand. Although the Quran is very deep, It's Message is very easy to understand. So, dear reader do not listen to some so called Scholars who falsely say that the Quran can not be translated and has to be read in Arabic only. This is not true!! Being a Message to all Mankind, the Quran is easy to understand, and is also easy to translate to any language provided that some Islamic Criteria are met. Prophet Muhammad himself gave the exemple when he told Salman Farsi, one of his conpanions, to translate the Whole Quran in the Persian Language. And Salman Farsi did so. The Quran tells you to use your own Intelect in order to reach the Truth. And It shows you how to use your Intelect. Well, my comment ends here. I finish saying that the Holy Quran is the most fascinating Book on Earth and is the solution for all Mankind's problems.

[Please note that my "four star" rating is for the quality of this specific edition of the Qur'an—with a particular focus on its commentary and bonus features—and is not meant as an endorsement or a critique of the teachings of the Qur'an itself.] Whew! ... I finally finished reading it. It took me forever, because: (a) it's about 2,000 pages long; (b) I read each surah (chapter) twice—first just reading straight through the text, then re-reading it, verse-by-verse, along with the commentary; and (c) with all due respect to those who hold the Qur'an as sacred writ, it's not exactly a "page turner," so I must admit that it was a bit of a struggle to motivate myself to plow my way through it (more on this later). Nonetheless, I eventually did. And I'm glad I did. I should state up front that I am not Muslim. (I have nothing against Muslims, of course; it's just that Islam is not the religious tradition that I was raised in.) What I am is an amateur student of religion—and particularly of comparative religion. I want to understand the various belief systems of the world: what they teach, how they are practiced, how they are lived out in people's lives, how they are similar to each other, how they differ, etc. So I wanted to read the Qur'an in order to better understand Islam. Now, of course, I realize that scripture is not the same thing as religion. Merely reading the sacred texts of a particular faith tradition will not tell you everything that you might want to know about the teachings and practices of that tradition, much less about the lived experiences of its adherents. Even for the three Abrahamic faiths, which hold their scriptures as foundational, understanding what these religious traditions are all about will require more than simply reading their holy books. For one thing, scripture has to be properly interpreted in order to yield doctrine—and interpretations often differ, resulting in different doctrinal sub-traditions (sects, denominations, etc.) within a larger faith tradition. Also, as religious scholar Reza Aslan has argued, a distinction has to be drawn between the formal teachings of a faith tradition and the actual beliefs and everyday practices of its adherents. A religion as it is taught from the pulpit is one thing; a religion as it is lived out in the daily lives of ordinary believers may be quite another—yet both are aspects of that religion. Neither can simply be ignored if you want a complete picture of what that faith tradition is all about. So, if you want to understand any religion, you can't just read its scriptures and assume that this alone will make you an expert on the subject. However, it is certainly a good place to start. If you are going to read the sacred texts of any religious tradition—especially one that is not your own and that you have not formally studied—it is probably best to do so with the aid of a good commentary written by someone who knows a lot more about the subject than you do and can help you navigate the text better than you could do on your own. That is why I chose to read this particular edition of the Qur'an, which includes a very thorough verse-by-verse commentary that helps clarify the meaning of ambiguous passages and that discusses the various ways that each verse has traditionally been interpreted by Islamic scholars. This edition also includes a number of expository essays and other supplemental material which are designed to help the reader get the most out of the text. So there are three aspects of this edition that I need to discuss in this review: (1) the text of the Qur'an itself (in English translation); (2) the verse-by-verse commentary; and (3) the essays and other supplemental material that accompany the text and commentary. Since I am not Muslim, I want to be as respectful as possible in my treatment of a sacred text, a faith tradition, and a culture that are not my own and that I cannot even pretend to fully "grok". Yet I also want to be as forthright in my judgment as I am able to be, while still acknowledging the limits of my own comprehension. So, here goes: Let me begin by discussing the verse-by-verse commentary (I'll save my discussion of the text of the Qur'an itself for last): If you want to read the Qur'an in English translation, and you are neither Muslim yourself nor an expert on Islam, then this is definitely the edition that you want to get. The commentary is truly a godsend. I would not recommend trying to feel your way through