An engaging, rewarding read, much needed these days. Though they discussed the problems these three faiths have with each others claims to chosenness and truth, and hinted a few times at needing to widen the dialogue to include "other" non Abrahamic faiths, they did so in a way which indicates some lingering conceit and self righteousness. Hmm. Can't we rejoice in how our common spiritual yearnings find various expression in different cultures?

This book was great...' kept my full attention. The last book I reviewed was about the same religions, but this one was so much better. It gave me a much better understanding of the common Islamic views. You get the words straight from the discussion between the 3 faiths, not just one man's research of other men. This book is very simple for any reader to enjoy. It is always great not only to see comparative religion but to see people with entirely different views on the same subjects conversing "in a beautiful manner". They are struggling to find a way to bring their views together, and the Christian commented on how very close he was to including Muhammad as a prophet of God. Their struggles just begged one uniting cry in my mind, although they didn't know it themselves: Baha'i.

This book is based on live dialogue between well-qualified spokesmen representing Judaism, Christianity and Islam, presented before audiences throughout the United States. It provides an excellent insight into each religious tradition, and left me with a greater appreciation for what the three faiths have in common. Worth reading by anyone who wants to better understand the relationships between the three Western religions that trace their beginnings to Abraham

...I enjoyed this book due to its utter simplicity in defining the essence of the Islamic spiritual perspective. Most Western readers and adherants of Islam would find a wealth of insight in this work, their vehicle being stories, odes, and folklore. It is written in a way that even a young person can easily identify the spiritual truths the shaykh is illustrating. If all of us who claim to follow the teachings of Muhammad (pbuh)come to understand the spiritual truths exposed in this book we might understand what defines Islam a little better.

"Irshad" is easily the best 20th century work of it's kind, with thiry-three chapters covering a wide territory of information. The chapters are by subject and each includes ayats (verses) from the Quran, hadith, and Sufi teaching stories to drive the message home. "Irshad" is the classic work from Muzaffer Ozak (K.S.) available in English. With the myriad of books on "Sufi stories" in the marketplace, it is refreshing to have an authoritative book that places them in their appropriate context. "Irshad" is a desert-island book if there ever was one.

" admirable translation sharp English style comes across to modern people while preserving the dignity of the original a telling presentation of the central elements of Islamic faith a relevant commentary on the events of our own time should be on the recommended reading list of all English Muslims. " -Association of British Muslims

" conveys the essential message of Sufism and its wisdom for human behavior Muhtar Holland, one of the best translators into English. has made this especially readable " - Link International Islamic Newsletter Regarded by many as the most important work in Islamic spirituality of our time, the lrshad appears for the first time in English translation. The work charts the Sufi spiritual path and discipline through discourse and dialogue, story and prayer, scriptural commentary and spontaneous mystical teachings in worship and action The spirit of the work is reflected in the words of the author:

O my Generous Master' You created this servant of Yours and brought him into being from a drop of water I do not even have the right to say I love You, and yet I do love You. I always remember You I know that even my being able to remember.

You is also due to Your guidance. My mentioning Your Name of Majesty left me drunk, bewildered, and amazed. Is it possible to imagine anyone in this world loving the Divinity and not becoming intoxicated with such affection ? So great a blessing is affection that even if its possessor should stray into the wilderness, the fire of his love would not allow him to feel the heat of the desert. Should the lover fall into the fire, the heat of his love would extinguish that fire. The fire of love would cause the poles and glaciers to melt. If mountains and boulders were piled upon the back of the lover, the fire of his love would prevent his feeling the weight of the load. Affection makes a person forget about hunger and thirst, and keeps him on the road of love. '

Bluntly said, human beings have constructed a machine that islosing control and rapidly moving towards the destruction of theentire human race. This machine is built with the philosophy ofmaterialism, the global economic system of capitalism, the neverending drive for technology, and the never ending desire for"progress". In our own lifetimes we are witnessingecological disasters that have never occured in world history. The"rape" of nature is manifesting signs of abuse, all of whichare progressively becoming uglier and more serious. Naively, somepeople think that alternative forms of energy will solve the entireproblem.

