About this title: Karen Armstrong works to dispel a lot of the uneasiness Western readers may have about this ancient prophet and political figure who united Arab tribes due to his charisma, intelligence, passion and deep spiritual connections. The author clearly knows her history backwards and forwards and readers coming to this material knowing nothing in advance will likely be grateful for the clear, easy-to-follow path she is able to draw through the centuries of Islamic history. Muhammad's connections to Christianity and Judaism (he briefly tried to attract the Jews to his cause), the Koran, his effect on ...
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Description: Good. 0062500147 Former library item may have library binding and show stamps, stickers or other marks. Items not meeting quality expectations may be returned. Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. read more
Description: Fine. 0062508865 Ships next business day. NEW/UNREAD! ! ! Text is Clean and Unmarked! --Be Sure to Compare Seller Feedback and Ratings before Purchasing--Has a small black ink mark on bottom/exterior edge of pages. May have light shelf wear to cover from storage, if any. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: HarperCollins
Date Published: 1992
ISBN-13:9780062500144ISBN:0062500147
Description: Good. Used item may show library stamps, stickers and marks. Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Phoenix Press, London, United Kingdom
Date Published: 2001
ISBN-13:9781842126080ISBN:1842126083
Description: As New. 8vo 1842126083 multiple copies NEW or like new condition, "A one-time Roman Catholic nun who now teaches at the Leo Baeck College for the Study of Judaism, Karen Armstrong is also the author of A History of God and Buddha, and a recipient of the Muslim Public Affairs Council Media Award. Following her Islam: A Short History, she presents this life of the Prophet Muhammad, an accurate and profound understanding of Islam and its fervent followers. The book also offers challenging ... read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Phoenix Press, London, United Kingdom
Date Published: 2001
ISBN-13:9781842126080ISBN:1842126083
Description: New. 8vo 1842126083 multiple copies NEW or like new condition, "A one-time Roman Catholic nun who now teaches at the Leo Baeck College for the Study of Judaism, Karen Armstrong is also the author of A History of God and Buddha, and a recipient of the Muslim Public Affairs Council Media Award. Following her Islam: A Short History, she presents this life of the Prophet Muhammad, an accurate and profound understanding of Islam and its fervent followers. The book also offers challenging ... read more
Edition: First Softcover Edition/Eighth Printing
Binding: Trade Paperback
Publisher: A Phoenix Press Publication By The Orion Publishing Group Ltd, London UK
Date Published: 2001
ISBN-13:9781842126080ISBN:1842126083
Description: Very Good + Not Issued With A Dustjacket. 290 Numbered Pages. 5" x 7 3/4" Identified as both ISBN-10 1842126083 and ISBN-13 9781842126080, the pristine textblock of this good-looking seemingly unread softcover first edition (eighth printing) is completely clean, tight, square, carries no highlighting, underlining or marginalia, and shows only a whisper of having been thumbed-through. The primarily white pictorial covers are very clean, bright and show only light finish rubbing, minor edge and ... read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: London: Victor Gollancz, 1995. 0575062444
ISBN-13:9780575062443ISBN:0575062444
Description: " 'Muhammad' facilitates a more accurate and profound understanding of Islam and the people who adhere to it so strongly, and offers challenging comparisons with the two religions most closely related to it-Judaism and Christianity. " Pp.290, 2 maps, 2 genealogical charts. Pbk, creasing to spine. G+. read more
Description: Fine. 0062500147 Harpercollins trade paperback, 1992, clean/tight, No marks/tears or creases...Fine (like new)...Bubble-wrapped and mailed in a Box w/delivery confirmation. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: ORION PUBLISHING CO Country = UNITED KINGDOM
Date Published: 2001
ISBN-13:9781842126080ISBN:1842126083
Description: BRAND NEW PAPERBACK. 288 pages. (288 pages) a life of the prophet muhammad by best-selling religious writer karen armstrong 1 map(s) (Paperback) read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Orion
Date Published: 30/11/1995
ISBN-13:9780575062443ISBN:0575062444
Description: Used-Good. Book in good or better condition. Dispatched same day from warehouse. Please email with any questions for quick response. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Phoenix
Date Published: 03/12/2001
ISBN-13:9781842126080ISBN:1842126083
Description: Used-Good. Book in good or better condition. Dispatched same day from warehouse. Please email with any questions for quick response. read more
Description: Good. Ex-Library book-will contain library markings. Only lightly used. Book has minimal wear to cover and binding. A few pages may have small creases and minimal underlining. Book selection as BIG as Texas. read more
