The Quran

This is the English version of the author’s Urdu translation and commentary of the Qur’an, Tadhkir al-Qur’an published in 1985. It is gratifying that this tafsir, which facilitates in its own way a better understanding of the meaning and message of the Qur’an, ably edited by the author’s daughter, Farida Khanam, is now accessible to a wider English-speaking readership . While this English version is largely faithful to the Urdu original, it is a great pity that Khan’s excellent Introduction featuring in his Urdu version has been replaced by a new, though somewhat banal and inane, Introduction (pp. ix-xvi). The former stands out for its cogent explanation of both the form and contents of the Qur’an as well as for its enumeration of the distinctive features of the work, enabling readers to appreciate what kind of book the Qur’an is and what type of tafsir is Khan’s foray. For reasons best known to the editor, this valuable prefatory note has been substituted by a new one which is marred by several flaws, some of which are discussed below.