"Man and Nature" is an invaluable work in thatit puts the current madness of technology, capitalism, globalism, and"progress" into a proper perspective. Rather than picking atthe surface manifestations of the problem, Professor Nasr explores thehistorical developments that created the problem in the firstplace. He identifies a time when the West, the bastion of"progress" and technology, once had some respect fornature. This respect was part of a metaphysical view of a much morecomprehensive cosmology of the universe. This respect, thoughincomparable to the more natural metaphysics of Eastern cultures, wasnevertheless an historical fact of pre-Rennaissance Westerncosmology. Unfortunately, with the advent of the modern science andthe materialism of rationalists like Francis Bacon, the West lost thisrespect for nature and all metaphysical thought along with it. Bacon'scall to dominate nature for the benefit of human beings replaced theolder metaphysics as the dominant philosophy and remains sotoday. What is left is man at the center of the universe, who becomesthe object of unconditional worship, and to him is given the ritualsacrifice of nature.

Professor Nasr points to the metaphysical viewof nature in Eastern religions, arguing that a heirarchy of reality isa universal, indeed objective, truth. That such metaphysics of aheirarchy of reality, though not all exactly alike, was shared by allof the world's religions, including Christianity. The West should looknot only to its past (St. Francis of Assisi called his people towitness the mystery God in nature) but also to the East, to regain ametaphysical understanding of the world. The West should notcompromise with sell-out thelogians...who attempted to incorporateevolution into Christian theology. Such attempts yield"metaphysical absurdities and theological heresies" and onlylubricate the machine.

As insightful as this book is, I did feelthat it was somewhat lacking in answering the problem. Identifying theproblem isn't enough. Professor Nasr does state that we need toestablish a science of metaphyics and a philosophy of science andtechnology to check the current madness and put human endeavors in aproper context. However, this science of metaphyisics is not found inthe book and no specific reference is given to a book that doescontain such an elaboration. (The book does contain several pages ofuseful footnotes, but on this specific point no direction is providedby the author.) Another problem I found with the book is the call forthe West to revive the metaphysical science that once existed inpre-Rennaissance Christianity. Such a notion is not likely, asChristianity itself is no longer part of the establishment of Westernculture. Aside from the lay masses who still practice Christianitylike sheep, the intellectual classes simply have divorced themselvesfrom religion altogether. So, to call for a revival of an extinctaspect of a religion that is now officially defunct (I mean in theofficial domains) is to me futile. Rather, I would advocate theintroduction of Eastern metaphysics into the dry, spiritless cultureof the West, rather than appealing to the corpse ofChristianity.

Regardless, I still found the book to beintellectually invaluable. Seyyed Hossain Nasr is a powerful andinspiring mind. He not only stands apart from Muslim thinkers, but towers over Western thinkers with considerable force.

In this short book, Seyyed Hossein Nasr takes a look at the relationship between man and nature and the spiritual crisis that inflicts modern man in his "war against nature". In examining ecological crisis, war, and industrial failure, Nasr argues that modern science has lost touch with the sacred in its applications. Rather than being rooted in the unified outlook of traditional man along with his religious traditions, modern man sees the world through the eyes of a crass materialism, scientism, and positivism. It is this lack of worldview which Nasr believes is the spiritual crisis behind the troubled relationship between man and nature. Nasr begins by examining this problem and explaining how a base scientism has attempted to uproot the understanding of traditional man. In making this comparison, Nasr looks at the alternative philosophies of science, beginning with the positivists and comparing them to the viewpoints of various religious philosophers on the question of science. Here it is necessary to understand the limitations of science, particularly as they apply to its application, which is at the root of the ecological crisis in modern man. Next, Nasr turns to the historical roots of science in Greek and Christian philosophy and theology. Nasr argues that much of the problem can be found in the neglect to emphasize these historical roots rather than simply glorify modern science. By placing science within its historical framework, it is possible to see exactly how the crisis has come about. Nasr argues that in particular, the breakdown of the Christian tradition and the secularization of science is at fault. Next, Nasr turns to the metaphysical principles that underlie man's understanding of nature. In particular, Nasr examines those principles as expounded in the traditions of the world's great religions: Taoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, particularly with reference to Sufism. Finally, Nasr seeks to explain how the retrieval of this traditional understanding of nature can be applied to the modern situation and crisis. The book concludes with a discussion of what Nasr believes to be the errors of such modern theories and notions as that of evolution. All in all, this book is an interesting discussion of the shifting relationship between man and nature, and it offers hope for the alleviation of spiritual crisis by returning to the traditions within the world's religions.

