Pain, Pleasure and Prejudice The Complete Layman’s Guide to the Koran Islam’s Holy Book explained in a way we can all understand
Excerpts have been formatted for the web. (N) indicates new material not in current print edition Foreword – Letter To A Publisher PART I 1 - Revelations and Generalizations How the Bible Came To Be How the Koran Came To Be The Angel Gabriel – A Messenger to the Messenger The First Written Version A Double Dose of Genesis 3 - The Old Testament vs. the Koran - Part I Adam Paradise Lost I Paradise Lost II Paradise Lost III Paradise Lost IV How Adam Came To Be Cain and Abel Law of Retaliation Noah The Answerer Jonas Misses the Boat Eber/Hud Abraham Hagar and Ishmael Lot A Confusing Lot Jacob Joseph, Son of Jacob The Vision Sold Into Slavery Sleep With Me A Camel's Load The King's Drinking Cup The Other Brother All's Well That Ends Well The Last Word 4 - The Old Testament vs. the Koran - Part II Jethro Moses A Favourite of Allah The Fire on the Mountain Moses and Pharaoh’s Magicians The Tenth Plague Allah’s Gift To the Jews The Death of Pharaoh Moses in Egypt – Abridged Versions 1 & 2 The Ten Commandments Saul David The Psalms Solomon and the Queen of Sheba Job, Elijah
| 5 - The New Testament vs. the Koran People of the Book and of the Koran The Prophet as Arbitrator Jesus The Prophet Jesus A Mere Servant and An Example to the Arabs and the Jews The Last Supper The Crucifixion Myth Resurrection The Holy Spirit Jesus Will Die of Old Age If Allah had wanted a Son Mary Birth of Jesus Love vs. Hate, Revenge and Intolerance Judgement Day A Conditional Type Of Mercy Terrified Into Believing Allah’s Parables The Jointly-Owned Slave and the Slave of Just One Man The Incapable Slave and the Well-Provided-For Slave The Dumb Slave and the Good Slave The King Who Disputed With Abraham The Traveller Who Slept for a Hundred Years The Good Tree and the Foul Tree The Two Gardeners The Companions Tested The Lesser Gods and the Fly The House of the Spider Allah, Two Boys and A Dog One-on-One With Allah Negotiating the Prayers Prayers in War and Peace (N) The Call to Prayer 7 - Moses and Spiritual Advisor Go On A Journey A Child Is Murdered The Crime of No Longer Believing Meccans Who Fought His Messenger The Meccans Who Should Have Emigrated Emigrating in the Cause of Allah (N) Hypocrites and Apostates Jews Christians Unbelievers of Yore Atheists Reformers The True Unbelievers A God’s Dilemma Slavery and the Prophet A Question of Interest The Prophet as Borrower 10 - A Divine Bias – Women and the Koran I Sex, and When Resistance is Futile Why Muslim Men Are Always Right 11 - Who Gets What – Women and the Koran II The Invisible, Illiterate Woman Wills and Witnesses Wives and A Deceased Husband’s Property Husbands and A Deceased Wife’s Property A Vicious Circle 12 - God’s Will – Women and the Koran III Women As A Field To Be Ploughed Women of the Book and Slave-Girls Marriage, Divorce and Who Gets the Kids Widows, Spinsters and Prostitutes The Suckling Imperative
| 13 - The Perfect Wife – Women and the Koran IV A Man and His Wives A Taste of Honey A Child Bride’s Indiscretion 15 - Unbelievers Everywhere! What Is A God To Do? A Declaration of War! When Are You Allowed To Kill Unbelievers? When Must You Stop Killing Unbelievers? Killing During The Sacred Months Jihad As Penance Stay-at-Home Warriors Female Jihadists Emigrating in the Cause of Allah The Saudi Solution 16 - Lessons In Cruelty – Children and the Koran A Very Special School Allah’s Willing Executioners? In the Name of God! Children’s Toys 17 - The Living Dead - Life in the Grave An Eyewitness Account What the Prophet Saw and Heard Women on Fire An Argument between Heaven and Hell The Bridge Over Hell 21 -The Lost Verse – Women and the Koran V A Lost Verse Remembered The Satanic Verses The Cult of Masculinity Crime and Punishment Where Homosexuals Go When They Die 23 - Whose Words Are They Anyway? Red Herrings Koran Compiled After The Prophet’s Death The Koran as Follow-up to the Bible? (N) Journey to Heaven on a Flying Horse God Changing His Mind God Being Deliberately Vague A Cruel God A Conceited and Confused God No Jesus-like Miracles Allegations of Plagiarism and Fabrication Trading in Revelations (N) Allah and the Ptolemaic Universe Alexander the Great and A Flat Earth When In the Prophet’s House When in the Presence of the Prophet The Prophet’s Wet Nurse Conflicting Messages Sex and the Messenger A Prophet's State of Mind If You Can’t Believe God ... A Child’s Universe Hearing Voices 25 - Women and What It Means To Be Civilized Women of Islam Women of Sumer Civilization In The Balance 26 - It Wasn’t Always Like That Arabs, Before and After The Cartoon Protests An Extraordinary Verse An Extraordinary Surah | PART II Synopsis The Names Of The Months Year Zero An Ode to Cattle Domesticated in Paradise Water, Men and Cattle Some are for Eating, Some are for ... Slicing the Ears of Cattle Joseph, the