al-Tarif bil-Islam
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- Editions
- Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs - Qatar
al-Taʿrīf bi-l-Islām (Introducing Islam) is an introductory educational handbook on the fundamental principles, beliefs, and sciences of Islam, compiled by a group of authors under the project of the Qatar Center for Introducing Islam (Markaz Qaṭar li-l-Taʿrīf bi-l-Islām).
Background and Distribution
The text was originally compiled as a project by the Qatar Center for Introducing Islam to explain foundational Islamic concepts. It was preserved and published online by Ilyas Cherradi on the Shabab al-Huda platform and later formatted and distributed for the al-Maktaba al-Shamela digital library in Algiers on the 8th of Ramadan 1431 AH (August 2010 CE).
Structure and Content
The work provides a pedagogical overview of core Islamic disciplines, arranged systematically into thematic sections:
- Quranic Sciences (ʿUlūm al-Qurʾān): Defines the Quran linguistically and terminologically, details its principal names (al-Kitāb, al-Furqān, al-Tanzīl, and al-Dhikr), and examines its divine preservation, quoting Muhammad Abdullah Draz on the dual safeguard of oral memorization and written transmission. It covers the etiquette of recitation (ādāb al-tilāwah), the virtues and characteristics of the scripture, the two stages of revelation (from the Preserved Tablet to the lowest heaven, and then piecemeal to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ), the criteria for distinguishing Makkan and Madinan passages, the historical compilation under Caliphs Abu Bakr and Uthman ibn Affan, and biographical summaries of the ten canonical reciters (al-qurrāʾ).
- Methodology of Exegesis (Manāhij al-Tafsīr): Explains tradition-based exegesis (al-tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr) and reason-based exegesis (al-tafsīr bi-l-raʾy), surveying notable commentaries such as those by al-Tabari, Ibn Kathir, al-Suyuti, al-Shinqiti, al-Zamakhshari, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Abd al-Rahman ibn Nasir al-Sa'di, and Sayyid Qutb, along with the required qualifications of an exegete.
- Creed and Articles of Faith (Uṣūl al-Īmān): Outlines essential theological beliefs, including belief in the angels (their creation, roles, and major figures such as Gabriel, Michael, and Israfil), belief in previously revealed scriptures (the Torah of Moses, Gospel of Jesus, Psalms of David, and Scrolls of Abraham and Moses), and belief in the prophets and messengers, their functions, moral attributes, and infallibility (ʿiṣmah).
- Prophetic Biography and Islamic Jurisprudence: Treats the definition, importance, and historical sources of the Prophet's biography (al-Sīrah al-Nabawiyyah), alongside introductory explanations of Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh).
Method and Sources
The book employs a structured, didactic style combining textual proofs from the Quran and Hadith with summaries from authoritative classical and modern references. Each major section concludes with a list of references, drawing on works such as al-Nawawi's al-Tibyān, al-Suyuti's al-Itqān, al-Zarkashi's al-Burhān, al-Zarqani's Manāhil al-ʿIrfān, Ibn al-Jazari's Ghāyat al-Nihāyah, al-Dhahabi's Maʿrifat al-Qurrāʾ al-Kibār, al-Juwayni's Shifāʾ al-Ghalīl, and Hafiz al-Hakami's Aʿlām al-Sunnah al-Manshūrah.
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