Essential Koran: The Heart of Islam - An Introductory Selection of Readings from the Quran (Revised) (Revised)

Excellent book, weather your Muslim or not, it's an unbiased translation from a credible western academic, a must read to get an incite into what Muslims are all talking about.

In this continuation of the Essentials series, Thomas Cleary presents a basic introduction to the Koran.Koran (Qur'an, in some transliterations) literally means 'reading' or 'recitation'. According to Islamic tradition, the Koran is a spiritually revealed book, in the way Torah was revealed to Moses or the Gospel message was revealed to Jesus. Connecting to these earlier voices of the same God, the Koran also serves as a clarifier, a standard. The prophet Muhammad, born about year 570, orphaned early, led a fairly unremarkable life until about age 40, when he had a revelation, which his wife was perhaps first to recognise.This is a work in English; it is an article of faith among Muslims that the Koran cannot be truly translated into any language apart from the classical Arabic in which it was revealed. There is a fundamental difference between Arabic (or, more precisely, semitic) language and western languages. While all of the Koran is sacred for Muslims, there are portions which are more understandable and accessible to the Western reader; Cleary has assembled these together here.'Arabic, most precise and primitive of the Semitic languages, shows signs of being originally a constructed language. It is built up upon mathematical principles--a phenomenon not paralleled by any other language.'Given this view of the language, there are extensive notes throughout Cleary's translation to try to clarify some of the linguistic elements that are lost in translation.'In the name of God, the Compassionate, the MercifulAll praise belongs to God,Lord of all worlds,the Compassionate, the Merciful,Ruler of Judgment Day.It is You that we worship,and to You we appeal for help.Show us the straight way,the way of those You have graced,not of those on whom is Your wrath,nor of those who wander astray.'This is the opening of the Koran.The Koran and Islamic tradition holds that there have been 128,000 prophets, who have in their turn revealed 104 Books. The Torah, the Psalms, the Gospel and the Koran are the four most important books according to the Muslim point of view. Theologically, Islam is not exclusionist, and recognises the validity of revelation that has come before (even if not recognising that current practice retains the authority of that validity).As a priest, I recall the lines'People of the Book,do not go to excessin your religion,and do not say of Godanything but truth.'The prophet Muhammad would get irritated if a prayer leader would stretch things out to the discomfort of the attenders.'The Messiahdoes not disdainto be a servant of God,and neither do the intimate angels.As for those who disdainthe worship of Godand who aggrandize themselves,God will gatherall of them up.'In the search for pure truth, the Koran gives insight.'Say,"It is God, Unique,God the Ultimate.God does not reproduceand is not reproduced.And there is nothing at allequivalent to God."'Philosophy, history, sometimes confusing but mystically-deepening insights are all presented here. Cleary mostly allows the text of the Koran to stand for itself, without analysis, to allow the spirit to speak directly to the reader. More commentary and historical grounding for the non-Muslim reader would be niceVarious parts of the Koran were revealed in different places, and Cleary takes account of this in his organisation. Also, headings allow one to follow lines of thought, but it sometimes takes some real study and meditation to figure out the connexions.Spend some time with these writings, and approach it with an open mind and heart, holding fast to your own beliefs, to see what new light might be shed upon them.

I would never heard of Thomas Cleary. I came accross him from Hamza Yusuf lecture, this is the book he recommended to all foreigners as a begginers in Islam.It is translated brilliantly, with detailed expalnation of selected Koranic verses.Very interesting

