Current Reads and “Listens”

This is just a page of what I’m currently reading and listening to.

I will be updating this page soon.

I’m reading the famed translation by Muhammad Asad. It’s called the Message of the Quran. This is a German convert who lived with the Bedouins that actually still speak Qur’anic Arabic so he has an excellent command of the language MashaAllah.

In his commentary he draws from many famous interpreters of the Quran such as ar-Razi and Zamaskhari and ibn Kathir so it’s very informative. There are some downfalls to it which I will be addressing sometime in the future inshaAllah.

The Value of Time by Shaykh Abdul Fattah Abu Ghuddah

This book is very motivational. It talks about the great scholars of Islam and their wonderful Time Management skills. Actually their skills were unheard of. These people truly implemented the hadith of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) when he said to “seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave.” These are people who used to travel countries just to heard ahadith transmitted, sometimes to hear it transmitted by an authoritative woman!

I’m reading Imam Zaid Shakir’s translation of The Heirs of the Prophets right now as well. Another motivating book on our Scholars. 

I’m currently listening to:

The Way Ahead:

In light of the tragic and violent events of recent years, and in light of modernity itself, Muslims in the West face difficult challenges, not the least of which is to promote a clear understanding of Islam, its historicity and its traditions. But we cannot be the ambassadors of our religion if we ourselves do not have a deeper understanding of it. This seminar was designed to provide Muslims with a better grounding in the Islamic tradition as well as a practical guide for responding to the challenges and criticisms of Islam in the modern age.

DISC 1 & 2 – Re-engaging our Youth – Yahya Rhodus

DISC 3 – Islam and Violence, a Muslim Perspective – Zaid Shakir

DISC 4 and 5 – Defending our Prophet (pbuh) – Hamza Yusuf

DISC 6 – Questions and Answers – Hamza Yusuf and Zaid Shakir

All of that is taken from the back of the cd cover.

I’m up to Disc 3 with Imam Zaid. It’s interesting enough so far. I’m not extremely impressed yet. But I’m looking forward to the rest of the topics inshaAllah.

The Life of the Prophet Muhammad (24 audio CD boxed set) Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

This brilliant narration of the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was presented by Hamza Yusuf in a twelve week course based on the book, ‘Muhammad’ by Martin Lings. It is unrivaled in its analysis of the Prophet’s life, making his amazing persona come alive. The focus of the narration is the Prophet’s relationship with Allah through the Qur’an. Listeners learn verses in the order they were revealed to show how they impacted the young Muslim nation.

I’m on CD 9 of 24.

I really like it. I like some CDs more than others. Among my favorites is his introduction of the study of the seerah.

I’m going to update the rest of this page later with my current reads and “listens”. If anyone thinks of a better word than listens please let me know. 🙂

1. a reader Said:

   on October 18, 2007 at 10:30 pm

   nice list
   i would love to read some of these books

2. orlando7truth Said:

   on January 25, 2008 at 10:20 pm

   Thanks for sharing

3. Jami Said:

   on March 9, 2008 at 8:47 pm

   Salam Sister, lovely blog, with nice balance and tone.

   Muhammad Asad, I think, was Austrian and Jewish (before Islam). His translation of Qur’an is excellent.

   He had a deep understanding of classical Hebrew and as a journalist lived among the tribes of Nejd.

   The Nejdi dialects are not classical fusha, but with a mastery of Semitic Hebrew, the classical Arabic of the Qur’an could only master a receptive mind and and an open heart. It is clear it did that in the case of Mr Asad.

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