the text without the help of a good verse-by-verse commentary like the one in this edition. If you do try to read it on your own, you'll just end up completely lost at sea, because the meaning of many passages is quite opaque, especially to anyone who is not familiar with the historical and cultural context behind those passages, or the Arabic idiom in which they are written. And even if you were able to puzzle out the surface meaning of some passage, that still might not help you understand how Muslims interpret the doctrinal implications of that passage. The exegesis of the Qur'an is not always as straightforward as you might think (or hope). The advantage of this particular commentary for helping readers understand how Muslims interpret the Qur'an is that it makes every effort to be as ecumenical as possible. Rather than simply presenting one possible interpretation of any given passage—the one favored by the editors—this commentary presents a number of different possible interpretations, representing various schools of thought within Islam: including Sunni, Shi'ite, and even (in some cases) Sufi interpretations. To put that into terms that might be a bit more familiar to non-Muslims, it would be as if a commentary on the New Testament gave an unbiased overview of differing Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox interpretations of various passages, citing the writings of major theologians from each of these traditions. (I would love to find such a commentary on the New Testament, BTW.) Perhaps at this point I ought to mention that this is NOT a "critical" commentary on the Qur'an—its purpose is not to challenge the traditional teachings of Islam or traditional Muslim beliefs about the Qur'an itself; it seeks only to bring clarity to the meaning and doctrinal interpretation of the text. All of the members of the editorial team that produced the commentary are devout Muslims who regard the Qur'an as the Word of God, and they have tried to produce a commentary that faithfully reflects the teachings of their religion (with an acknowledgement of the diversity of views within Islam itself). Some students of religion may see this non-critical approach to the text as a shortcoming. I see it as an asset. After all, if you want to critique something, you first need to understand whatever it is that you're critiquing. If you are critiquing a set of religious beliefs, then you need to try your best to understand those beliefs as they are understood by those who believe them. And who better to learn from than devout believers themselves? (I don't mean to suggest that critical treatments of a subject ought to be avoided, even by beginners; only that it is usually better to hear the "pro" side of any argument before you listen to the "con".) The verse-by-verse commentary that accompanies the text in this edition of the Qur'an does an excellent job of explaining how devout Muslims understand their scriptures—and that is exactly what a novice student of Islam (or comparative religion) needs. Turning now to the expository essays and other supplemental material included at the end of this edition: I must confess that, for me—a curious outsider who wants to learn more about Islam—the essays were my favorite part of the entire volume. They offer a great deal of insight into various aspects of this fascinating, yet widely misunderstood, religion. Sure, I personally found some of these essays to be more engaging and more informative than others, but I believe that I learned something of value from each of them. My only complaint about the essays is that, at least in my opinion, the first essay—"How to Read the Quran"—should have been placed at the very front of the book, before the text of the Qur'an itself, because it would have been useful to have read that essay before reading the actual Qur'an (and let's face it, most people—including me—are not going to flip to the back of the book to read an essay before plunging into the Qur'anic text itself). One final note about the bonus materials at the back of the volume before I move on to discuss the text of the Qu'ran proper: There are maps! I love maps! In my opinion, any book that has maps is superior to any book that does not have maps. This book has maps! Yay! Okay, moving on ... Sadly, I don't read Arabic. (I'd love to learn—languages fascinate me, and Arabic seems like a lovely language—but life is short, there are only so many hours in the day, and choices have to be made. Perhaps one day I'll find the time, but I haven't thus far.) So I've never read the Qur'an in the original Arabic, which means that I cannot comment on the accuracy of this particular translation. Given the amount of care that the editors have so obviously put into this volume, it seems reasonable to me to assume that they made every effort to ensure that the English translation was as reliable as possible. But I am in no position to judge. Assuming, however, that the translation is reasonably accurate, I can comment on how well the English text reads. And frankly, with all due respect to the translators, it's a bit too stilted for my taste. It reads as if the translators were going out of their way to make the text sound as lofty as possible. It's not that the English itself is archaic—as in the King James Bible—it's