Muhammad Asad (born Leopold Weiss; 2 July 1900 – 20 February 1992) was an Austro-Hungarian Muslim polymath, born in modern day

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. He worked as a journalist, traveler, writer, political theorist, and diplomat. His translation of the Quran in English, "'' The Message of The Qur'an''" (1980) is one of the most notable of his works. In Asad's words in "''The Message of the Quran''": "the work which I am now placing before the public is based on a lifetime of study and of many years spent in Arabia. It is an attempt – perhaps the first attempt – at a really idiomatic, explanatory rendition of the Qur'anic message into a European language." By age 13, Weiss had acquired a passing fluency in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

and

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

, in addition to his native German and Polish languages. By his mid-twenties, he could read and write in English, French, Persian and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. In

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

, Weiss engaged in arguments with Zionist leaders like

Chaim Weizmann Chaim Azriel Weizmann ( ; 27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952) was a Russian-born Israeli statesman, biochemist, and Zionist leader who served as president of the World Zionist Organization, Zionist Organization and later as the first pre ...

, voicing his reservations about some aspects of the Zionist Movement. After traveling across the

Arab World The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...

as a journalist, he converted to

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

in 1926 and adopted the name "Muhammad Asad"— Asad being the Arabic rendition of his root name Leo (Lion). During his stay in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

, he spent time with Bedouins and enjoyed the close company of the state's founder, Ibn Saud. He also carried out a secret mission for Ibn Saud to trace the sources of funding for the Ikhwan Revolt. Due to these activities, he was dubbed in a

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...

article as "Leopold of Arabia"—hinting similarity of his activities to those of Lawrence of Arabia. On his visit to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, Asad became friends with the Muslim poet-philosopher

Muhammad Iqbal Muhammad Iqbal (9 November 187721 April 1938) was a South Asian Islamic philosopher, poet and politician. Quote: "In Persian, ... he published six volumes of mainly long poems between 1915 and 1936, ... more or less complete works on philoso ...

, who persuaded him to abandon his eastward travels and "help elucidate the intellectual premises of the future

Islamic state The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

". He also spent five years in internment by the British government at the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. On 14 August 1947, Asad received Pakistani citizenship and later served in several bureaucratic and diplomatic positions including the Director of Department of Islamic Reconstruction, Deputy Secretary (Middle East Division) in the Foreign Ministry of Pakistan, and Pakistan's envoy to the United Nations. In the West, Asad rose to prominence as a writer with his best-selling autobiography, '' The Road to Mecca''. Later, after seventeen years of scholarly research, he published his magnum opus: '' The Message of the Qur'an''—an English translation and commentary of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

. The book, along with the translations of Pickthall and Yusuf Ali, is regarded as one of the most influential translations of the

modern era The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500 ...

. An ardent proponent of ijtihad and

rationality Rationality is the quality of being guided by or based on reason. In this regard, a person acts rationally if they have a good reason for what they do, or a belief is rational if it is based on strong evidence. This quality can apply to an ab ...

in interpreting religious texts, he dedicated his works "to People who Think". In 2008, the entrance square to the UN Office in Vienna was named ''Muhammad Asad Platz'' in commemoration of his work as a "religious bridge-builder". Asad has been described by his biographers as "Europe's gift to Islam" and "a Mediator between Islam and the West".

Early life

Background

Leopold Weiss was born on 2 July 1900 to a Jewish family in Lemberg, Galicia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (which is currently the city of

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

). Weiss was a descendant of a long line of Jewish

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

s; however, his father, Akiva Weiss, broke from tradition and became a lawyer. Leopold received a religious education and was proficient in

from an early age, as well as familiar with

. He studied the Jewish Bible or

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

, the Mishna and

Gemara The Gemara (also transliterated Gemarah, or in Yiddish Gemore) is an essential component of the Talmud, comprising a collection of rabbinical analyses and commentaries on the Mishnah and presented in 63 books. The term is derived from the Aram ...

, also delving into the intricacies of Biblical

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (philosophy), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern us ...

and the Targum. At the age of fourteen he escaped school and joined the Austrian army under a false name. After a week or so, his father traced him with the help of the police, and he was escorted back to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Years in wilderness (1920–1922)

After abandoning university in Vienna, Weiss drifted aimlessly around 1920s Germany, working briefly for the expressionist film director

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), better known as Fritz Lang (), was an Austrian-born film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety Obituari ...

( F. W. Murnau, according to ''The Road to Mecca''). By his own account, after selling a jointly written film script, he splurged the windfall on a wild party at an expensive Berlin restaurant, in the spirit of the times. While working as a telephone operator for an American news agency in Berlin, Weiss obtained a coveted interview with Russian author

Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (; ), was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Before his success as an aut ...