"Written in the years following 9/11, this book has a clear goal of trying to convince Westerners that the origins of Islam include much that is appealing. Others may fault her for bias, but I think it is successful and honest at the same time. Armstrong does not conceal those acts of the Prophet that are hardest for moderns to understand (most notably, in my view, the execution of 700 men and the sale of their women and children into slavery because of an act of tribal perfidy); she does, however, point out that the thrust of Muhammad's teaching was toward a new kind of harmony within Arabia and for Arabs with their neighbors. She argues that Islam at its origins is an essentially pluralistic religion, requiring of its believers chiefly that they be monotheists and only secondarily adherence to the tenets of the Founder. This emphasis on the worship of the One God thus accords a great deal of respect to others who believe similarly but do not necessarily follow the Quran. It is hard to know how accurate her view is. Well, hard, that is, to those of us who are relatively ignorant of Islam. My own reaction to 9/11 was to read the Quran and books about the religion, including some works by the dean of Arab studies, Bernard Lewis. My only objection to Armstrong's treatment of the subject is her failure to account for the bloody missions seeking converts, but I may now remember my Lewis now as well as I ought. It is well to quote her at length from her closing, because it is where she is headed the whole way through: "If we are to avoid catastrophe, the Muslim and Western worlds must learn not merely to tolerate but to appreciate one another. A good place to start is with the figure of Muhammad: a complex man, who resists facile, ideologically-driven categorization, who sometimes did things that were difficult or impossible for us to accept, but who had profound genius and founded a religion and cultural tradition that was not based on the sword but whose name -- 'Islam' -- signified peace and reconciliation.""
"This is an excellent book about the life and times of Muhammad. It is a short read, but gives those of us without much knowledge of Islam a great introduction to its beginnings. It is well written and comes with a glossary of Arabic terms and Arabic people that lived during those changing times. What we get is a man dedicated to changing a people of hostile habits into a people of peaceful existence. The degree to which he is humiliated, ridiculed and endangered and yet still works continually for peace is a sure sign of a man to be honored for centuries. It is important to know the conditions he was up against, to understand what he really accomplished. When he finally took Mecca with his followers, it was a peaceful return to his tribe and place that had not only expelled him, but became entrenched enemies of his cause. It may well have been a time that was due on that peninsula, but to know how Muhammad shaped that time and the perseverance required, is awe inspiring. We also learn that like any religion over time, the messages of the Koran, which was recited and written for those times, has been interpreted in different ways to further agendas much different then how Muhammad may have intended them."
"Karen Armstrong has written several biographies after this first one, in 1991, about prophet Muhammad, May Peace Be Upon Him,. Since this one has been written for a Western Audience and with an aim to correct the misperceptions of many in the West, I was amazed to read the biography written by the non muslim author, Karen Armstrong, who was herself a catholic nun once. It is a must read. I have read another biography recently written by the same author hwoever, I could not find it as fascinating as this first biography written by her in 1991."
When I first started reading this book, I was sorta doubtful, putting in mind that; a book about the prophet or Islam written by a non-Muslim would be somehow biased, inaccurate or misleading. But to my surprise, this book was beyond my wildest expectations!
Karen Armstrong was concerned enough to write a book about the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to clarify some of the most controversial and debatable issues about him and Islam a whole. Especially after the wake of September 11 and all the Islamophobic attitudes which increasingly started to break out in the air. In her book, Armstrong does a very good job in introducing an analytical, well-written, decent biography about Muhammad (PBUH) with a cleverly clear emphasis on issues have been always subject to a great criticism by westerns such as the concept of jihad and war, his multi wives and hijab. She also portrays amazingly the ideology of Arabia in the 6th century before the Islam would be introduced and before the prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH), in order to show the massive complex challenges faced the prophet when he began to reform the social, political and economic systems.
It was so interesting to read a biography about the prophet (PBUH) from a western and non-Muslim perspective. I loved the way her analysis went so profoundly to shed light on the different aspects of the prophet's life, and then relating them to today's misunderstood conceptions of Islam. For me, the most astonishing part was when she talked about the Qur'an. The way she talked about it was remarkably marvelous to the extent that I really couldn't believe that she is not a Muslim!!! She didn't only talk about the Qur'anic tolerable teachings but her deep analysis extended to consider the rich allusive language used and its spiritual effects on humans' consciousness.
Armstrong seeks through her book to encourage a new understanding towards Islam taking Muhammad (PBUH) as a starting point. It was crystal clear also that she is trying to advance understanding and appreciating one another religion. Finally, although her research and study are notably valid as she refers to people such as Ibn Ishaq and Tabari, some of the events and facts were incorrect and inaccurately addressed."
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