Seyyed Nasr, takes the reader through history and causes of the descralization of nature in the west and the resultant ecological crisis we face today. He shows how the west via the divorce of science from spirit has wrecked havoc on our planet. And also how the Christian faith helped accelerate this process when it removed elements of its metaphysical doctrines that kept nature as a part of the divine. In addition he elucidates how some of the philosophical schools of thought help widen the schism between man, nature and the divine. He closes with a chapter what can be done to correct the problem via the resacralization of nature as a reflection of the Creator.

Seyyed Nasr main thrust in correcting Christianity's loss of sapiential wisdom or gnosis is to turn to the eastern traditions like Tantra or Taoist alchemy. However considering the animosity that mainstream churches have towards the other spiritual traditions this is not likely to occur for a number of reasons.
1) The Christians who've adopted other methods are considered marginal at best, heretics at worst. Just try promoting yoga at your local highschool and see what happens. A current example would be Thomas Merton. He came closet to what Seyyed Nasr is asking. Still to many Christians he is considered an apostate.
2) Christianity in many instances has been reduced to down to after life fire insurance policy and God being a banker and greengrocer to the elect. Just get 'saved' and thats it.
3) Christian intellectual tradition is so bad nowadays as to be non-existent. So bad it took a devout Moslem to write about what should have been obvious to any Christian leader with a functioning brain.
4)To recreate a gnosis within Christianity it would take man whose a "finished student" of say Tantra and had the intellectual capacity and church authority to integrate these teachings in a seemless manner. Plus establish a living transimission. No small task.

What I even more amazing is that this book was first written in 1967 and is better than most of the recent writings on this problem including: Ken Wilbers Sense and Soul and Robert Ornstein's 'The AxeMakers Gift".

Overall it is a very informative and a easy read that one can keep comming back to and learning something new.

If you like E.F. Schumacher, Huston Smith, Gregory Bateson, Jacob Needleman, you will enjoy this book. I would also include anyone who is concerned about what is happening in the world via the loss of faith, runaway technology and destruction of the planet we live upon.

BTW the references section is a excellent starting point for further research.

We get so little information from our media on the largest pilgrimage in the world, that this book is a revelation. Islam and the Hadj are an integral part of the history and culture of the Middle East, and by extension, our world.

The photography is nothing short of stunning, and there is little that is not covered, so that one gets a good sense of the topography, the rites, and of course, the pilgrims.

An essential book not only for Muslims, but perhaps even more for non-Muslims looking to understand one of the world's great faiths.

I will never, as a non-Muslim, be able to visit the holy cities, but this book was the next best thing. Flawless.

This book has stunning and beautiful pictures of Islam's holy areas and pictures of Muslims in action. As a non-Muslim, I would never be able to see these things in person. This book gave me a lot of insight into such things, and I definately do not regret the purchase.

This is a beautiful photographic essay on the experience of the Hajj. It includes photos of Mecca and the Kaaba, the physical locus of prayer for Muslims around the world. It also includes photos of the City of Medina, the site of the tomb of the Prophet, Muhammad upon him be peace.

An introductory essay gives a brief description of the historical expansion of the buildings around the Kaaba and the Holy Tomb. Colorful views of the rituals of the pilgrimage provide Westerners with an insight into this essential ritual of Islam. I especially appreciate the photos of Muslims from around the world as they gather together in pilgrimage.

It is a book I have chosen to share with friends and family to increase their understanding of Islam.