's wife, his first published piece of journalism, after simply ringing up her hotel room.

Stay in the Middle East

In 1922 Weiss moved to the British Mandate of Palestine, staying in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

at the house of his maternal uncle Dorian Feigenbaum at his invitation. Feigenbaum was a

psychoanalyst PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: and is a set of theories and techniques of research to discover unconscious processes and their influence on conscious thought, emotion and behaviour. Based on dream interpretation, psychoanalysis is also a talk th ...

, a disciple of Freud, and later founded the '' Psychoanalytic Quarterly''.

Foreign correspondent for ''Frankfurter Zeitung''

He picked up work as a stringer for the German newspaper '' Frankfurter Zeitung'', one of the most prestigious newspapers of Germany and Europe, selling articles on a freelance basis. His pieces were noteworthy for their understanding of Arab fears and grievances against the Zionist project. He published a small book on the subject in 1924, and this so inspired the confidence of the ''Frankfurter Zeitung'' that it commissioned him to travel more widely still, to collect information for a full-scale book. Weiss made the trip, which lasted two years.

Conversion to Islam

To gain closer assignments in the Arab world, Weiss developed an ever-deepening engagement with Islam. This led to his religious conversion in 1926 in Berlin and adopting an Arabic name, Muhammad Asad. Asad spoke of Islam:

"Islam appears to me like a perfect work of architecture. All its parts are harmoniously conceived to complement and support each other; nothing is superfluous and nothing lacking; and the result is a structure of absolute balance and solid composure."

A 2002 '' Saudi Aramco World'' magazine essay described his journey to conversion in these words: "Two roads diverged in Berlin in the 1920s: a well-worn one to the West, the other, rarely traveled, to the East. Leopold Weiss, a gifted young writer, traveler and linguist with a thorough knowledge of the Bible and the

and with deep roots in European culture, took the road eastward to Makkah."

Saudi Arabia

After his conversion to Islam, Asad moved to

making a journey by camel across the Arabian Desert, from Tayma to

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

. He stayed there for nearly six years during which he made five pilgrimages. Alongside, he started writing essays for the Swiss newspaper ''

Neue Zürcher Zeitung The (''NZZ''; "New Newspaper of Zurich") is German language daily newspaper, published by NZZ Mediengruppe in Zurich. The paper was founded in 1780. It has a reputation as a high-quality newspaper, as the German Swiss newspaper of record ...

'', and continued to do so till 1934.

Ibn Saud's confidant and Bolshevik allegations

After the sudden death of his wife Elsa, Asad stayed on in Mecca where, in a chance encounter in the Grand Mosque's library, he met Prince Faysal. On Faysal's invitation, Asad met King Abdulaziz (founder of modern

); the meeting led to almost daily audiences with the King, who quickly came to appreciate Asad's knowledge, keen mind and spiritual depth. Ibn Saud allowed Asad to visit the Najd region (in the King's company), which was forbidden to foreigners at that time. In late 1928, an Iraqi named Abdallah Damluji, who had been an adviser to Ibn Saud, submitted a report to the British on "

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

and Soviet penetration" of the Hijaz. In this report, after highlighting Asad's activities in Arabia, Damluji alleged that Asad had connections with

s: "What is the real mission which makes him endure the greatest discomforts and the worst conditions of life? On what basis rests the close intimacy between him and Shaykh Yusuf Yasin (secretary to the

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

and editor of the official newspaper ''Umm al-Qura'')? Is there some connection between von Weiss and the Bolshevik consulate in Jidda?"

Ikhwan Rebellion

According to Asad, he did finally become a secret agent of sorts. Ibn Saud sent him on a secret mission to Kuwait in 1929, to trace the sources of financial and military assistance being provided to Faysal al-Dawish – an Ikhwan leader-turned-rebel against Ibn Saud's rule. Asad, after traveling day and night through the desert without lighting fire, reached

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

to collect first-hand evidence. He concluded that the British were providing arms and money to al-Dawish to weaken Ibn Saud for the purpose of securing a 'land route to India' – a railway from

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

ultimately connecting the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

with the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

Time in Pakistan

Meeting Iqbal and visiting Kashmir

Asad left Arabia and came to

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in 1932 where he met South Asia's premier Muslim poet, philosopher and thinker

. Iqbal had proposed the idea of an independent Muslim state in India, which later became

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. Iqbal persuaded Asad to stay on in British India and help the Muslims of India establish their separate Muslim state. Iqbal introduced Asad to Chaudhry Niaz Ali Khan, a philanthropist and agriculturalist, who, on the advice of Muhammad Iqbal, established the Dar-ul-Islam Trust Institutes in

Pathankot Pathankot () is a city and the district headquarters of the Pathankot district in Punjab, India. Pathankot is the sixth most populous city of Punjab, after Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala and Bathinda. Its local government is a municipal ...

