The Tafsir Project

The aim of this project is to facilitate the dissemination of the message of Islam as taught by the final messenger of Allah throughout the world. One of the means to meet this objective is to translate the Holy Qur'an together with a succinct, and easy to follow tafsir or commentary for the divine scripture, as taught by the Ahl-ul-Bayt peace be upon them. The availability of such tafsir in English would serve English speaking Muslims and non-Muslims alike and, by the will of Allah, would enable and assist them in adopting Islam as their way of life. In this respect, Almighty God describes the Holy Qur'an:

[And this is a blessed book which We have sent down so follow ye it and adopt piety so ye may be shown mercy.]

[A book which We have sent down to you so you may bring the people out of darkness and into the light by the permission of their Lord to the way of the Almighty, the All Praised.]

“The Qur'an is a guidance from error, an elucidation from blindness, a release from stumbling, a light in the darkness, an illumination from events, a protection from destruction, a guidance against temptations, clarity from trials, and a conveyor from this world unto the next. In it is your complete religion, no one strays from the Qur'an but into the fire.”

The Mission

One of the most noble tasks one could possibly do today is to aid the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and his family, in his mission to convey the message of Allah Almighty to mankind, a cause for which he himself spared absolutely no effort to accomplish. This task can be realised by conveying the message of Islam to the non-Muslims, or even to help enhance the knowledge and enlightenment of our fellow Muslims. In doing so we would, by the will of Allah, attain an achievement similar to that of the Messenger of Allah may Allah bless him and his family, whose mission is alive and growing everyday as long as there are human beings on this planet. Such an initiative is an ongoing concern; a duty and a responsibility that must be discharged with the utmost care and devotion.

Presenting the Correct Teachings of Islam

There are a number of ways and methods to introduce the correct teachings of Islam to the English reader and guide them to the True Path of Allah Almighty. One of them is through presenting a correct and accurate English version of the Holy Qur'an along with a tafsir that reflects its essence to the non-Arabic reader – Muslims as well as non-Muslims.

The Holy Qur'an

The presentation of an English translation of the Holy Qur'an, in accordance with the elucidations of the Ahl-ul-Bayt who are the sole teachers of the Holy Qur'an, would not only create a better understanding of Islam, but non-Muslims would find it easier to come towards Islam, for they would find its teachings and message to be in total harmony with the nature of mankind.

This would help facilitate the education of the masses and bring about the elimination of the substantial level of misunderstanding about Islam that is currently widespread amongst many non-Muslim nations. The present dominance of some false concepts and ideas are so powerful that, if left unchecked, they could eventually overwhelm the entire atmosphere, and thus the new generations – Muslims and non-Muslims alike – would come to believe Islam to be an intolerant, backward, and suppressing religion to the extent that Islam would be seen as the enemy of civilisation. The effects of those false concepts and ideas are already being noticed on the new generation of Muslim youth in the West.

The availability of an English translation of the Holy Qur'an together with a commentary that is to the point, and without tedious details, is undoubtedly lacking. It is of immense need and importance that we have such a commentary, which expresses the ideas and explains the meaning of the Holy Qur'an and its message so that reading and understanding the Holy Qur'an would be pleasant and informative. This could in turn prove inspiring and encouraging for thousands, if not millions, to adopt the Islamic way of life.

Rewards for Disseminating Qur'anic Teachings

By achieving the above we would have prepared the grounds for others to be guided to Islam, a task that the final Messenger of Allah may Allah bless him and his family devoted all his time and effort.

Furthermore, this would probably be the best manifestation of an ‘ongoing charity' (sadaqah jariah) even after the death of the participant(s).

“O Ali! If Allah guides an individual through you, (the reward for) that would be better for you than what the sun shines upon.”

“(The reward for) seven cases will continue to flow for the individual after his death whilst he is in his grave; he who teaches a knowledge, . . . or he who leaves a mus'haf behind.” [A mus'haf is a bound copy of the Qur'an.]

Needless to say there is a substantial body of hadith with regards to the importance and station of the Holy Qur'an, as well as the magnificence rewards for disseminating its teachings.

English Translations of the Holy Qur'an

Although there are several English translations of the Holy Qur'an, in one way or another, these translations suffer from various deficiencies or shortcomings. There are a few English translations of the Holy Qur'an that have been carried out by followers of the Ahl-ul-Bayt, yet unfortunately some of them suffer from some inaccuracies. There are also those translations of the Holy Qur'an that convey some incorrect meanings/interpretations of the Holy Qur'an which are contrary to the teachings of the Ahl-ul-Bayt – who are the exclusive teachers of the Holy Book. Sadly, the latter translations have today flooded the English speaking world, such that effectively what is available to the masses today in the English language are these translations of the Holy Qur'an with significantly inaccurate commentaries. Thus anyone who wishes to find out about Islam and its holy book has effectively only such versions available to them.

