Gai Eaton's "Islam and the Destiny of Man" is a wide-ranging study of the religion of Islam from a traditional point of view. Covering all aspects that a reader would wish to know about Islam-including the Qur'an, the life of the Prophet, Islamic history, Islamic law, art and mysticism-"Islam and the Destiny of Man" explains what it means to be a Muslim and describes how Islam has shaped the hearts and minds of Muslims down the centuries. However, in "Islam and the Destiny of Man", Gai Eaton is concerned not simply with Islam in isolation, but with the very nature of religious faith, its spiritual and intellectual foundations and the light it casts upon the mysteries and paradoxes of the human condition.

Now in his 80s, Gai Eaton describes how, after a strange childhood completely isolated from other children, followed by a Cambridge education and life as an actor and later as a diplomat, circumstances led him at the age of 30 to Islam. Fascinated by the vagaries of human behavior and the strangeness of human destinies, he has observed the human scene with a novelist's eye and traced the profound changes in attitudes and tastes which have taken place in a single lifetime. He recounts his youthful adventures with the clear-sight and understanding only possible for someone whom age has freed from the passions which once possessed him. What makes this work unique is the juxtaposition of hindsight with diary entries made at the time, which gives a quality of immediacy to a true story that includes reminiscences of the diplomatic life and an outline of the Sufi path.

This book examines closely many of the unquestioned assumptions by which we live our lives, comparing them with the beliefs that have shaped and guided human life in the past. It begins with a consideration of how secular societies attempt to possess their citizens, body and soul and how, as a consequence, the necessity of redefining human responsibility becomes an ever more urgent imperative. The book continues with a presentation of the traditional view of man as 'God's Viceroy on Earth', with an eye to its practical implications in a world that has all but forgotten, under the pressure of mass social persuasion, that man must always be free to choose his own ultimate destiny. The author's thesis is a passionate yet incisive plea for the restoration of the sacred norms of religion, as against the debilitating and falsifying aims of a profane world-view based on no more than recent scientific and technological achievements.

This selection of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad was made by the internationally respected British Muslim scholar, Charles le Gai Eaton. The Book of Hadith captures not only the practical and profound wisdom of the Prophet, but his human side as well. Contains Arabic text as well.

Gai Eaton's "Remembering God" is a profound analysis of the most urgent concerns and questions facing humanity at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Contrasting modern, secular society with religion and tradition in general and with Islam in particular, Gai Eaton clarifies the essential need for spirituality, religion and values based on eternal principles.---In "Remembering God", Gai Eaton emphasises that religion is not an isolated part of human life which can be disregarded at will and without consequences; that a total rejection of the past cannot be the basis for the future, and that a true link with Heaven modifies all the decisions and actions of society. Touching on religion in principle-metaphysics, knowledge of the divine and of oneself, prayer, the necessity for purifying the ego-and on the application of religion to society-as well as to politics, architecture, the environment and gender relations-Gai Eaton illustrates the subtle harmony of a religious perspective and its ability to transform both the individual and society.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone

Between the years 1978 and 1996, the late Gai Eaton gave a series of talks on BBC Radio about Islam and its role in contemporary society. Eighty-six of these talks - variously titled Reflections, Words of Faith and Pause for Thought - are published here for the first time as Reflections. Together these talks provide a beautifully clear and accessible introduction to the central tenets, principles and practices at the heart of Islam and, as such, are not only a unique guide for non-Muslims, but also an inspiring reminder to Muslims of the essence of their faith. Connecting everything that Eaton discusses in Reflections are the two principles of the Oneness of God (Tawhid) and the Viceregency of man (khilafah). Therefore, whether discussing the five pillars of Islam or the sufi concepts of fear (makhafah), love (mahabbah) and knowledge (ma'rifah) or the idea of a 'just war' or environmental changes, Gai Eaton reminds us that nothing is independent of the One who is Truth, Mercy and Beauty and that we, who are the Viceregents of this Truth, must - if we are to be true to the potential within us - undertake the human struggle, the inner jihad, to convert our divided souls into unified, harmonious, balanced souls; souls not motivated by selfishness, self-regard and self-righteousness, but souls in a state of peace, illumined by the permanent consciousness of the divine. While always expresses himself as a Muslim, Gai Eaton's voice, with all its wisdom, its humanity and its humour, speaks not only to Muslims but to all those interested in a spiritual approach to life.

A wide-ranging study of the Muslim religion from a unique point of view. The aim of this book is to explore what it means to be a Muslim, a member of a community which embraces a quarter of the world's population and to describe the forces which have shaped the hearts and the minds of Islamic people.