, India and Jauharabad, Pakistan. Asad stayed on in British India and worked with both Muhammad Iqbal and Chaudhry Niaz Ali Khan. Allama Iqbal encouraged Asad to translate Sahih Al-Bukhari in English for the first time in history. Asad responded positively and started making the arrangements for his translation. In order to find a place serene enough to stimulate his intellectual and spiritual cerebration, he arrived in Kashmir during the summer of 1934. There, he met Mirwaiz Muhammad Yusuf who became his close friend. While working enthusiastically on his translation, he also set up his own printing press in Srinagar. The first two chapters of his translation were printed in Srinagar. Asad mentions in his book ''Home-coming of the Heart'' that he had a special relationship with Kashmir and that he felt very sad when he left it.

Internment as enemy alien (1939–1945)

When the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

broke out in 1939, Asad's parents were arrested and, subsequently, murdered by the

Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

. Asad himself was arrested in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

in 1939, a day after the war broke out, by the British as an enemy alien. This was despite the fact that Asad had refused German nationality after the annexation of Austria in 1938 and had insisted on retaining his Austrian citizenship. Asad spent three years in prison, while his family consisting of his wife, Munira, and son, Talal, after being released from detention earlier, lived under the protection of Chaudhry Niaz Ali Khan at the latter's vast estate in Jamalpur, 5 km west of

. Asad was finally released and reunited with his family in Jamalpur when the Second World War ended in 1945.

Role in Pakistan Movement

Asad supported the idea of a separate Muslim state in India. After the independence of Pakistan on 14 August 1947, in recognition for his support for Pakistan, Asad was conferred first full citizenship by Pakistan and appointed the Director of the Department of Islamic Reconstruction by the Government of Pakistan, where he made recommendations on the drafting of Pakistan's first Constitution. In 1949, Asad joined Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs as head of the Middle East Division and made efforts to strengthen Pakistan's ties with the Muslim states of the Middle East. In 1952, Asad was appointed as Pakistan's Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Nations in New York – a position that he relinquished in 1952 to write his autobiography (up to the age of 32), ''The Road to Mecca''.

Career as a diplomat

Asad contributed much to Pakistan's early political and cultural life but was shunned from the corridors of power. He served this country as the head of the Directorate of Islamic Reconstruction, Joint Secretary of the Middle East Division in

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...

, Minister Plenipotentiary to the United Nations and organizer of the International Islamic Colloquium. If one delves into the archival material of these government departments, the role played by Asad for his beloved

can be dealt with in detail.

Marriage controversy and resignation

By chance, at a reception Asad met Pola, an American of Polish origin who was destined to become his third wife (d. 2007). She was young, beautiful and intelligent. He fell in love with her and when he learned that she had already embraced Islam he decided to marry her, despite the difference of age and temperament. However, under the rules of the Foreign Office, he was bound to get prior permission to marry a non- Pakistani national. He applied through the proper channels but the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

rejected his application. So, he submitted his resignation from the Foreign Service, divorced his Arabian wife (Munira, d. 1978), and devoted himself to writing his autobiographical travel log '' The Road to Mecca''. During his stay in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, Asad received a letter from the President of Pakistan, General Ayub Khan, who was a great admirer of his book named The Principles of State and Government in Islam (1961). In a subsequent exchange of letters, he proposed to Asad to come to Pakistan and have the membership of a seven-man group of Muslim scholars – who both supposedly knew the world and were experts on Islam – to advise him with regard to everyday matters as well as the drawing up of a new Islamic constitution for the country. At that time, Asad was immersed in his cherished work on the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

, and so he regretfully declined. After many years, Asad was again invited by another President of Pakistan, General Zia ul-Haq, in 1983 and that was his last visit to this country. When he arrived at

Islamabad Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...

, which he had not yet seen, he was received at the plane with great honour and escorted to the

Presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

. During his sojourn in Islamabad, there was a series of meetings with members of the Ansari Commission in order to prepare a kind of programme for the President for the future. Asad agreed with some, and as usual disagreed with others, which he found retrograde. On one point he was firm and insistent that Muslim women should have exactly the same rights in the political sphere as had men, to the extent of becoming prime minister. Asad also spared some time to meet with his surviving friends in

and Islamabad and at the request of the President made several radio and television appearances, as always spontaneous. On his return, he was besieged by letters from literally hundreds of admirers in Pakistan, some even offering him land or a house but he refused politely, considering his concept of Pakistan to be beyond all these worldly trivialities.

