Why I Am Not a Muslim
Encyclopedia
Why I Am Not a Muslim, a book written by Ibn Warraq
, is a critique of Islam
and the Qur'an
. It was first published by Prometheus Books
in the USA in 1995. The title of the book is a homage to Bertrand Russell
's essay, "Why I Am Not a Christian
", in which Russell criticizes the religion that he was brought up in.
Ibn Warraq
Ibn Warraq is the pen name of a polemical author of Pakistani origin who is critical of Islam, and who founded the Institute for the Secularisation of Islamic Society . He is a senior research fellow at the Center for Inquiry focusing on Qur'anic criticism...
, is a critique of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
. It was first published by Prometheus Books
Prometheus Books
Prometheus Books is a publishing company founded in August 1969 by Paul Kurtz, who also founded the Council for Secular Humanism and co-founded the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. He is currently the chairman of all three organizations. Prometheus Books publishes a range of books, including many...
in the USA in 1995. The title of the book is a homage to Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
's essay, "Why I Am Not a Christian
Why I Am Not a Christian
Why I Am Not a Christian is a 1927 essay by the British philosopher Bertrand Russell hailed by The Independent as "devastating in its use of cold logic", and listed in the New York Public Library's list of the most influential books of the 20th century....
", in which Russell criticizes the religion that he was brought up in.
Chapters
- Chapter 1 The Rushdie Affair
- Chapter 2 The Origins of Islam
- Chapter 3 The Problem of Sources
- Chapter 4 MuhammadMuhammadMuhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
and His Message - Chapter 5 The Koran
- Chapter 6 The Totalitarian Nature of Islam
- Chapter 7 Is Islam Compatible with Democracy and Human Rights?
- Chapter 8 Arab Imperialism, Islamic Colonialism
- Chapter 9 The Arab Conquests and the Position of Non-Muslim Subjects
- Chapter 10 Heretics and Heterodoxy, Atheism and Freethought, Reason and Revelation
- Chapter 11 Greek Philosophy and Science and Their Influence on Islam
- Chapter 12 SufismSufismSufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
or Islamic Mysticism - Chapter 13 Al-Ma'arriAl-Ma'arriAbul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri was a blind Arab philosopher, poet and writer....
- Chapter 14 Women and Islam
- Chapter 15 Taboos: Wine, Pigs, and Homosexuality
- Chapter 16 Final Assessment of Muhammad
- Chapter 17 Islam in the West
Editions
- Prometheus BooksPrometheus BooksPrometheus Books is a publishing company founded in August 1969 by Paul Kurtz, who also founded the Council for Secular Humanism and co-founded the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. He is currently the chairman of all three organizations. Prometheus Books publishes a range of books, including many...
(hardcover), 1995, ISBN 0-87975-984-4 - (French) Age d'homme, (1999), ISBN 2-8251-1259-3
- (Persian), 2000
- Prometheus BooksPrometheus BooksPrometheus Books is a publishing company founded in August 1969 by Paul Kurtz, who also founded the Council for Secular Humanism and co-founded the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. He is currently the chairman of all three organizations. Prometheus Books publishes a range of books, including many...
(paperback), 2003, ISBN 1-59102-011-5 - (Spanish) Ediciones del Bronce, Barcelona, 2003 ISBN 84-8453-146-5
- (Danish) Lindhardt og Ringhof, 2004, ISBN 87-595-2065-5