To me it is the reality that counts and not the ideals that look good on the paper. There has been a number of religions and idealogies who promised the Utopia to Man but all failed miserably and Islam is no exception. The reality of Islam is very much similar to that of Commonism, with their promise of universal brotherhood, peace, prosperity, equality, justice, unity, spiritual growth etc etc etc, but what we got instead was just the opposite. No one can argue with historical facts and realities can they? Usually we moslem tell others how Islam tranformed Arabia and built an empire, as if building empire is something unique to Islam. Many other cultures built empires, perhaps even more spectacular that the Islamic one, does that mean that they were backed by divine wisdom and divine approval? What is it about the Islamic empire that makes it unique as compared to other empires and sets it aside as a "Divine empire" vs. an evil empire that rulled by sword and finally collappsed by sword? The reality of Islam is that right from start it created conflicts and fanaticism and caused much bloodshed. Quran, which was supposed to be a book of guidance became a book of confusion, Islam became just another religion, as if we needed one more. This is the reality, what about the ideals? Ideals are easy to come up with, I can come up with a million of ideals that would make our world a "Heaven" on earth, as they say "talk is cheap". What plans do you have to implement these ideals? How are you going to accomplish them? Past 1400 years Islam has failed repeatedly over and over again. Even among our scholars there isn't an agreement of what these ideals are or how they should be implemented and Quran is of no help either. Each group is dancing to a different tune, they have been for almost 14 centuries and there is no end at sight either. Even at the time of Muhammad or right after his death, moslems began their dispute about Quran and Islam and drew sword on each other and many fell vicitim, each group delaring Jihad on the other ones. If Quran and Islam was incapable of acoomplishing a promised Utopia and unity among a few thousand first generation moslems, how do you think it is going to acoomplish it later? Has it been able to? What does history tell us? what is the reality? Some people, like the author who is a Shii, tell us that soemthing went wrong from the very beginning, which denied Islam the chance to prove itslef and its capabilites. Perhaps this claim of Shiism is true. That may very well be an explanation for Islam's failure. There other people who actually don't see anything wrong with the realites of Islam and consider the reality of Islam throughout the hsitory a perfect example, not even God could do better. These folks have the lowest standard of all people and when one is that low, one is just that Low and not much can be done or said. There are yet others, like me, who hold the idea that Islam was a sincere but human attempt to better humanity and our life. The mistake was to make it a "divine" attempt. There is nothing divine about Quran or Islam, if there was, the result would have been much better than what it turned out to be. It should have been classified as a philosphy among many other philosophies, an attempt by human mind to make sense of universe and his own existence. Everyone knows a philosophy is just that, a philosophy, and many people have different views and opinions, most of which are probably wrong, but then no one will die for it and no one will kill for it either. But once you call it a divine religion with absolute truth embeded in it, now you begin to sound frightening.

This book is, if you read enough of them, which thanks god he has written plenty, you can tell by Sayyid Nasr. It has logic built in to it.Main topic is response to Orientalist in their effort to minimize Islam and reduce it to just a Arab custom. Nasr responds to all their claims(may be not all there are so many)and seems to me that he bases all his responses on the idea that Orientalist do not belive Islam being a God given religion. He shows that when they attack Islam they use the arguments that say not having a good logical foundation but in turn they use same arguments in their own religion as fundemantel concepts. As Nasr puts it,He is ready to accept these claims from idolaters but not from the people of the book, for we all have the same fundemantel beliefs about how religions are revealed. All religions are based on some sort of belief and I believe even the quran states that this book is for believers who believe in unseen. What makes Islam better than others is for me that it has more reason and concept built into it.

This is a great introduction to Islam by a professor of Islamic Studies at the George Washington University. It's written for Western readers and relates pretty well to the kinds of questions and preconconceptions the Western reader has about Islam. It's not as easy to read as, say, "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Islam" (which is also not a bad starting place, actually) and it does require some concentration, but it is an in-depth analysis of Islamic principles without being so scholarly that it's totally inaccessible.

One thing to note: this is more a book on the academic and theoretical aspects of Islam, such as divine law, the Qur'an, Sunni vs. Shi'i Islam, etc. It doesn't cover the day to day beliefs and practices of your average Muslim. So for someone who wants to learn about the 2nd largest religion in the world, this is definitely one of the books to get. But it might be good to get another one to read in conjunction, one that covers what Muslims themselves are like, such as "American Muslims" or "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Islam."

