In the Shade of the Qur'an
By Sayyid Qutb (18)
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 01 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 02 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 03 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 04 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 05 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 06 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 07 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 08 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 09 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 10 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 11 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 12 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 13 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 14 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 15 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 16 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 17 |
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| In the Shade of the Qur'an Vol. 18 |
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Details
Ever since its revelation 1400 years ago, the Qur'an has been a book of guidance and inspiration, a reference point, and a rich source of social and moral dynamism for hundreds of millions of people throughout the world who believe it to be immutable word of God. Hardly a generation passes without a fresh attempt to unravel the meanings of the Qur'an and gain deeper insight into its universal message within a contemporary perspective.
In The Shade Of The Qur'an is more than 'just another' commentary; yet it is not too over-reaching or outlandish to be a completely new interpretation. It is an earnest, sincere and sober look at man's contemporary achievements and difficulties in the light of the message of the Qur'an. It is an effort to vigorously explore its rich wisdom, and expand its invaluable guidance for the benefit of an increasingly 'sophisticated', yet highly perplexed modern society.
The work, which is by far Sayyid Qutb's largest and most profound, spans the whole of the text of the Qur'an. It was written, and partly re-written, over a period of more than 15 years, most of which the author had spent in Egyptian prisons, during the 1950s and 1960s. In it is embedded Sayyid Qutb's insight, highly esteemed intellectual vigor, and his widely-acclaimed literary prowess.
In The Shade Of The Qur'an has been universally recognized as an outstanding contribution to Islamic thought and scholarship, to which students and scholars, as well as contemporary Islamic revivalist movements all over the world, owe a great deal. Now that it is available in English, it will continue to enlighten and inspire millions more. It will take its rightful place as an indispensable work of reference for a proper understanding of contemporary Islamic thinking.
Book Review From Prison:
By Imam Anwar al-Awlaki
This work by the Shaheed - by the will of Allah - along with Milestones represent his greatest works and the fruits of his life. I received 5 of the 6 volumes along with Madarij as-Salikeen as the first books I was allowed to have. This came after a period of two months with nothing but the Qur'an. Having had the chance to spend that time with the book of Allah and to contemplate on it, I wanted to read what our scholars had to say about Qur'an so I ordered Tafsir Ibn Kathir which is a proper classical tafsir along with In the Shade of the Qur'an which is more about thoughts and insights on the book of Allah in addition to it being a contemporary tafsir.
Sayyid is a very prolific and eloquent writer. His style is unique. If someone has read for him then he could recognize his writings without having to be told who the author is. With Ibn Kathir his tafsir is full of Hadiths and statements of scholars and rulings so it must be read slowly. I would limit myself to a maximum of 30 pages a day. But because of the flowing style of Sayyid I would read between 100-150 pages a day. In fact I would read until my eyes got tired. My left eye would get exhausted before the right eye so I would close it with my hand and carry on reading with my right eye until it can handle it no more and would just shut down. My vision started deteriorating especially in my left eye. Was it because of too much reading, or was it because of poor lighting, Allah knows best. I found that deteriorating eyesight along with kidney problems where the two most common complaints of the prisoners.
I would be so immersed with the author I would feel that Sayyid was with me in my cell speaking to me directly. There was something about my reading in prison: I could feel the personality of the author through his words. So even though I was in solitary confinement I was never alone. I was with Ibn Kathir for some days, with Ibn al-Qayyim, Sayyid Qutb, ash-Shawkani, an-Nawawi and many others on other days. How could I feel the loneliness when all of these great men where my companions?
I believe it was Ibn al-Mubarak who when asked why he used to spend his time alone said: And how can I be alone when I am in the companionship of the Sahaba?
My favourite parts of the Shades were Sura Yusuf, and al-Qasas. Sayyid has a beautiful way of presenting the stories of Yusuf and Musa in these suras. Then there are the introductions to Surah a-lAnkaboot and ar-Ra’d. In his introduction of al-Ankaboot he has some wonderful words about trails and in the intro to Surah ar-Ra’d he talks about the miracle of Qur'an.
Something that the reader of Sayyid couldn’t fail to feel is the immense love Sayyid had for the words of Allah. I lived with In the Shade of the Qur'an for over a month. It carried me through and offered me solace during that period. May Allah reward him abundantly on the Day of Judgement.