The Compendium of Seminary Texts

Authored by the late luminary Shaykh Muhammad Emin Er (c. 1914-2013), The Compendium of Seminary Texts is a series of twelve intermediate-level primers representing the prerequisites for scholarly literacy in the curriculum of the Ottoman seminary. These texts teach the fundamentals of language and thought, preparing students not only to move on to the advanced Islamic sciences but also, more broadly, to live an educated life as conceived in the Islamic tradition, equipped to read religious and general texts closely, to understand complex ideas and arguments, and to truly strive for knowledge.

Translated into idiomatic English and presented in a parallel bilingual format, the text is accompanied by explanatory notes and a comprehensive glossary containing translations and definitions of over 700 technical terms. This volume is intended as an expansive resource for the study of the traditional seminary sciences by English-speaking students, teachers, and researchers alike.