Along the path to finding out about Islam, it is easy to become overwhelmed with the amount of information available and the task of discerning good information from bad. A general rule is to start with what is most important to you at the moment, and what most relates to your learning needs, from reliable sources. If you are unsure which sources are trustworthy, feel free to ask us. It can be a daunting task to sift through the myriad of resources online and find reliable, easily digestible information on Islam. We have created a shortlist of our favourite books, podcasts and online articles to get you started on your learning journey.
Motivation, style, and direction are important as you delve into discovering about this rich faith, as the sheer scope and amount of material can be overwhelming and confusing. A general introduction to Islam can help you find your bearings; from there, you may find particular areas you want to explore further. If you are interested in conversion, you will need to strengthen your understanding of the two testimonies of faith: belief in God and belief in the Prophet Muhammad.
For many of us coming from the West, we know very little about the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) so reading a biography about him is a great place to start. After reading a biography of the Prophet (peace be upon him), you may then want to begin reading the Qur’an
The following recommended resources list is not exhaustive, but reflects the resources that we currently refer and give to converts as references and guidance on their quest for knowledge. Resources have been organised into topics and where possible, we have linked to places you can purchase or find them online.
Contact us anytime for additional support, questions or to suggest a great resource!
Click on the category you are interested in to go straight to that section.
- Introduction to Islamic Beliefs & Practices
- General Information
- Islamic History
- Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)
- Islamic Spirituality
- The Quran
Convert Recommended Resources
Introduction to Islamic Beliefs & Practices
Five Pillars Made Plain
Yaqeen Institute
Whether you were born to a Muslim family and are rediscovering faith, or you are a new Muslim who has recently accepted Islam, how can you build a strong connection with your new way of life?
First step: begin with the basics.
In this series, Sh. Abdullah Oduro walks us through the “who”, “what”, “when”, “where”, and “why” of the 5 foundational pillars of Islam.
The Five Pillars of Islam
One Path Network
What are the Pillars of Islam?
Shahada (Declaration of Faith), Salah (Daily Prayers), Zakat (Charity), Fasting and Hajj Pilgrimage, are the five pillars of Islam and they provide the framework for a Muslim’s life. They develop character, strengthen Islam by uniting Muslims and act as a reminder of the teachings of Islam. Allah commanded Muslims to carry out these duties and follow the example of the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). Each pillar has its own special importance.
The Six Pillars of Iman
One Path Network
Imaan (faith) is a crucial part of a Muslim’s life, and there are six articles of faith. These are derived from the Holy Quran and Sunnah of the prophet Muhammad. Its importance is found in the following Quranic verse.
Learn Islam
One Path Network
There are many non-Muslims who are curious about Islam, but are too shy to walk into an Islamic Centre to learn about the religion from an Islamic Educator. This series intends to cover a range of topics in an informal interview format. It touches on the basics of the Muslim belief in God the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, the Quran the Afterlife, the Angels & Devil, the concept of Divine Decree and many other issues.
The Beginners Guide to Understanding Islam
Masjid Ah-Rahmah
Islam is the fastest-growing religion with over 1.9 billion followers all over the globe.
By now you probably heard about Islam through the media, conversations with a friend or coworker, or perhaps you stumbled upon it while browsing through the web. Although Islam is the second most followed religion in the world after Christianity, it is also one of the most misunderstood.
It can be overwhelming to discern the differences between what Islam truly teaches from the misinformation and misconceptions that are widespread. We created this guide for anyone who would like to know what Islam is really about from an authentic source.
How to Pray Salah, Step by Step
Masjid Ah-Rahmah
Muslims believe that we are created for the sole reason to worship Allah alone. This purpose is fulfilled through the daily salah. This guide will cover many of the essentials a Muslim needs to know in order to make their daily prayers.
The Beginner’s Guide to Fasting
Masjid Ah-Rahmah
Fasting in Islam is one of the most recognizable acts that Muslims do. This guide will cover all of the important subjects every Muslim needs to know when it comes to fasting. We made this guide beginner-friendly so anyone can read it, understand it, and put it into practice. The study of fasting can feel overwhelming with all of the things a Muslim needs to know, but we’ve broken this guide down into easy to digest chapters so you will find it easy to understand.
