Ethico-Religious Concepts in the Qur'an

Description

In the Ethico-Religious Concepts in the Qur'án Toshihiko Izutsu analyzes the guiding spirit of the Islamic moral code, the basic ethical relationship of man to God. Izutsu asserts that, according to the Qur'anic conception, God is of an ethical nature and acts upon man in an ethical way. The resulting implications for man are enormous, requiring devotion not merely to God but to living one's life ethically. Izutsu shows that for the Qur'an our ethical response to God's actions is religion itself; it is at the same time both ethics and religion. Izutsu explores these themes by employing ethnolinguistics, a theory of the interrelations between linguistic cultural patterns, to analyse the semantic structure of major concepts in the Quar'an. Islam, which arose in the seventh century, represents one of the most sweeping religious reforms ever to appear in the East. The Quar'an shows in vividly concrete terms how time-honoured tribal norms came into bloody conflict with new ideals of life, and finally yielded to the rising power. This transitional epoch is of particular importance in the whole of Islamic thought, a time during which the key terms of a traditionally fixed system of values were transformed in their connotative structure, modified in their combinations, and finally integrated into an entirely different system. Originally published in 1959 as The Structure of the Ethical Terms in the Koran and revised under the current title in 1966, this 2002 reprint makes this classic work of Islamic studies once again available. Review: A very thoughtful and informative book - Izutsu has provided here some original analysis of the Qur'an that is immensely readable, understandable and insightful. A layperson without any prior knowledge of Islam or Arabic can easily understand it. The writer also provides very useful background information about Arab culture and society of the time. There is the occasional paragraph with which runs counter to orthodox Muslim thought, but in the main, the material is non-contentious from either a religious or political perspective. Izutsu's focus of analysis is language, but the work never becomes too academic and is always interesting. Reading this you get the distinct impression that although the Qur'an was revealed over a period of years the use of language is consistent throughout and each word chosen with care. Review: good book - worth a read - This book is available free online. Not as good as his other work "god and man in koran" but still, very good. Basically, analyses key terms and concepts in The Quran in detail. Worth a read for any student of The Quran.