In Islam, a houri, is a woman with beautiful eyes who is described as a reward for the faithful Muslim men in paradise. The term is used four times in the Quran, where the houris are mentioned indirectly several other times,, and hadith provide a "great deal of later elaboration". Houris have been said to have "captured the imagination of Muslims and non-Muslims alike". Muslim scholars differ as to whether they refer to the believing women of this world or a separate creation, with the majority opting for the latter.
Abū al-Fiḍā’ ‘Imād ad-Dīn Ismā‘īl ibn ‘Umar ibn Kathīr al-Qurashī al-Damishqī, known as Ibn Kathīr, was a highly influential Arab historian, exegete and scholar during the Mamluk era in Syria. An expert on tafsir and fiqh (jurisprudence), he wrote several books, including a fourteen-volume universal history titled Al-Bidaya wa'l-Nihaya.
Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr, also known as al-Shahīd al-Khāmis, was an Iraqi philosopher, and the ideological founder of the Islamic Dawa Party, born in al-Kadhimiya, Iraq. He was father-in-law to Muqtada al-Sadr, a cousin of Muhammad Sadeq al-Sadr and Imam Musa as-Sadr. His father Haydar al-Sadr was a well-respected high-ranking Shi'a cleric. His lineage can be traced back to Muhammad through the seventh Shia Imam Musa al-Kazim. Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr was executed in 1980 by the regime of Saddam Hussein along with his sister, Amina Sadr bint al-Huda.
An-Nisa' is the fourth chapter (sūrah) of the Quran, with 176 verses (āyāt). The title derives from the numerous references to women throughout the chapter, including verse 34 and verses 4:127-130.
Naskh is an Arabic word usually translated as "abrogation". In tafsir, or Islamic legal exegesis, naskh recognizes that one rule might not always be suitable for every situation. In the widely recognized and "classic" form of naskh, one ḥukm "ruling" is abrogated to introduce an exception to the general rule, but the text the ḥukm is based on is not repealed.
Daʿwah is the act of inviting people to Islam. The plural is daʿwāt (دَعْوات) or daʿawāt (دَعَوات).
Esoteric interpretation of the Quran is the allegorical interpretation of the Quran or the quest for its hidden, inner meanings. The Arabic word taʾwīl was synonymous with conventional interpretation in its earliest use, but it came to mean a process of discerning its most fundamental understandings. "Esoteric" interpretations do not usually contradict the conventional interpretations; instead, they discuss the inner levels of meaning of the Quran.
Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an, more commonly known as Tafsir al-Mizan or simply Al-Mizan (الميزان), is a tafsir written by the Shia Muslim scholar and philosopher Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i (1892–1981).
Jane Dammen McAuliffe is an American educator, scholar of Islam and the inaugural director of national and international outreach at the Library of Congress. She is a president emeritus of Bryn Mawr College and former dean of Georgetown College at Georgetown University. As a specialist in the Qur'an and its interpretation, McAuliffe has edited the six-volume Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān and continues to lead the editorial team for the online edition of the work.
Islamic holy books are certain religious scriptures that are viewed by Muslims as having valid divine significance, in that they were authored by God (Allah) through a variety of prophets and messengers, including those who predate the Quran. Among the group of religious texts considered to be valid revelations, the three that are mentioned by name in the Quran are the Tawrat, received by prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel; the Zabur (Psalms), received by David; and the Gospel, received by Jesus. Additionally, the Quran mentions God's revealing of the Scrolls of Abraham and the Scrolls of Moses.
Wahbah Mustafa al-Zuhayli born in Dair Atiah, Syria was a Syrian professor and Islamic scholar specializing in Islamic law and legal philosophy. He was also a preacher at Badr Mosque in Dair Atiah. He was the author of scores of books on Islamic and secular law, many of which have been translated to English. He was chairman of Islamic jurisprudence in the College of Sharia at Damascus University, and a signatory to the Amman Message and A Common Word documents.
Muhammad Abdul Haq Ansari was an Islamic scholar from India. He was the Amir (president) of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) from 2003 to 2007. He was the member of Central Advisory Council of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. He was also the Chancellor of Al Jamia Al Islamia, Shantapuram, Kerala. His book Sufism and Shariah is a synthesis of Sufi and Shariah thought, especially a Tatbiq of Shaikh Ahmed Sir Hindi and Shah Waliullah's thought. It grew out of his in-depth engagement with kalam, tasawwuf and fiqh in Islamic history. His other major contributions are a book on Mishkawah's philosophy and an English translation of Ibn Taymiyyah's fatwas with an introduction. He also wrote 'Learning the Language of Quran' it is one of the best English guides for the beginners learning to read the Qur'an. In New Delhi he established the Islami Academy, aimed at training graduates from secular educational background in Islamic Sciences based on the madrasa curriculum.
Among the books considered to be revealed by God in the Quran, the three mentioned by name are the Tawrat, the Arabic-language name for the Torah within its context as an Islamic holy book believed by Muslims to have been given by God to the prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel; the Zabur (Psalms) revealed to Dawud (David); and the Injil (Gospel) revealed to Isa (Jesus). The Quran mentions the Torah, Psalms, and Gospel as being revealed by God in the same way the Quran was revealed to Muhammad, the final prophet and messenger of God according to Muslims.
Abdul Aziz bin Ali al-Harbi is a Saudi Arabian Islamic scholar and associate professor at Umm al-Qura University in Mecca. He is one of the founders and the current president of the Arabic Language Academy in Mecca.
Abu al-Hasan Ali Ibn Ibrāhim al-Qummi was a 10th century Shi'a commentator and jurist of Persian origin. He lived during the time of the eleventh Shi'a Imam Hasan al-Askari. Many traditions in the famous book Al-Kafi were transmitted by him. Ibrāhim’s patronymic was “Abu al-Hasan” but he was also known as “al-Shaykh al-Aqdam”. He spread the “Kufan” traditions (Hadiths) in Qom and collected Hadith from many scholars. He wrote more than 15 books, famously his commentary Tafsir al-Qummi. He is said to have been one of the most important Twelver Imami Quran commentators. His other works include Akhbār Al-Qurʾan, Nawadir al-Qurʾan, al-Nasikh wa al-Mansukh, al-Sharā'i' , and al-Tawhid wa al-Shirk. He died in 919 A.D.
Najm ad-Dīn Abū Ḥafṣ 'Umar ibn Muḥammad an-Nasafī was a Muslim jurist, theologian, mufassir, muhaddith and historian. A Persian scholar born in present-day Uzbekistan, he wrote mostly in Arabic.
Muhammad Quraish Shihab is an Indonesian Arab-Bugis Muslim scholar in the sciences of the Qur'an, an author, an Academic Scholar, and former Minister of Religious Affairs in the Fourth Development Cabinet (1998). He is the older brother of the former Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare, Alwi Shihab.
Al-Muharrar al-Wajiz fi Tafsir al-Kitāb al-'Aziz or shortly named al-Muharrar al-Wajiz, better known as Tafsir Ibn 'Atiyya, is a classical Sunni tafsir of the Qur'an, authored by the Maliki-Ash'ari scholar Ibn 'Atiyya.