Later life and death

Towards the end of his life, Asad moved to Spain and lived there with his third wife, Pola Hamida Asad, an American national of Polish Catholic descent who had also converted to Islam, until his death on 20 February 1992 at the age of 91. He was buried in the Muslim cemetery of

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

in the former Moorish province of

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

, Spain.

Children

Asad had a son, Talal Asad, from his second Saudi Arabian wife, Munira. Talal Asad is now an anthropologist specialising in

religious studies Religious studies, also known as religiology or the study of religion, is the study of religion from a historical or scientific perspective. There is no consensus on what qualifies as ''religion'' and definition of religion, its definition is h ...

and post-colonialism. Asad also had a step-son named Heinrich (converted name Ahmad) with his first wife Else (converted name Aziza).

Honors and recognition

Islamic Cultural Center named after Muhammad Asad was officially opened in 2015.

Muhammad-Asad-Platz

In April 2008, a space in front of the UNO City in the 22nd District of Vienna was named ''Muhammad-Asad-Platz'' in honour of Muhammad Asad. The step was taken as part of a two-day program on the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue focusing on Islam and its relationship with Europe. The program commemorated the life and work of Asad, described as a great Austrian visionary, who earned international recognition by building bridges between religions. The honoree's son Talal Asad, the President of the Islamic Community of Austria Anas Schakfeh and Vienna's cultural adviser Andreas Mailath-Pokorny were present at the unveiling of the square. Mailath-Pokorny, while talking to the media said:

"There is probably no more appropriate place to honour Muhammad Asad than that in front of the UN-City. Muhammad Asad was a citizen of the world, who was at home, and left his mark, everywhere in the world, especially in the
Orient The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of the term ''Occident'', which refers to the Western world. In English, it is largely a meto ...
."

Honorary postage stamp

On 23 March 2013, Pakistan Post issued a stamp with denomination of Rs. 15 under the "Men of Letters" Series in honour of Allamah Muhammad Asad.

Bibliography

Books

# ''Unromantisches Morgenland: Aus dem Tagebuch einer Reise'' (1924), German, published under his former name Leopold Weiss. The book is a description of the middle-East, written before his conversion to Islam, for a German-speaking readership – ''The Unromantic Orient'' (2004), English translation by Elma Ruth Harder # '' Islam at the Crossroads'' (1934), a call for Muslims to avoid imitating Western society and instead return to the original Islamic heritage, written in English # '' The Road to Mecca'' (1954), autobiography covering his life from 1900 to 1932 # '' The Principles of State and Government in Islam'' (1961), description of a democratic political system grounded in Islamic principles # '' The Message of The Qur'an'' (1980), an influential translation and interpretation of the Qur'an # '' Sahih Al-Bukhari: The Early Years of Islam'' (1981), translation and explanation of an important collection of

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

(reports of pronouncements by Muhammad) # '' This Law of Ours and Other Essays'' (1987), collection of essays about Islamic law. # ''Home-Coming of the Heart (1932–1992). Part II of the Road to Mecca'' (2016), Al Abbas International, . # ''Meditations'' (Unpublished), intended to clarify ambiguities arising from his translation ''The Message of The Qur'an'' (1980), stands unpublished as of 2013. # ''The Spirit of Islam'' is not a separate book but a republication of the first chapter of his 1934 book ''Islam at the Crossroads''.

Journals

* '' Arafat: A Monthly Critique of Muslim Thought'' (1946–47)

Other publications

Portrayals of Asad

* A Road to Mecca – The Journey of Muhammad Asad

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Videos
Muhammad Asad – God Man Relationship

Tariq Ramadan on Asad

Murad Hofmann on Asad

Risalah Reformis Tafsir Muhammad Asad
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asad, Muhammad 1900 births 1992 deaths People from the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Austrian autobiographers 20th-century Austrian diplomats Austrian Jews Linguists from Austria Austrian Muslims Austrian male writers Austrian people imprisoned abroad Austrian political philosophers Austrian travel writers Diplomats from Austria-Hungary Jews from Austria-Hungary Journalists from Austria-Hungary Writers from Austria-Hungary Converts to Islam from Judaism Islamic philosophers Jewish scholars of Islam Jews from Galicia (Eastern Europe) 20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam Austrian emigrants to Pakistan Naturalised citizens of Pakistan Pakistan Movement activists Pakistani autobiographers Pakistani diplomats Pakistani expatriates in Spain Linguists from Pakistan Pakistani Muslims Pakistani people of Austrian-Jewish descent Pakistani political philosophers Pakistani translators Pakistani travel writers Translators of the Quran into Urdu 20th-century Austrian translators 20th-century linguists 20th-century Austrian journalists Austrian magazine founders Frankfurter Zeitung people