As stated at the outset of this presentation, the aim of the project is to provide a Qur'an translation and a tafsir that reliably conveys the meaning and essence of the Holy Qur'an in a clear and succinct way. This should be done with the following aspects in mind:

a. An English translation of the Holy Qur'an may not, by itself, be sufficient since, given the terminology, background, and the scope of depth that has to be dealt with, some misunderstanding may arise. Just as the availability of a commentary is usually desirable for the Arabic reader when studying the Holy Qur'an in its Arabic original, for the English version, the holy scripture must be presented with an accurate translation of its meaning, together with a concise, but to the point commentary that is easy to follow. Such a tafsir would be essential if the reader is to get a good understanding of the Holy Qur'an.

b. The urgency for the requirement of an accurate translation of the Holy Qur'an and a reliable and authentic commentary, which is in accordance with the teaching of the Ahl-ul-Bayt, became particularly acute after the events of 9/11, for there was a significant rush by the people in the West in general and the Americans in particular to read the Qur'an to try to learn more about it and understand its message.

The availability of such translation of the Holy Qur'an would make it, and thereby Islam, better understood, and this understanding would bring about respect for, and replace the misunderstanding towards Islam and Muslims. Ultimately, the non-Muslim reader would, by the will of Allah, acknowledge the significance and superiority of the teachings of Islam if not embrace Islam as a way of life. But this guidance to Truth only comes about through proper understanding of the message and meaning of the holy Qur'an as taught by the Messenger of Allah and his Ahl-ul-Bayt peace be upon them.

The Choice of Tafsir

The tafsir that has been chosen for this project is Taqreeb al-Qur'an ilal-Adh-haan, written by the supreme Marje' or authority on Islam, the late Ayatollah al-Udhma Imam Muhammad Shirazi. An outstanding feature of this commentary is its richness and clarity, while at the same time being concise such that it adequately conveys the meaning and the message of the Holy Qur'an. Because of the simplicity of expression of this tafsir, its reading is not taxing, but easy, informative, and inspiring – especially for those who normally lead a busy life.

Work done so far

Nine of the thirty juz' or ‘parts' of the Holy Qur'an and its commentary have so far been translated into English – with the remaining 21 juz' awaiting translation.

Of the nine juz' that have been translated, three have already been sponsored for publication, and have been printed in one volume, 430 pages. The other six juz', have yet to be sponsored for publication. Every three juz' will be printed in one volume.

The remaining 21 juz' are in need of sponsorship for both translation and publication.

This figure covers the printing cost of 2000 copies of one volume, of about 400 pages.

The costs quoted here are the absolute minimum, and if it were desired to opt for a better print quality, the cost would be closer to US $20,000 for each volume.

The major task after the translation and printing of a book is its distribution, which is no less important than its translation and printing. The task of marketing and target distribution of a book is of significant importance when executed according to careful study and planning.

We usually target bodies such as universities, schools, public libraries, organisations, mosques, journalists and private individuals all over the world; from India , through Africa, Europe and America , to Guatemala . We have had many requests from all over the world but are unable to meet them due to the shipping costs involved.

The three tasks of this project are illustrated in the following table, and those that have already been accomplished or sponsored are also indicated. Using the depicted table, would be sponsors could choose which particular assignment(s) they wish to sponsor or contribute towards.

Juz' content	Translation	Printing	Distribution
1, 2, 3	Sponsored
4, 5, 6	Sponsored
7, 8, 9
10, 11, 12
13, 14, 15
16, 17, 18
19, 20, 21
22, 23, 24
25, 26, 27
28, 29, 30	Sponsored	Sponsored

And finally

It is hoped that honourable readers of this brochure would seize this opportunity to contribute to this noble task by sponsoring the translation, printing and or the distribution of one or more volumes of this tafsir project, or contribute towards part of the initiative.

By doing so, one would have the great honour of participating in the cause of the mission of the Messenger of Allah of disseminating the message of Islam to guide mankind to the path of the Truth. In this way if one person were to be guided by Allah Almighty as a result of this initiative, then that will be preferable for the sponsor than what the Sun shines upon.

You can follow the work progress and the translation carried out so far on the following website:

For more information about any aspect of this project, or sponsoring a volume or more, or contributing towards the printing and or distribution costs of the English tafsir, or any other enquiries, comments, or suggestions please contact us via:

fountain books is a non-profit making charity, affiliated to the Islamic Educational Centre, registered in England , in 1988 (No. 328364). fountain books was established in the year 2000 / 1420H with the aim of disseminating the correct teachings of Islam in the English language. fountain books has so far translated and published 15 books in English covering various topics such as beliefs, acts of worship, government, politics, contemporary religion, family, etc. More than 65,000 copies of these books have so far been published. These books are generally distributed for free, although a small percentage of which have been to help cover some of the administration costs.

As well as the Qur'an tafsir, currently there are a number of other books that are ready for publication, and it is hoped that charitable individuals would endeavour to support the printing and distribution of these books. The aim of these efforts is to provide more authentic literature about Islam as taught by Prophet Muhammad and his Ahl-ul-Bayt peace be upon them all.

Aims and Objectives