Ideals And Realities Of Islam

Plot

The present book contains six lectures out of a series of fifteen public lectures delivered by Dr. Nasr during the time he held the chair of Aga Khan Professor of Islamic Studies in the American University of Beirut (1964-65). These public lectures concern the religion of Islam and the diverse aspects of the civilization it produced. "Ideals and Realities of Islam" has been primarily written for those Western readers who are interested in Islam. The book comprises six chapters dealing with Islam and discussing precisely the Qur'an, the Prophet, the Sharfah or Divine Law, the Tariqah or Sufism, and Sunnism and Shi'ism. The author has, in his scholarly manner, elucidated the major aspects of the Islamic tradition and has made frequent comparisons with other religions, notably with Christianity, which meets Islam in Lebanon. In these essays, Professor Nasr has presented what is most universal in Islam and underlies the beliefs of all the orthodox branches of the tradition. -- Abridged from http://www.jstor.org (Oct. 8, 2014).