"Over 1,400 years ago, the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad gave way to a community of followers who have since grown to the second-largest religion in the world today. The word 'Islam' itself means 'submission, ' and Muslims are those who submit themselves to the teachings of Muhammad and the Koran. Abounding with images and informative sidebars, this elementary-level text introduces readers to the primary beliefs and practices of a widely misunderstood...

Best-selling author and renowned religious scholar Karen Armstrong presents a concise and articulate history of Islam, the world's fastest-growing faith. Beginning with the Prophet Muhammad's flight from Medina and concluding with an examination of modern Islamic practices and concerns, Armstrong delivers an unbiased overview. She contends that no religion is more feared and misunderstood by the Western world as Islam, and firmly challenges the notion...

A comprehensive set of questions and answers regarding Islam includes such topics as history, beliefs, symbols, rituals, art and literature, customs, leadership, traditions, and ethnic diversity.

"Ed Husain has become one of the most vital Muslim voices in the world. The House of Islam could very well be his magnum opus." --Reza Aslan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Zealot "This should be compulsory reading." --Peter Frankopan, author of the international bestseller The Silk Roads Today, Islam is to many in the West an alien force, with Muslims held in suspicion. Failure to grasp the inner workings of religion and geopolitics has...

Presents English translations of the primary teachings of the Koran, and features notes on the spiritual language and psychology of the sacred text.

The Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque are the two most potent examples of the spread of Islam into the Holy Land beginning in the mid-7th century C.E. Discover what archaeologists have learned about these two spectacular buildings and their importance to the Muslim faith.

Islam and Christianity share both remarkable similarities and remarkable differences. In the grand scheme, both are relatively recent religions, with Christianity taking hold in Northern Europe at about the same time that Islam took hold in the Persian world (although Christianity appeared on the scene six centuries before Islam). Through the years, Islam and Christianity and the civilizations they created have influenced each other to greater and...

In his first book since What Went Wrong? Bernard Lewis examines the historical roots of the resentments that dominate the Islamic world today and that are increasingly being expressed in acts of terrorism. He looks at the theological origins of political Islam and takes us through the rise of militant Islam in Iran, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, examining the impact of radical Wahhabi proselytizing, and Saudi oil money, on the rest of the Islamic...

Many Muslims consider life on earth as a test to determine one’s eternal fate, making existence just one part of an infinitely greater story. Consider how the primary forms of Islam—Sunni, Shia, and Sufi—approach the concept of paradise and hell, the four main practices of treating a corpse, and more.