Introduction to the Qur'an

M.A. Draz obtained his doctorate at the Sorbonne in Paris, before returning to Cairo where he became Professor of Islamic Studies at Al Azhar University. At his death in 1958 he had established himself as one of the world's leading Islamic scholars. Professor Abdel Haleem is Professor of Islamic Studies at SOAS, and Director of its Centre of Islamic Studies, at the University of London. He has previously taught at the Universities of Cambridge and Cairo and is the author of Understanding the Qur'an: Themes and Styles (I.B.Tauris 1999).

• ForewordPrefacePart One: Background History1. The Early Life of the Prophet2. The Composition of the Revealed Text3. How the Qur’anic Doctrine was Announced to the WorldPart Two: The Qu’ran from its Three Main Aspects: Religion, Morality and Literature4. Truth, or the Religious Element5. Goodness, or the Moral Element6. Beauty, or the Literary ElementPart Three: The Origin of the Qu’ran7. Meccan Sources of the Qu’ran8. Medinan Sources of the Qu’ranConclusionNotesIndex

"'This valuable introduction to the study of the Qur'an by a prominent Azhar scholar provides a rare glimpse of applying modern textual-historical methodology to the study of Muslim scriptures. M. A. Draz understood the challenges of this critical methodology and attempted to respond to some of the persisting questions about the reliability of the Muslim scriptures and its misapprehended message of peace.' (Abdulaziz Sachedina, Frances Myers Ball Professor of Religious Studies, University of Virginia)"