ABSTRACT
Islam is one of the world's great religions. It has become a truism to acknowledge, also, that it is much more than merely a religion to be practised on a Friday in the Mosque. Islam embraces - or should embrace - the entirety of man's life. This may help to explain to the reader coming fresh to the subject why this Dictionary covers so many diverse topics ranging from famous battles to details of ritual purity. Not surprisingly, Islam has been surveyed by a huge number of books. A few, which may be of further use to the interested reader, are listed at the back of this Dictionary in the Guide to Further Reading. The quality of the books which deal with Islam, in both the West and the East, is also various, embracing the good and the bad, the profoundly bigoted and the devoutly sympathetic.