Beautifully translated

Many years ago, this was the very first book that I read as an introduction to the Qur'an. In fact, it may have been responsible for leading me to study the Qur'an in much more detail in the following ten years, so in this sense it may have achieved its aim.The style of language is indeed quite different from the various mainstream translations out there; the language is much more brief and terse. The style may well have been influenced by Cleary's deep interest in Taoist and Buddhist literature - or it may be a welcome attempt to reflect the brevity and terseness of the Arabic original, which can easily be lost in the more wordy English translations (especially those which ape the Elizabethan style of the KJV). The style is refreshing but in some parts the accuracy is suspect to say the least (and regrettably, I'm left wondering whether this is deliberately so).But beware; the "selection of readings" really is only a small portion of the Qur'an. He has selected a number of verses from each Surah, and omitted some Surahs entirely. This is understandable as the book is meant to be an initial introduction to the Qur'an, but there is no doubt that the verses that have been selected are those that will sound most innocuous or agreeable to Western ears. They are in no way representative of the whole text (which you might assume like I did, if you knew no better). The selections are heavily skewed towards the early Makkan period; these verses have a very different style and impact to the majority of the Qur'anic text.Immediately after reading Cleary's book, I went on to read two full translations of the Qur'an and I have to admit I had the feeling that I'd been "lied to" or "misled" (I hesitate to use those words, but it's the very strong feeling I got at the time). It's easy to suspect that Cleary had an agenda other than providing a balanced selection of verses that would give a flavour of the whole Qur'an. Since that time, I studied Arabic, which led me to be particularly suspicious of parts of Cleary's translations.The lengthy introduction is useful for beginners - it will undoubtedly give you a desire to find out more. The introduction is well worth reading but should be taken with a large pinch of salt. He is clearly trying to represent the religion and its main text in the most favourable and least controversial way possible, which could be dangerous considering the typical reader will be a naive Westerner with little prior knowledge of Islam.Overall I WOULD recommend this book to someone who currently knows little about the subject and wants a primer. But it is strongly recommended that you invest the time in reading a FULL translation of the Qur'an soon afterwards, and find out about Islam from varied sources. Be prepared that it might not be quite what you're expecting on the back of Cleary's work.

This is a selection of readings from the Koran. It is a slim book. For a reader not familiar with the chapters of the Koran this book is not useful. There is no reference to any particular chapter of the Koran in the selections. Neither is there an index.

This is a brilliant poetic translation of The Qur'an! When Shaykh Hamza Yusuf met President George Bush after the 9/11 attacks, he gifted him this book. I'd recommend this book for beginners who wish to understand the message of Islam.

Cleary has done a quite a few "essential" translations of sacred texts and this is just one in the series. It's titled, "The Essential Koran" because Cleary focuses on the spirit of the book and leaves out much of the narrations on jurisprudence. It's the passages that are central to the creed of the faith and are most memorized and recited by adherents that are reflected in this collection. Considering that I've gone through at least 12 copies of this book over the last 10 years, I probably should have drafted a review when I received my first copy. Every so often I'll look at my library and find that I've given away my last copy and I'll inevitably order a few more copies.So, why do I love sharing this book with people? Aside from that which is mentioned above, it's eloquently written and easy to read for those who are cannot read & understand the classical Arabic Qur'an. At about 200 pages long, it's not as intimidating as the full translation. It's just enough text for those who are unfamiliar with the Qur'an to give one a clear and precise vision of the original in a succinct, yet nuanced manner. Readers looking for the real 'meat and potatoes' of the Qur'an and those with an interest in linguistics will find it particularly appealing.Cleary addresses this in the introduction:". . . The Qur'an is extremely dense and extraordinarily intense. The present collection of readings from the Qur'an is simply designed to help non-Muslim Westerners approach this sacred book and savor something of its literally amazing power and grace through a selection of chapters and verses encapsulating some of the central ideas and essential beauties of the Book."This translation is meant to be a recitation. Cleary states:"In stringing these verses together in a rosary for recitation, for the most part I have followed the Arabic original in division of verses. The division of verses into lines, in contrast, has nothing to do with the Arabic original but with the cadence of the English and the psychological weighting of words, which have tremendous individual force in the Qur'an.In this connection, it is essential to observe that this English version is intentionally designed for reading aloud, for absorption and reflection, because this is characteristic of the Qur'an itself, from the very beginning of its revelation."Cleary's selections leave those who are touched by that message and spirit wanting so much more. Cleary's full translation of the Qur'an is titled, "The Qur'an: A New Translation" and that is truly a masterpiece.Take the 1-2 star reviews with a grain of salt; they seem to be ramblings of those who have a xenophobic attitude towards Muslims or Islam itself. The translation itself is sound and an essential addition to one's library. For those starting to delve into the one of the most revered sacred texts in history, this is a fine introduction.

