[faqir]

I think the books easiest to sell must be as you said, those by a famous contemporary or classical author and also books relating to sufism or shama'il. i also agree that complex polemical work is unlikely to sell well.... unless if perhaps written or endorsed by contemporary famous scholar here in the west.

[faqir]

al-Suyuti's al-Khasa'is al-Kubra would be awesome

there is a tadhib al-khasa'is al kubra by al-Talidi

[mansoor malik]

Salaam,

I've read through this thread and Alhamdulillah a lot of useful points have been made. I would imagine that the two overriding concerns on choosing books are: firstly, what will sell - a publishing house needs to make money; and secondly, the benefit of a particular book being translated.

There is nothing I can really say about the former point but as for the benefit to be had in translating a given work, wouldn't it be useful for the brothers to put forward some ideas on this point in a structured and general manner first. I think that would perhaps allow us to realize what types of books will be of most use and in what way.

questions like:

1. What audience is being targeted?
2. What texts are most suited for that audience and in what order?

My worry is that there's something of an information overload in the public arena - a lot of good books in different subjects but no structure. Brothers have read a lot of books but have little guidance on how they cohere together systematically. I would consider that books could be translated that have an individual benefit but can be taken together to form a curriculum. This would mean either translating a series of books in one discipline - a vertical approach. Or translating istilah orientated works in all the foundational disciplines - a vertical approach. Personally I think the second of these options is best.

Mansoor

This post has been edited by mansoor malik: 24 December 2009 - 03:12 PM

[mansoor malik]

on a separate point which I won't pursue if this thread is not the right place for it - has anyone given any thought on translating INTO the Arabic language. While I would probably be the first to benefit from works translated in to English in subjects like Mantiq, Falsafa etc (The degree i'm pursuing is in Philosophy), I would think that Kalam studies would benefit from modern works in philosophy and oriental studies to be translated in to Arabic so that they can be accessed by the people who are being called on to tackle them - their common language being Arabic.

[faqir]

mansoor malik, on 24 December 2009 - 03:16 PM, said:

on a separate point which I won't pursue if this thread is not the right place for it - has anyone given any thought on translating INTO the Arabic language. While I would probably be the first to benefit from works translated in to English in subjects like Mantiq, Falsafa etc (The degree i'm pursuing is in Philosophy), I would think that Kalam studies would benefit from modern works in philosophy and oriental studies to be translated in to Arabic so that they can be accessed by the people who are being called on to tackle them - their common language being Arabic.

as-salamu `alaikum
I agree, and one could add other popular books by the likes of Dawkins like 'The God Delusion' for which a muslim response is still lacking.

[mansoor malik]

Yes, Dawkins' popular works are definitely a target and some kind of rebuttal might be needed - and achievable simply by translating his work(s) and eliciting a Muslim response.

On a more critical level however, something far greater is needed. Either, serious scholars of Kalam have to deem it necessary for themselves to learn English - the academic language of the age. Or, on the other hand, the literature which is the corner stone of defending Islam in the modern age will need to be translated into Arabic. Now, 'the God delusion' is a trivial work of rhetorical polemics, but what underpins it; namely, evolution theory, cannot simply be dismissed by Kalam scholars. But to appreciate the argument there are important reflections in such subjects as epistemology, philosophy of science etc. As far as i'm aware there are no translation works of these fields in Arabic. To the best of my knowledge, the shared philosophical heritage between the Muslims and Europe ended with the Medieval scholastic tradition.

The thought which needs to be introduced into Kalam and falsafa manuals begins roughly with what is termed classical modern philosophy of the 17th century (i.e. Descartes, Hume, Locke, Leibniz, Spinoza and Berkley); moving on to 18th and 19th century German Idealism, French existentialism (i.e. Nietzsche, Hegel, Kierkegaard etc); modern analytic philosophy (Ayer, Quine, Kripke etc) ... and so on.

Modern points of theological controversy, from evolution to secular liberalism to feminism, all have common routes in the thought produced during this period. The mutakallimun took it upon themselves to learn the subjects they sought to refute; the (orthodox) Muslim scholars need to do the same today.

When it comes to defending Islam against 'academic' attack, unfortunately there is only one name that comes to mind easily and clearly - Dr. Mustafa Azami in the field of historical criticism. No doubt there are others, but not quite as vocal and uncompromising.

