Islam: a short introduction: signs, symbols and values Abdulkader Tayob [Text]

The Minaret : the call of Islam. Islam and the other -- Height as symbol -- Music and the human voice -- The call to prayer amplified : technology and religion -- Ablution : purification, self-mastery and the body. Purification rituals in Islam -- The significance of purity : Islamic jurisprudence -- Purity as cosmology -- Life cycle and rites of passage -- The nafs and self-control -- Fasting -- The interior of the mosque : space, gender dynamics and aesthetics. The world is a mosque -- Celebrating and commemorating -- Gendered space : from mosque to society -- Aesthetics -- The prayer niche : the inexpressible goal of Islamic devotion. How do we know? -- Pilgrimage -- The Muslim community -- The Minbar : power and authority in Islam. Minbar and mihrab -- Models of leadership -- Leadership of power -- Leadership of personality -- Leadership of knowledge -- Leadership beyond models -- Challenges and opportunities in the twenty-first century. Globalization -- Human rights : seeking equity in a global village -- Symbol and reality.