just that it is very formal, even florid, bordering on poetic, with many word choices that are not common in everyday conversational English. I'm not sure to what extent this was dictated by the original Arabic text itself and to what extent it was a deliberate choice by the translators, but (at least for me) it was rather distracting. It is a bit like looking at a painting in a museum: it can be tempting to pay more attention to the artistry (the brush strokes, the color palate and shading, the perspective and composition) than to the actual subject the artist was trying to depict in the painting. Similarly, as I was reading this translation of the Qur'an, I found that my attention was drawn more to the style of the writing than to its meaning. This had the (presumably unintended) effect of "distancing" me from the text rather than drawing me in and helping me to more fully engage with what I was reading, intellectually and emotionally. Again, I can't be sure if that is the fault of this particular translation or if it is intrinsic to the style of the Qur'an itself, regardless of how it might be translated. And speaking of the style of the Qur'an itself ... with all due respect to those who hold it as the very Word of God ... honesty compels me to admit that I found it as dull as ditchwater—which is one of the reasons it took me so long to force myself to get all the way through it. The whole thing reads like something out of one of the more tedious of the Old Testament prophets—one of those books that you're always tempted to skip when reading through the Bible, because your eyes start to glaze over after just the first few verses every time you try to read it. The Qur'an is basically just one long, highly repetitive harangue against idolaters, unbelievers, and other assorted unrepentant sinners. There is no real narrative to speak of—at least not the sort of extended narrative, rich in detail, that you find in the Hebrew Bible and in the New Testament gospels. And the text of the Qur'an is extremely repetitive, which is one of the reasons I found it such a slog to get through. There were several occasions when I wondered if I might have somehow lost my place in the text, because the passage I was reading was virtually identical to a passage I had already read. While I'm sure that Islamic scholars are able to find rich nuances of meaning in these repetitions, not having the benefit of their insight, I'm afraid that I couldn't help but find them tedious. As for the specific teachings found in the Qur'an, I don't feel qualified to offer any commentary of my own. My goal in reading the Qur'an was to better understand Islam, not to critique it. I have my own theological views, of course, but I am not an authority on such matters; I claim no doctrinal infallibility for myself, and thus I am in no position to sit in judgment of the religious beliefs of others—especially those from a faith tradition that is not my own. I will say that reading the Qur'an has not changed my own way of thinking about theological or moral issues in any meaningful way. In fact, although I'm glad that I finally took the time to read the text, I must confess that I did not find it at all appealing, and I certainly didn't find it persuasive. Frankly, I found it rather off-putting. But that might tell you more about my own personal tastes and temperament than it tells you about the Qur'an itself. So, as the saying goes, "your mileage may vary."

I borrowed the book from library. (It's already in the public library.. how awesome is that!) I have been reading back and forth from different parts of the book and it's has been very interesting. Below are some of the points that I think are important. I will add to them as I keep reading the book. 1) The actual translation is new and absolutely love it. It's better than the translations of Haleem and Yusuf Ali (in my opinion). 2) Underneath the translation section, one is exposed to opinions and commentaries of traditional scholars from a wide range of different sources and views such as traditional Sunni (including Sufi, Hanbali etc), Shia, Mu`tazila, even Shia Mu'tazila and more!!! I always wanted to know about other opinions besides Tafsirs of Ibn Kathir and Jalalayn. This books offers a glimpse into these other opinions. 3) Although, I kind of understand the reasoning of avoiding a huge bulky book, I still hate the thin papers. It's so thin that I can see the writings from other side of the page. I would rather have a thicker book with sturdy papers that will last. I am afraid that by the time I return the book to the library after three renews, I will leave many damages. 4) This book should not be approached as one approaches Shuyukh and Ulema for wisdom and guidance. Rather, it is an "academic book" with a wealth of knowledge, that will tremendously assist one to understand how Qur'an has been studied and interpreted over the centuries and context of the verses. However, a layperson, like myself, wouldn't not be able to judge on his/her own, which views or understandings are/aren't compatible with his/her creed/school etc. Update: Just got my own copy today in the mail :)

Fantastic translation, with utilization of several reliable classical commentaries. I wish there was a version with the Arabic along with the English.