Living in Bangladesh, a predominantly Muslim country (90% of the population, or thereabouts) has forced me to consider religion(s) more than I have since I was studying world religions at uni.
While I have read the Koran, it was almost ten years ago, and at the time I read it I was also reading passages from the Old Testament, the Torah, the books of Buddhism and Hinduism, and dabbling in a bit of Taoism just for good measure. The result was a bit of a mish-mash which left me uncertain as to how much I knew about each religion individually.
Hence this book. Getting more familiar with the canon if Islam seemed to make sense, since the religion is all around me.
Having read it, not only do I have a better understanding of where the Koran came from and how it became a canon, I also have a better understanding of the relationship between the Koran, Arabic and Islam, and a broader understanding of the debates surrounding Islam today.
Not bad for a 'very short introduction'.
Friday, June 19, 2009
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3 comments:
I think I might have mentioned this before but I'm a massive fan of the Very Short Introduction series. This one on the Koran sounds really interesting. Could I please borrow it off you some time?
Are there any other introductory text in this area you'd recommend checking out?
Cheers,
Scott.
Hey Scotty,
It's all yours next time I'm in town. I picked this one up while in Kathmandu - Pilgrim's bookstore there has a bunch of them.
If I could I'd read the ones on: Gandhi, Islam and the Bible.
Cheers,
LJ
Thanks LJ :D
Have to say the Gandhi one is also on my to-read list.
Cheers,
Scott.
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