[faqir]

as-salamu `alaikum
These sorts of projects are definitely needed but should be funded by arab universities / organisations - I doubt you will be able to convince any english publishers to spend money on it sadly.

[faqir]

faqir, on 28 August 2008 - 09:03 PM, said:

- al-ajwibah al-ghaliyah by Habib Zayn b. Sumayt
- maqalat al-Kawthari by Imam Zahid al-kawthari
- Risaala fil-Radd `ala Ibn Taymiyya fi Mas'alati Hawaaditha laa Awwala Laha [Epistle in Refutation of Ibn Taymiyya in the Question of 'Created Matters without Beginning']. By al-Imam Baha' al-Din al-Ikhmeemi al-Misri (700-764). Ed. Sa`id `Abd al-Latif Fawdah. 128 p. (Amman 1998)

Al-Ajwibah al-Ghaliyah available on-line

[mansoor malik]

faqir, on 25 December 2009 - 09:54 AM, said:

as-salamu `alaikum
These sorts of projects are definitely needed but should be funded by arab universities / organisations - I doubt you will be able to convince any english publishers to spend money on it sadly.

An unfortunate truth!

As for English, I would think the following types of books would be worth translating.

al-Asma wa al-sifaat of al-Baihaqi,

Khalq 'afal al-'ibaad of al-Bukhari.

Suyuti's work commending the Shadhili path

an abridged work on ibn Taymiyyah's 'sufi volumes' from his majmu'

one of the spiritual or metaphysical works of Shah Wali Allah

[Ibn Ajibah]

Lata'if al-Ma'arif of Ibn Rajab.

One other book that I just looked through and absolutely loved was Imam Yusuf al-Nabahani's al-Asalib al-Badi'a fi fadl al-Sahaba wa Iqna' al-Shi'a (on the virtues of the Companions and refutation of the Shiites).

[al-kakazai]

Salam

A few points:

The Ajwibah al-Ghaliyah has received a newer edition with additonal points and referencing of narrations cited. As mentioned previously it is probably the closest text which I have across which serves as a basic manual on what it means to be Sunni. There are some points in it such as on Kufu (compatibility in marriage) which one of Habib Zayns notable students was uncomfortable with the inclusion of.

But to reiterate, we may suggest titles, but how can we measure their benefit and use? Still way too many high level books which are not often even referred to in Muslim scholastic circles are being suggested.

Ws

[Hamoudeh]

Assalamu `Alaykum

JazzakumAllah khayran for the thoughtful suggestions and points. However, I do believe saleability and benefit should be considered in the context of how many books are being printed. I really think this is being overlooked, for there is not that much to be considered with runs of one or two thousand copies - it will take adding another zero for them to become decisive factors. That some books are easier to sell than others, is obvious. But almost any book can be sold, and at such small runs I believe any good Islamic work offers just as many people benefit. It is nevertheless very important to identify the target audience and the text suited for them. My point is, we could do that for any of the books that came by so far. The challenge is to get the right books to the right people through commercial ways at the right pace. The rest is really a matter of personal preference. That being said, I wish we could translate and publish all these books. Unfortunately however, it will be hard to initiate new projects as our current capacity is at its maximum for perhaps as much as another two years of material. Until this is expanded insha'Allah, I'm afraid it won't be possible to start anything new. Don't let that hold the suggestions back though, instead pray that we will be able to expand and keep making suggestions as I'm collecting and considering them. BarakAllah fikum.

Wassalam

[Revan]

As-Salamu 'Alaykum,

Perhaps this new Tafwid fi Ma'ana book ?

[Ibn Ajibah]

What about audio books? It would be nice to have a book translated and recorded for iPods. Im not too sure that polemic or apologetic books would work well with that medium. Perhaps commentaries on Hadith or compilations of virtues (manaqib, tabaqat) would work better.

This post has been edited by Ibn Ajibah: 25 December 2009 - 10:29 PM

[Seth]

As-salaamu 'alaykum.
Have Nietzsche, Freud, Liebnitz, Spinoza, Descartes, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Sartres, Derrida, et al really not been translated into Arabic? This is hard to imagine, but if it's true it is worrisome indeed. Shaykh Abdal-Hakim Murad has warned about ignorance of modern thought, and these authors are keys to understanding it.
was-salaam.