Preface from the book --

Islam is a complete way. It has a distinct outlook on life. It gims at producing a unique personality in the individual and a distinct culture for the community based on Islamic ideals and values.The institutians of marriage and the faimily occupy a very important position in this scheme of life. An effort is being made in this small book to explain the Islamic concept of marriage and the family. The original inspiration for this essay came from a recent conference. The Standing Conference on Christian-Muslim Dialogue organised a three day conference at Wood Hall, Wetherby, Yorks, on the family in Christianity and Islam. I was invited to present Islamic viewpoint on the subject. The talk produced immense interest and sparked off very useful discussions in the following days. As the talk was given before a predominantly Christian audience I had to begin with the Islamic approach to life and gradually explain the institution of the family and the principles on which the family relations are built in a Muslim society. The present book is an out-growth of that talk. I hope it will, in its present form, reach a much wider audience and will be helpful in developing a better understanding of the Islamic family.