I sought Frithjof Schuon because I had heard he produced some of the most severe and serious religious writing of the twentieth-century. This is true; he has no equal (in the twentieth-century). However - Even though my seriousness and sensibilites found kinship with his thoughts, after time, they burned me out. For me, in America, I could not adapt to a standard of living that brought me as close to God, or an Absolute, as I felt I should have been; I have since gone on to other things. On another hand, he feeds my intellect in ways that are unexplainable, and for that, I am grateful. Anyone, of any religion, can work to understand this book.

The book is a good introduction to Schuon, providing a fairly detailed overview of the Swiss thinker's central ideas. Nasr, through his introduction, paves the way for the reader to better understand Schuon's extremely dense yet rich style. This is a great help on Nasr's part, since Schuon's unique style renders his writings difficult to break into. But once this apparent impenetrability is overcome, the reader will be dumbfounded by the depth and profundidty of Schuon's brilliant insights. Like any great thinker, this man has his deficencies, and sometimes they are blaring. But who said profundidity must be accompanied by infalibility?

This book is a must for artists, mathematicians, philosophers and anyone else interested in the foundations and rationale of Islamic art.

This book provides a comprehensive insight into Islamic Patterns in a clear and concise way. I have used this book on a number of occasions when I have needed inspiration for drawings, paintings and even for works of management strategy - curiously enough. It has a wonderful way of both focusing and relaxing the mind that seems to encourage channeled creativity.

regards,

martyn_jones@iniciativas.com

With the recent horrific events in New York, there are many who are asking just what it is about Islam that causes it, wherever it is actually put into political practice (e.g., Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Palestine, Libya, Syria, etc, etc) to be associated with such sub-human barbarism. Again and again we are told that these represent "aberrations" from the true spirit Islam, and that the vast majority of Muslims in the world have somehow gotten their own religion all wrong.
Well, here is a book by and about probably the greatest Islamic scholar in world, Seyyed Nasr. On page 260, he emphasizes that "the modern world [meaning the West] is essentially evil and accidentally good," whereas the traditional world (to which Islamic fundamentalists wish us to return) is "essentially good and accidentally evil."
Now, I have no doubt whatsoever that Nasr himself is not an evil or violent man. However, what he fails to understand is that this type of disgusting rhetoric is embraced by other Muslims as a warrant for genocide. In other words, if something is "essentially evil," for example, Naziism, we are not only permitted to destroy it, but morally compelled to do so. Bin Ladin is in full agreement with Nasr that the West is "essentially evil," which is why he not only feels no compunction in slaughtering thousands of innocents, but is utterly convinced that he has advanced the cause of good (and God) in the world. How could it be otherwise?
Professor Nasr ought to have the courage of his convictions, and leave the "evil" civilization, the United States, that has warmly embraced him since he fled Iran some twenty-three years ago. Better yet, he ought to get on his knees every day and thank Allah that he is not condemned to live in a Muslim theocracy where his foolish ideas are put into evil practice.

Nasr is a premier philosopher of science and arguably the West's leading Islamicist.

This particular work draws together a wide range of responses to Nasr's writings from scientists, philosophers, and scholars of religion that are both highly laudatory and scathingly critical.

The extent of Nasr's influence can be judged by the academic, religious, and cultural diversity of the contributers.

Of special interest to those who are familiar with Nasr's philosophical vision already is that many of the arguments raised against his understanding of the "sophia perennis" are responded to here in one form or another through Nasr's exhaustive replies to each essay.

The only major shortcoming to this work is the absence of a contribution addressing some of the theological and philosophical problems surrounding Nasr's belief in a transcendent and esoteric unity of religions. This particular aspect of the Iranian philosopher's thought has sparked a considerable degree of dialogue among Muslims, much of it, no doubt, ridden by misunderstandings. A contribution by a non-perennialist Traditionalist such as the Shadhili Sufi Shaikh, Nuh Keller, or the Ba Alawi Cambridge professor, Abdul-Hakim Murad, would have completed this excellent volume.