Top 3 Introduction to Islam Books
Awiista
Awiista’s Youtube channel is a space dedicated to the sharing of books, ideas and experiences to cultivate the intellect and inspire the formation of virtues. In this video, she reviews her favourite books that introduce Islam at a fundamental level.
The Stories of the Prophets
Quran Weekly
Sh. Abdul Nasir Jangda discusses the stories of the Prophets of Islam and reflects on key lessons.
The Absolute Essentials of Islam
Amīn ibn Muḥammad Jundī
God has commanded us to worship and obey Him, with sincerity, out of reverence, love, and thankfulness. He says in the Qur’an, “And they are ordered only to serve God, keeping religion pure for Him, to remain upright, and to establish worship and to pay the poor-due. That is true religion” (Qur’an, 98.5). This worship is not possible without knowledge. This short work outlines the absolute essentials of this knowledge: in faith, prayer, and key points related to one’s life and dealings.
General Information
Islam – Religion of Life
Abd al-Wadūd Shalabī
This concise book is among the finest introductions to Islam for an educated readership. Its content is authentic, reliable, and powerfully presented — written by an Islamic scholar, Dr. Abdul Wadod Shalabi, who combines traditional religious training from al-Azhar University and Western education from the University of Cambridge.
No God but God: The Origins & Evolution of Islam
Reza Aslan
Though it is the fastest growing religion in the world, Islam remains shrouded by ignorance and fear. What is the essence of this ancient faith? Is it a religion of peace or war? How does Allah differ from the God of Jews and Christians? Can an Islamic state be founded on democratic values such as pluralism and human rights? A writer and scholar of comparative religions, Reza Aslan has earned international acclaim for the passion and clarity he has brought to these questions. In No god but God, challenging the “clash of civilizations” mentality that has distorted our view of Islam, Aslan explains this critical faith in all its complexity, beauty, and compassion.
Being Muslim: A Practical Guide
Asad Tarsin
Being Muslim: A Practical Guide is a new book written to help Muslims of all backgrounds learn and practice their faith. Being Muslim is a compilation of essential concepts and timeless wisdom compiled from over 20 reliable authorities in Islam, bringing all of these components together in one convenient, easily readable guide. This book is meant to give readers practical and useful knowledge that can help them understand what it means to be Muslim. Whether you are completely new to the religion or need to brush up on some of the basics, Being Muslim is an excellent guide to reconnect to the most essential aspects of Islam. The entire manual clearly explains the most fundamental aspects of the faith and assumes no background knowledge at all.
The Vision of Islam
Sachiko Murata & William Chittick
This book covers the four dimensions of Islam as outlined in the Hadith of Gabriel: practice, faith, spirituality, and the Islamic view of history. Drawing on the Koran, the sayings of the Prophet and the great authorities of the tradition, the text introduces the essentials of each dimension and then shows how it has been embodied in Islamic institutions throughout history.
Islamic History
Islam: A Short History
Karen Armstrong
No religion in the modern world is as feared and misunderstood as Islam. It haunts the popular imagination as an extreme faith that promotes terrorism, authoritarian government, female oppression, and civil war. In a vital revision of this narrow view of Islam and a distillation of years of thinking and writing about the subject, Karen Armstrong’s short history demonstrates that the world’s fastest-growing faith is a much more complex phenomenon than its modern fundamentalist strain might suggest.
Islam: The Straight Path
John Esposito
Now in a new edition, this exceptionally successful survey text introduces the faith, belief, and practice of Islam from its earliest origins up to its contemporary resurgence. John L. Esposito, an internationally renowned expert on Islam, traces the development of this dynamic faith and its impact on world history and politics. Lucidly written and expansive in scope, Islam: The Straight Path, Fourth Edition, provides keen insight into one of the world’s least understood religions. It is ideally suited for use in courses on Islam, comparative religions, and Middle Eastern history and culture.