Governor’s Wife and the Cupbearer Mughirah - Enemy of the Prophet What Mughirah Heard Abu Jahl Night Vigil (N) What Aisha Saw When a Son Is Not a Son Pillars of Islam - Pilgrimages and Fasts Ramadan in the Land of the Midnight Sun Why No Signs and No Punishment Salih and The Destruction of Thamud The Hidden Believer at Pharaoh’s Court The Difference at the Battle of the Ditch Iblis, the Evil Jinn Jinn and Men Together on Judgement Day Trees of the Earth, Heaven and Hell Politicians and Pork is for other Gods Vegetarians Dining Dos and Don’ts Why Some Gods Go Hungry Young Abraham the Idol Breaker PART III - Potpourri (See columns to the right) Afterword The Skimper, the Profligate and the Pious Nehru on Scriptures Epilogue Lawrence, Montagne and an Arab Spring Appendices Conceit and the Damning of Innovation
| PART III - Potpourri Death is like sleep Wars are Allah’s doing That vision thing. If they don't believe, it is their lost Every city has its leading sinners courtesy of Allah. Allah knows best with whom to place His Message. If your heart feels constricted as if rising in the air Mercy as a god’s fury On the wall separating Paradise and Hell Balaam Allah controls His Universe seated Ungrateful people Everything is in the Book Allah’s Throne floats Enjoy your life while you can, the Fire is waiting Native speakers Allah Days The near-earth constellations Stuff from heaven’s warehouses The wind as fertilizer Mountains as earthquake preventers Allah and Alzheimer Allah, the Father of the brides How birds stay in the air Straight talk A sea of words Allah did not create heaven and earth for sport Angels never tire of worshipping Allah. Sometime, no matter how much pain you inflict… Not a good idea to have more than one god. Allah’s scales of justice Rubbing your face in it Who will have the last laugh The beast within What other god brings you night and day When not to Honour your father and mother There is no life like the after-life! The living out of the dead and vice versa The dead and deaf cannot hear. Luqmân the wise man The length of a day in heaven A talk between the arrogant and the downtrodden The punishment for calling Messengers liars. It’s not your fault Muhammad if they don’t believe. The fate of those who deny the Messengers. The punishment for treating the Koran as babble There is no pleasing some people That thunder you hear The mother of cities Sterility comes from Allah How Allah communicates with mortals Another verse about Allah committing genocide Whatever you do, don’t forget Judgement Day! No point in saying you're sorry you forgot The uber religion If you can’t convince them, ignore them They will get what is coming to them Trust Me and continue doing what you do Venial sins are okay Repetition is the key The birds again Judgement Day may be sooner than you think To whom Allah discloses the Unseen ... Bones present no problem in bringing the dead... The day as a source of livelihood Who is not a prey to perdition
| PART III - Potpourri The earth as a couch. What chosen people should wish for The only mention of the angel Michael Idol adverse - Safa and Marwa I listen to you, so you listen to Me. Don’t bribe the judge Al-Akhnas sowing corruption Gardening with fire Satan = Poverty, Allah = Bounty Ambiguity upon ambiguity in Mother of the Book Muhammad Accused of Cheating Tongue Twisters Only a flesh wound Don’t be a show-off and chose your friends well Eyes in the back of your head Absolute power to the Prophet and those acting in his name. When foul language is permitted The Jews were cursed by both David and Jesus Is Allah the flip side of God? Wait for it and why! Allah does not give names to cattle Your forefathers were ignoramuses If it’s a choice between Allah and your children... Allah the Schemer Unbelievers as beasts One believer is worth ten unbelievers and sometimes only two. Keeping your priorities straight Unbelievers as subversives Allah does not believe in re-incarnation. Enough said! Allah imitating Jupiter Allah can’t be bribed and don’t even try. Drunk on the Last Day What a tepid believer risks losing Another peril of being a Christian Allah’s light may be like a star with olive oil for fuel Don’t let an unbeliever’s suffering weaken your resolve What believing women should do with their outer garments during hostilities The believers will be able to keep their possessions Right is good, left is bad What would have happened if Allah had sent the Koran like he did the Torah. The only person in the Koran, to my knowledge, on whose behalf the Prophet can ask forgiveness from Allah. Allah, Who do you love? No business to be conducted during the call to prayer Allah before children Allah Indulgences More urban destruction An absolution for the Prophet The worst of creatures What Allah expect you to do when His Victory is complete and how will you know. Bibliography
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