We have entered a new era. Never in history has the world been so connected, diverse, educated and aware. It is an era where, fuelled by curiosity, we find ourselves on a never-ending quest for answers and knowledge and one where confidence in reason prevails over the antiquated ways of superstition. The journey of civilization has brought us to an age where reason has become the strongest voice.

Antiquity was an age of superstition : today, we live in an age of science. Before reaching its present-day zenith, the modern, scientific age had to pass through three stages. The first was marked by the eradication of the superstitious mentality, the second saw the practical beginnings of scientific research; and the third is the spectacular culmination of the scientific process in the second half of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty first century.

The Quran, a book which brings glad tidings to mankind along with divine admonition, stresses the importance of man's discovery of truth on both spiritual and intellectual planes. Every book has its objective and the objective of the Quran is to make man aware of the Creation plan of God. That is, to tell man why God created this world; what the purpose is of settling man on earth; what is required from man in his pre-death life span, and what he is going to confront after death. The purpose of the Quran is to make man aware of this reality, thus serving to guide man on his entire journey through life into the after-life. The main themes of the Quran are enlightenment, closeness to God, peace and spirituality. The Quran uses several terms, tawassum, tadabbur, and tafakkur, which indicate the learning of lessons through reflection, thinking and contemplation on the signs of God scattered across the world. The present translation of the Quran and its explanatory notes are written keeping in mind these very themes.

?Introducing Islam? provides the general reader with an accurate and comprehensive picture of Islam--the true religion of submission to God. In the first section it is shown that the true path is the path that God has revealed to mankind through His prophets. The second section provides an introduction to various aspects of the Islamic life under forty-five separate headings. Qur?anic teachings have been summarized in the third section in words taken from the Quran itself. In the fourth section the life that makes man worthy of Paradise has been described and in the last section the life that will condemn him to Hell-fire.

If a man opens his mind to the signs of God around him, the universe will become a manifestation of God's splendour. He will discover his Lord by observing them. While dweling in an earthly abode, he would see and feel nothing but the Lord on high. He will acknowledge that everything is from God. Seeing that he has no power in this world, he will look to God for help and protection. The beauty of this world will remind him of God's beauty; the greatness of natural phenomena impresses on him the greatness of the One who created them. So absorbed will he be in the glory of God that he will love nothing more than to spend his time singing the praises of the Lord.