![]() Until the release of The Ascendant Qur’an, there were no b ona fide tafsirs in English, only translations, some of them with detailed footnotes, but nonetheless still translations that always fell short compared to their Arabic counterparts. The aim in each case, regardless of the mufassir’s mother tongue, was to convey an understanding of the noble Qur’an to as many people as possible with the original tenor, cadence, force, and meaning of the original Qur’anic Arabic. The first tafsirs were written in Arabic later other languages - Turkish, Persian, Urdu, and others - spoken by Muslims, who were entering the din from non-Arabic speaking lands, were utilized. ![]() ![]() In fact, even Arabic speakers from the earliest days of Islam have had to rely on tafsirs. A tafsir in English, therefore, becomes a necessity for those English-speakers not fully familiar with the Arabic language. How faithfully and sincerely we conform our lives and choices to them will determine our station in the hereafter. It is our guide for all times as its pristine principles keep reminding us of the commands of Allah (SWT), the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds. The Qur’an is our companion in the solitude of the night and in the hustle and bustle of the working day and in life’s ups and downs as we journey through this world secure in the knowledge that our Merciful Creator is always there to steady our uncertain steps and inconsistent hearts. Thereby the meanings of subsequent surahs would be better understood if many concepts are clarified earlier. Given that many important rules relating to family, social, cultural, political, and economic aspects are highlighted in this surah, which is placed at the beginning of this exquisite Qur’an, their explanation, we hope, would help readers internalize foundational meanings as they journey through the rest of the noble Book. We - the publishers and editors - did not wish to impose limits on the space needed by the mufassir, Imam al-'Asi, in explaining the ayat of the noble Qur’an, hence the decision to spread the tafsir of Surah al-Baqarah over three volumes. For this reason, we could not afford to leave out important guideposts for the ideological course of the movement. ![]() This tafsir was conceived as a handbook for the Islamic movement, and thus it is imperative for the movement to understand the world it lives in, and the world it must shape for future generations. Such a description of the Islamic social order and why it is a panacea for an unsettled world, driven to the brink by a systemic departure from Allah’s (SWT) guiding light, could not be contained in one volume. Because so much of this surah is related to the transformational nature of a functioning Islamic society, we could only get the point across by showing the Muslims the wayward nature of the modern societies they would be expected to reorganize. With the publication of this third volume of the tafsir, The Ascendant Qur’an, by Imam Muhammad al-'Asi, we conclude the explanation of Surah al-Baqarah, the longest surah of the Qur’an. ![]()
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