The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him)
Revelation: The Story of the Prophet Muhammad
Meraj Mohiuddin
Prophetic biography is one of the most important of our religion’s sciences, and this new addition to the increasingly rich and varied literature now available in the English language is both useful and accurate in its presentation and content. Drawing from several existing works of Sirah, this novel textbook format with copious images, maps, and diagrams will help visually-oriented readers to better grasp certain aspects of the Sirah.
Muhammad: His life Based on Earliest Sources
Martin Lings
Martin Lings’ biography of Muhammad is an internationally acclaimed, comprehensive, and authoritative account of the life of the prophet. Based on the sira, the eighth- and ninth-century Arabic biographies that recount numerous events in the prophet’s life, it contains original English translations of many important passages that reveal the words of men and women who heard Muhammad speak and witnessed the events of his life.
Muhammad: A Prophet For Our Time
Karen Armstrong
The Man Who Inspired the World’s Fastest-Growing Religion: Muhammad presents a fascinating portrait of the founder of a religion that continues to change the course of world history. Muhammad’s story is more relevant than ever because it offers crucial insight into the true origins of an increasingly radicalized Islam. Countering those who dismiss Islam as fanatical and violent, Armstrong offers a clear, accessible, and balanced portrait of the central figure of one of the world’s great religions.
The Messenger: The Meanings of the Life of Muhammad
Tariq Ramadan
In The Messenger: The Meanings of the Life of Muhammad, leading Muslim scholar Tariq Ramadan considers the ways in which the Prophet’s actions, words and teachings can guide us in the modern world.
Meeting Muhammad
Omar Suleiman
Through 30 beautifully detailed chapters with narrations from companions, take a journey from only knowing about Muhammad (pbuh) to knowing him and loving him and feel what it was like to be a companion of his in this life and strive to be companions of his in the next. Available as a book or video series.
The Story of the Prophet Muhammad
Masjid Ar-Rahmah
Trying to summarize the life and legacy of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in this short guide will not do him justice. However, this will give you a short peek into his life by focusing on the major phases throughout his biography. This will include the phase of his life before he became a Prophet, the 13 years he spent in Makkah, the 10 years he spent in Madinah, and the end of his life.
Critical Lives – Muhammad
Yahiya Emerick
Muhammad was a religious visionary and political leader. Raised in the harsh Arabian Peninsula and orphaned while still a child, this unlikely leader and military genius received a calling to transform his society from a collection of raiding tribes into one of the world’s most progressive societies. His message of monotheism and righteousness motivated an entire people to abandon idolatry and spread the word of God to surrounding nations. Although he was a military genius, his greatest accomplishments came from the religion he preached: Islam, which called its adherents to lead a life of prayer, charity, and contemplation. The second largest religion in the world, both Islam’s prophet and its values are today often misunderstood by adherents and outsiders alike.
The Life of Muhammad
Hamza Yusuf
This brilliant narration of the life of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was originally presented by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf in a twelve week course based on the book, Muhammad (s) by Martin Lings. It is unrivaled in its analysis of the Prophet’s (s) life, making his amazing persona come alive. The focus of the narration is the Prophet’s relationship with Allah through the Qur’an. Listeners learn verses in the order they were revealed to show how they impacted the young Muslim nation.
Islamic Spirituality
Omar Suleiman on Muslim Central
Omar Suleiman
Imam Omar Suleiman is the Founder and President of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research,…a think tank that focuses on instilling conviction based on Islamic texts, and producing contribution.
Agenda to Change Our Condition
Hamza Yusuf & Zaid Shakir
With an emphasis on Taqwa (God-consciousness) and Ikhlas (sincerity), Agenda To Change Our Condition is an indispensable handbook for all Muslims striving for excellence in character and self-refinement.
Treatise for the Seekers of Guidance
Zaid Shakir
The translation, notes, and commentary of Imam al-Harith al-Muhasibi’s Risala al-Mustarshidin (Treatise For The Seekers Of Guidance) by Zaid Shakir is intended to serve as a layman’s guide to Islamic spirituality. Al – Muhasibi presents most of the major ideas that would both serve as the basis for a full program of spiritual development and comprise an insightful overview of a system of Islamic moral psychology. He examines in great depth and penetrating insight the psychological motivations and justifications for moral thought and action and correspondingly the associated bases of immorality. In so doing, he has provided a road map that any person can follow to overcome the guiles of his fundamental enemies: the world, the ego, the whims of the soul, and Satan.
