The Qur’an: With a Phrase-by-Phrase English Translation

Occasion for presenting this book:

12th of Rabi‘ al-Thani: The anniversary of the passing of Mehdi Elahi Qomshe’i, the well-known translator of the Qur’an

Book Bibliographic Details:

Translator: Ali Quli Qarai

Length: 802 Pages

Language: English

ISBN: 978-1955725293

Publication Date: 01^st April 2023

About the Book:

The Qur’an: With a Phrase-by-Phrase English Translation offers English-speaking readers a carefully structured way to engage with the Qur’anic text while remaining closely connected to the original Arabic. The translation presents the Arabic text alongside its English rendering phrase by phrase, allowing readers to follow the correspondence between the two languages rather than encountering each verse only as a complete translated sentence. This distinctive format makes the work particularly useful for readers seeking a clearer understanding of Qur’anic vocabulary, meaning, and structure, as well as for students of Arabic who wish to study the language through the Qur’an. The translation has undergone several revisions, with the sixth edition representing the fifth revised version, reflecting the translator’s sustained effort to refine its accuracy, clarity, and readability.

About the Translator:

Ali Quli Qara’i (1947–) is an English translator and scholar of Islamic texts whose work has focused particularly on making important works of Islamic thought accessible to English-speaking readers. He served as editor-in-chief of Al-Tawhid, a quarterly journal devoted to Islamic thought and culture, and has translated works dealing with Hadith, philosophy, metaphysics, mysticism, and spirituality. Among his translations are Mafātīḥ al-Jinān, Bidāyat al-Ḥikmah: The Elements of Islamic Metaphysics by ‘Allāmah Tabātabā’ī, and Forty Hadith: An Exposition. His translation of the Qur’an reflects this broader scholarly engagement: rather than treating translation simply as a substitution of English words for Arabic words, Qara’i seeks to preserve the relationship between the original Qur’anic phrasing and its English meaning. His phrase-by-phrase presentation is therefore intended not only to facilitate reading in English but also to assist readers in approaching the Arabic text itself.

Where to find it:

You can find the book at one of the online bookstores below:

• Shia Books
• Al-Burāq Publication
• Hujjat Bookshop
• Amazon