The Koran is one of the most influential works in the history of literature, and the greatest literary masterpiece in Arabic. It is the supreme authority and living source of all Islamic teaching, the sacred book that lays out all of Islam�s creeds, rituals, ethics, and laws. Revealed to the Prophet Mohammed by the angel Gabriel, it has been called �a glorious symphony� that moves men and women to ecstasy and awe. E. H. Palmer�s superb translation brings unsurpassed clarity to the text, while R. A. Nicholson�s erudite but accessible introduction places Mohammed�s story in a historical, religious, and social context that illuminates the Koran�s sometimes conflicting dictates and revelations.