The Book of Assistance
Imam ‘Abdallah Ibn Alawi al-Haddad
There are many books in English that present Sufi doctrine, but few that can be used as practical travel guides along the Path. Originally written in classical Arabic, this volume is in widespread use among Sufi teachers in Arabia, Indonesia, and East Africa; its devotions, prayers, and practical ethics are invaluable as a guide along the Sufi way.
Our Master Muhammad
Abdallah Sirajuddin al-Husayni
Modern times have made it even more important that Muslims acquaint themselves with their Prophet, not only for the sake of their personal spiritual development, but also for the sake of the religion as a whole. There has perhaps never been a time when the world was more in need of an authentic depiction of the Best of Creation. ‘Our Master Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah is a unique work discussing the noble qualities and characteristics of the Final Prophet in a way that is infused with love and devotion. In the first volume of this book, the author depicts all the fine attributes of our Prophet with respect to his physical beauty, his eloquence and wisdom, his exalted status, his sublime character and his mercy.
Purification of The Heart
Hamza Yusuf
Afflictions that assail and control people–such as miserliness, envy, treachery, malice, and arrogance–are examined in a study that discusses the causes and cures of these diseases and reveals how Islamic spirituality deals with spiritual and psychological problems.
Sacred Text Messages
Hamza Yusuf
In this age of material excess and spiritual privation, grounding ourselves in divine guidance has never been more critical. The Sacred Text Messages podcast with Hamza Yusuf provides an antidote to the modern madness by reconnecting us with God and His Messenger ﷺ . Listen to timeless wisdoms from sacred sources and rediscover Truth, Goodness, and Beauty.
Soul Food FM
Soul Food
A podcast about spiritual refinement. Embark on the journey within.
Refinement of the Hearts
Imam Ibn Juzayy al-Kalbi, Hamza Yusuf
In the City of the Prophet, peace be upon him, Hamza Yusuf delivered this series of lectures on this lesser known work, Refinement of the Hearts. The author of the text, the 8th century Spanish master of the Islamic sciences and martyr, Imam Ibn Juzayy al-Kalbi, presents an unassailable Sufism thoroughly grounded in the Book of God. This small but powerful treatise is one of the finest pieces of Islamic spiritual literature in Muslim history. Hamza Yusuf’s illuminating and engaging reflections bring it to life for any modern Muslim in search of the keys to refining his or her heart in a world that seduces the hearts of humanity.
The Quran
Oxford Quran Translation
This superb new translation of the Qur’an is written in contemporary language that remains faithful to the meaning and spirit of the original, making the text crystal clear while retaining all of this great work’s eloquence. The translation is accurate and completely free from the archaisms, incoherence, and alien structures that mar existing translations. Thus, for the first time, English-speaking readers will have a text of the Qur’an which is easy to use and comprehensible.
The Study Quran
An accessible and accurate translation of the Quran that offers a rigorous analysis of its theological, metaphysical, historical, and geographical teachings and backgrounds, and includes extensive study notes, special introductions by experts in the field, and is edited by a top modern Islamic scholar, respected in both the West and the Islamic world.
Drawn from a wide range of traditional Islamic commentaries, including Sunni and Shia sources, and from legal, theological, and mystical texts, The Study Quran conveys the enduring spiritual power of the Quran and offers a thorough scholarly understanding of this holy text.
The Clear Quran
An accessible and accurate translation of the Quran that offers a rigorous analysis of its theological, metaphysical, historical, and geographical teachings and backgrounds, and includes extensive study notes, special introductions by experts in the field, and is edited by a top modern Islamic scholar, respected in both the West and the Islamic world.
Drawn from a wide range of traditional Islamic commentaries, including Sunni and Shia sources, and from legal, theological, and mystical texts, The Study Quran conveys the enduring spiritual power of the Quran and offers a thorough scholarly understanding of this holy text.
Bayyinah TV
More than 2,000 hours of video lessons delivered monthly. Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan guides you through a practical approach to learning the Quran.