In my oppinion (speaking as a Muslim who has a hobby of looking at different Koran/Qur'an translations), this is the best one for obtaining an introductory understanding of the linguistic nuances and subtle allusions that is out there. Cleary presents a translation of the Koran by explaining linguistic concepts and not doctrine or theology. His elimination of the Masculine gender for God (by replacing it with the name God), however, while being unique, sometimes disrupts the flow of a few passages of the text.Overall, I am completely satisfied with this earlier translation of the Koran (his later translation, while complete, has no ilucidating or explicating comments), making this the primary edition.Below are a couple excerpts (from the introduction and from the Chapter entitled "Light" [along with its accompanying notes]), for the interested reader."One particular problem in rendering the Qur'an into English is presented by the numerous intensive forms used to refer to attributes of God. There are different forms of intensification in Arabic, with different ways of interpreting or describing even one form. In this English version, general, encompassing terms of intensity are used, with the provision that these expressions are intended to function as points from which the consciousness of the reader is to launch upwards toward contemplation of supernal ideals. The purpose, in other words, is not to represent God in human terms but to use human language as a means of directing the eye of contemplation toward the inexpressible infinity of the spiritual and metaphysical realities symbolized by language.In stringing these verses together in a rosary for recitation, for the most part I have followed the Arabic original in division of verses. The division of verses into lines, in contrast, has nothing to do with the Arabic original but with the cadence of the English and the psychological weighting of words, which have tremendous individual force in the Qur'an.In this connection, it is essential to observe that this English version is intentionally designed for reading aloud, for absorption and reflection, because this is characteristic of the Qur'an itself, from the very beginning of its revelation.""LightIN THE NAME OF GOD, THE COMPASSIONATE, THE MERCIFUL(35-42)God is the light of the heavens and the earth.The simile of God's light is like a niche in which is a lamp, the lamp in a globe of glass, the globe of glass as if it were a shining star, lit from a blessed olive treeneither of the East nor of the West, its light nearly luminouseven if fire did not touch it.Light upon light!God guides to this lightwhomever God will: and God gives people examples; and God knows all things.The light is in houseswhich God has allowed to be raisedthat the name of God be remembered there, where God is glorified in the mornings and the evenings, by people who are not diverted by business or commerce from remembrance of God and persistence in prayer and giving of alms, as they fear a day on whichhearts and eyes will be transformed,that God may reward them for the best of what they did, and grant them even more from the grace divine.And God provides without measure to whomever God will.As for the ungrateful who do not have faith, their works are like a mirage on a plain, which the thirsty man thinks to be water until he comes to it and finds nothing there-- but he finds God in his presence, andGod pays him his earnings; and God is swift in accounting-- or like the darknesses in an ocean deep and vastcovered over with waves, upon them waves, over them clouds.Darknesses one on top of another; if one stretched forth a hand, one would hardly see it.And whoever God gives no lighthas no light at all.Do you not see that God is glorified by all beings in the heavens and the earth, even the birds on the wing?Each one knows its own mode of prayer and of praise: and God is aware of all that they do.For to God belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; and the journey is to God.""Light (al Nuur) (Chapter 24)This chapter was revealed at Medina. I begin my selection from the famous Light Verse, one of the most prized of all passages from the Qur'an. The earlier verses of this chapter deal with social mores, including themes of chastity, privacy, modesty, and keeping innocent of vicious gossip.36 "in houses which God has allowed to be raised": The word "raised" may be understood in the concrete sense of "set up," meaning houses of devotion built especially for constant remembrance of God; and the abstract sense of "elevate," meaning houses ennobled by constant remembrance of God.37 "people who are not diverted": Some take this to refer to people who leave off worldly occupations to devote themselves completely to remembrance of God; others take it to refer to people whose worldly occupations do not distract them from constant and complete devotion to God.39 "their works are like a mirage on a plain": Works emanating from human folly are based on subjective considerations and thus ultimately prove objectively insubstantial.40 "or like the darknesses": This again refers to the works of ingrates who refuse to acknowledge the source of all being. The ocean is their consciousness, the darknesses are layers of ignorance, the waves are impulsive imaginings, the waves upon waves are rationalizations of their imaginings, the clouds are biases and blind spots."if one stretched forth a hand, one would hardly see it": The ignorance and blindness of the ungrateful not only hinders them from acknowledging the ultimate end, it veils them from the truth of what is near at hand."whoever God gives no light has no light at all": All true knowledge is from Truth: subjective human imagination has no connection with ultimate reality."

Here, Cleary successfully captures the lyrical, lilting, poetic prose of the Arabic language that has served to spiritually lift the emotions and minds of the readers of the Koran. Cleary explains the main reason why Arabic an present complex ideas and emotions.

Read this for a Philosophies of Religion class and read the whole thing, easy ride and nicely insightful.