The Qur'an is the most important classical piece of literature from Islam, and it even carries significant weight in the world. The Qur'an forms the basis of the Muslim faith- the religion of Islam, in which Muslims believe the book is a revelation from God. The Qur'an is believed to give divine guidance, and offer solutions to all the problems of humanity, irrespective of their complexity (Watton). I read several chapters, or suras, from The Koran Interpreted by AJ Arberry carefully and found that The Qur'an recurrently stresses the importance of faith, and guide people to live a better life in order to achieve Paradise after death. The literary styles of repetition, imagery and parallelism were used to express the crucial concepts of the text, which also contributes to its popularity.
First of all, the most prominent theme I noticed from the Qur'an is the general moral lessons that form the core of Muslim religious belief. The Qur'an places importance on these values: .
Be kind to parents, and the near kinsman, and to orphans, and to the needy, and to the neighbour who is of kin, and to the neighbour who is a stranger, and to the companion at your side, and to the traveler, and to that your right hands own. Surely God loves not the proud and boastful such as are niggardly, and bid other men to be niggardly. (Arberry).
The crux principle of the text asserts on being kind to one another, and encourages people to always be charitable, especially to the needy. Believers who "spend of their wealth by night and by day, in secret and in public" are promised that they "shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve" (Arberry). The Ethico-legal concepts and exhortations dealing with righteous conduct are rooted from a profound awareness of God, thereby emphasizing the importance of faith.
Among all the positive moral properties spelled out in the Qur'an, belief is at the center of the text.