Perhaps the editors did consider including a critical essay of this nature, but deemed it outside the field of the book, which is after all concerned with philosophy per se. But if there is anything one gets from Nasr, it is that philosophy and religion, conceived in the traditional sense, exist through a symbiotic interdependency: Religion provides a concrete method for the existential realization or "tahqiq" of philosophical truths whereas philosophy provides the Intellectual basis for religion.

Because Nasr's truly holistic worldview necessitates the mutual dependence of religion and philosophy, the absence of a critical essay questioning the legitimacy of Nasr's perennial philosophy from a theologically Islamic vantage point, (since that is the tradition through which he speaks), can't but be seen as a deficiency in an otherwise comprehensive collection of articles.

Finally, some readers might be troubled by Nasr's criticisms of modernity, such as his claim that the "the modern world is essentially evil and accidentally good," whereas the traditional world is "essentially good and accidentally evil." These statements have to be understood in the broader context of his philosophy.

For Nasr, the traditional world was pervaded by a tremendous sense of the Sacred and the Absolute, whereas the inception of modernity involved precisely the severing off of that awareness, resulting in what Max Weber would later dub the "disenchantment of the world."

Nazism was as much a product of that disenchantment as was secular liberalism, fascism, communism, and colonialism. All of these ideological strains were products of the Enlightenment. Modern day religious terrorism, guided as it is by a desire for a modern utopian state through the use of sophisticated modern weaponry and strategy is simply another expression of Modernity with the unique feature that it employs the symbology of religion.

Nasr has been an unrelenting opponent of Islamic fundamentalism in all its forms throughout his career because he sees it as a somewhat vigilante reactionary movement operating within the paradigm of the modern nation state, but even more so, because it lacks a well thought out metaphysical basis rooted in a traditional Muslim understanding of the world which respects both nature and human dignity.

To say then that Nasr's religiously based critique of modernity translates into a tacit endorsement of political terrorism is not only a gross misrepresentation of his outlook, but an indictment against one's own capacity to understand.

Book is about his philosophy in the form of critics written by other scholars in this field or against it. It starts with short biography of Dr.Nasr, mostly his activities written by him. It sounds a liitel strange when he praises himself but what is the difference if it is the truth. Main part of the book is various themas of his Perennial Philosophy. Each scholar has taken some aspects of his writings or known beliefs and either commented on it, supported it or tried to negate it. After each such writing, Dr. Nast has responded and gave his defence or clarifications on the issues that might have been mis represented or mis understood. This book is a quick and short way into his philosophy for lazy minds. Rather than reading his book "Knowledge and Sacred", you can read this book and get the whole idea. In his theory of Transendental Unity of Religions it sounds like he is building on the ayat that says similar to each man is born with a concept of God. Theory seems to be long strech and depends on definition of Religion. Besides the philosophy itself this book is worth to read for someone interested in unity of religions and view of contemporary Islamic scholar on philosphy of religion. One thing is important that you need to read this book with symbolism and mystisism in mind and in the context of the subject than you understand what he is saying, otherwise you could get crooked interpretations. One of the writers in the book had a wrong understanding about his statement about modern world and Mr. Nasr has given a good answer to it.

This book is nothing but mere misrepresentation of history. The knowledge and sciences that the authors claims to be somehow associated with Islam, were produced by Persian, Egyptian and Indian scientists who were either Muslims or pretended to be Muslims. These three civilizations have been prosperous and flourishing for thousands of years before the existence of Islam and have contributed to the advancement of human knowledge long before anything like Islam come to existence. These civilizations and others that, were present in the vicinity of Arabic peninsula were affluent and successful even right before rapid spread of Islam by means of military endeavors. The indigenous cultures of these people were destroyed and the progress was halted in these regions for a couple of centuries after advent of Islam and forceful conversion of the inhabitants to Islamic faith. Many books and libraries and knowledge produced by them were burnt in the fire of Arabo-Muslim ignorance.

Much of knowledge claimed in this book to be of Islamic origin was simply the translation of Greek, Pahlavi (Persian), Indian and Egyptian books by Egyptians, Persians, Indians and some Arabs to Arabic. And the later progresses were based on them.
If you look at the biography of these famous so-called Muslim scientists like Khayyam, Avecina, Averos, Arrazi, Khawrizmi etc. most of them one way or another had been accused of apostasy or infidelity during their lifetime. I don't know how somebody for instance could associate Khayyam with Islam or any other religion in that matter!!
The contents of this book even the title of it is as absurd and as preposterous as trying to associate the scientific advancements made in today's US research and educational institutes to Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwel and Church of Jesus Christ, simply because all of the scientists there, are born Christians.

I came across this book purely by chance in a charity shop, and as I had a passing intrest in the history of mathematics decided to buy it, mainly for the pictures. To be honest at first I just flicked through it, put it on my bookshelf, and forgot about it. It was only about a year later, when I started to do some more serious research into the history of the number system that I took a second look at the book. The author, I have since discovered is a well known authority on the subject, and coined the term Islamic Science. The book's presentation is excellent. The pictures are both attractive and well chosen, and add to the content of the book rather than just decorating it. I was primarilly interested in the sections concerning Islamic mathematics, and it was a pleasure to be able to see the manuscripts and instruments I had been reading so much about. The book covers a lot of ground, from maths to medicine, although it is not as detailed as some on the subject. It's interest lies however in the fact that it covers different ground to most similar books. The author mentions lots of facts which I otherwise found only in old or obscure texts. It should also be noted that the author is Muslim, which means that he is able to offer more of an insight into the religious and philosophical aspects of the history of Islamic Science and Maths than most western writers do. This is the most pleasing aspect of the book, and the one which makes it a valuable addition to the bookshelf of any mathematician, islamicist, or maths teacher. This book is worth buying if you want an attractive introduction to Islamic Science, or if you want to read the perspective of somone who doesn't simple see the Arab contribution to Mathematics and Science as a diversion to fill the pages between the greeks and the renaisance.

A very informative and well written book by some one who is obviously an authority on the subject. A good aspect of this book is to intorduce the reader to the notion of "Islamic science" rather than "Arab science" which is used by some semi schoalrs. The term "Islamic scinece"is significant since it indicates the input and contribution of many cultures, Arab and non Arab into the body of sicentific knowledge created in Islamic civilization. It also is an indication of how, contrary to common misconceptions, Islamic religion brought together a vast number of people from different cultures and background and created an environment of harmony and spiritual awareness which led to many great philosophical and scientific works. As a moslem philosopher once said " The dark ages for moslem nations started when moslems lost connection with the essence of their religion and spirituality".

Honestly speaking, if producing such materials helps to alleviate the obsessive inferiority complex of Muslim writers like this author and other readers and sympathizers, before the advancements and magnificence of Western culture; well let it be.
The Islamic world is drowned in ignorance and misery. Not a single contribution is being made to the progress of science, technology, art, humanity, etc. by these people, the only gift is terrorism.
The author maliciously downplays the role of modernity in today's people's lives. I guess he wants to have an Islamic government run over all today's civilized world, may be something like Taliban to implement all the Islamic codes and culture.
Well sorry pal that's not possible. But the important point is that the author himself is an immigrant or a refugee who fled the Islamic culture of his own birthplace, that's the irony.

It is a favorite conceit of Muslims to claim that the West lacks a religious or moral component to its culture. Islam rewards outward conduct, such as repetitive and mindless prayers and the wearing of particular costumes as an act of holiness. When Muslims don't see Westerners following their outward habits of holiness they conclude no spirituality exists.
Islam is in danger because of the clearly false tenets that it can no longer defend in the light of day. Case in point, the Bukhari Hadith in which Mohammed expressly and unambiguously states that "women are dificient in intellect." This is what is known in science as a testable hypothesis, it can be tested and proven true or false. Everywhere this assertion is proven false, over and over and over again. Given this, Mohammed's credibility is shattered. This is the culture that sanctifies domestice violence, polygamy and the suppression of the female intellect. The uprising of Islamic fervor is just a protest against the end of an era, an unsustainable ideology coming to an end, all for the world's good.

As a teenage Muslim I find this book great Spruatily and Mentally. I recomend this book for Muslims and Non-Muslim Teens.