The Ascendant Qur'an

The first tafsir written directly in English.

TAQ Waqf is a charitable endowment that publishes and distributes the Qur'anic works of Imam Muhammad H. al-Asi: his multi-volume tafsir, his translation of the meanings of the Qur'an, and his lectures. Proceeds go back into the waqf.

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Fourteen volumes published so far. Select a spine to see its contents.

14volumes of tafsir in print
7,420pages of commentary
7surahs covered: al-Fatihah to al-A'raf
25volumes still to be written
Why a waqf

Knowledge that keeps giving

A waqf is an endowment held in trust: the asset is kept, and its benefit is given away. Every copy sold through TAQ Waqf helps keep these works in print, fund the volumes still being written, and put the tafsir in libraries, masjids and study circles that could not otherwise afford it.

The Prophet ﷺ named beneficial knowledge among the three deeds that continue after a person's death. Buying, gifting or endowing a set is a share in that.

How the waqf works
لَن تَنَالُوا۟ ٱلْبِرَّ حَتَّىٰ تُنفِقُوا۟ مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَ
You will not attain righteousness until you spend from what you love.
Surah Al 'Imran 3:92, the verse traditionally cited as the root of the waqf
Work in progress

What your support is building

  1. 25

    Remaining tafsir volumes

    Completing The Ascendant Qur'an, beyond the fourteen volumes already published.

  2. II

    A simplified translation

    A version of the translation for young people and readers whose second language is English.

  3. III

    Audio & ePub editions

    The completed translation as an audiobook and an e-book.

  4. IV

    English-only edition

    A translation for readers new to Islamic terminology, completing the planned three versions.

Translation

An Advanced English Translation of the Meanings of the Qur'an

The complete Qur'an in one large volume, Arabic and English side by side, with an overview of each surah.

See the translation →
Tafsir

The Ascendant Qur'an: Realigning Man to the Divine Power Culture

A contemporary commentary that brings out the Qur'an's treatment of power, authority and wealth for Muslims living today.

14-volume set and single volumes →
Lectures & media

Lecture series, talks and interviews

Recorded tafsir sessions, khutbahs, public talks and media interviews with Imam al-Asi, gathered in one archive.

Open the archive →
The Works

Tafsir & translation

Every purchase supports the waqf and helps bring the remaining volumes into print.

Cover of The Ascendant Qur'an translation: white calligraphy and a gold medallion on a dark geometric pattern
Single volume · Advanced English–Arabic edition

The Ascendant Qur'an

An Advanced English Translation of the Meanings of the Qur'an

The full text of the Qur'an with the Arabic and English printed in parallel, and an overview introducing each surah. It was written as the gateway to the tafsir, bringing out the Qur'an's emphasis on Allah's power and authority and on social justice, without sectarian slant. This is the first of three planned versions; a simplified English edition and an English-only edition are in preparation.

Format
Hardcover, gilded page edges, acid-free paper
Pages
xxxviii + 1,093
Published
Sha'ban 1442 AH (March 2021)
Size
18.5 × 26 × 7 cm
ISBN
978-1-927683-14-9
Cover of The Ascendant Qur'an, Volume 14: crimson cloth band with the title on a blush panel
Volume 14, Al-A'raf 94–206
Complete set to date

The Ascendant Qur'an

Realigning Man to the Divine Power Culture

Written in English from the start, so the meaning reaches the reader without passing through a second language. The commentary pays close attention to themes other tafsirs often leave out, such as power, authority and wealth, and how the Qur'an speaks to the struggles of Muslims in the modern world. The fourteen volumes run from Surah al-Fatihah through Surah al-A'raf, and the Imam continues to write.

Volumes
14, hardcover
Coverage
Al-Fatihah 1 to Al-A'raf 206
Pages
7,420 in total
Size
17 × 24 cm
Published
2008–2019
Volume I on Amazon ▶ Watch the Imam discuss the tafsir

Individual volumes

Start with the surah you are studying, or complete a set you already own.

Vol.Surahs and versesPagesPrice
Lectures & Media

Hear the Imam

Lecture series that walk through the Qur'an, khutbahs and public talks, and interviews given to the media.

Featured

Imam al-Asi on The Ascendant Qur'an

The Imam discusses his tafsir in detail: why he wrote it directly in English, how it reads the Qur'an, and what it offers Muslims today. A good place to start before reading the volumes.

Watch on YouTube

Latest uploads

Islamic Center DC

Imam al-Asi's khutbahs and lecture series are published on the Islamic Center DC YouTube channel. The player shows the newest uploads automatically, so this page stays current without any changes.

Open the channel on YouTubeListen on Apple Podcasts

Prefer audio? Every Friday khutbah is also published as the podcast Friday Khutbah – Imam Asi.

Lecture series

Tafsir study sessions

Verse-by-verse sessions that follow the volumes of The Ascendant Qur'an.

Talks

Khutbahs & public talks

Friday sermons, conference addresses and community talks.

Interviews

Media interviews

Television, radio and podcast appearances.

About the Waqf

TAQ Waqf, Inc.

A charitable endowment dedicated to the works of Imam Muhammad H. al-Asi.

Our purpose

TAQ takes its name from The Ascendant Qur'an. Taq Waqf Inc. is a public charity and educational organization dedicated to producing The Ascendant Qur'an exegesis and translation, and to making them widely known to Muslims and non-Muslims alike. It also preserves Imam al-Asi's lectures for students of the Qur'an.

Income from sales is held for these purposes. Surplus funds pay for copies donated to masjids, university libraries, prisons and study circles.

What is a waqf?

A waqf (plural awqaf) is a charitable endowment in Islamic law. Its founder, the waqif, sets an asset aside permanently for the sake of Allah. The asset itself, the mawquf, is never sold, inherited or given away. What it produces is spent, again and again, on the purpose the founder named. A trustee, the mutawalli, looks after the asset and makes sure its benefit reaches that purpose.

For fourteen centuries awqaf have built and run masjids, schools, hospitals, wells and libraries across the Muslim world. Many of the great manuscript libraries of Cairo, Damascus and Istanbul survived because they were endowed as waqf, with the books themselves held in trust for readers.

The roots of the waqf

From the Sunnah

When 'Umar ibn al-Khattab acquired land at Khaybar, he asked the Prophet ﷺ what to do with it. The Prophet ﷺ told him that he could keep the land itself in trust and give its yield in charity. 'Umar did so, on the condition that the land would never be sold, inherited or given as a gift. Scholars count this as the founding example of the waqf.

'Uthman ibn 'Affan bought the Well of Rumah in Madinah and gave its water freely to the Muslims. The Prophet ﷺ also taught that when a person dies, their deeds end except for three: an ongoing charity, knowledge that benefits others, and a righteous child who prays for them.

A waqf for the Qur'an's meaning joins the first two: an ongoing charity whose benefit is knowledge.

مَّثَلُ ٱلَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ أَمْوَٰلَهُمْ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ كَمَثَلِ حَبَّةٍ أَنۢبَتَتْ سَبْعَ سَنَابِلَ
The likeness of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is that of a grain that sprouts seven ears.
Surah al-Baqarah 2:261
How TAQ Waqf works

Every copy keeps the next one in print

  1. 1

    You buy or endow

    A book sale, an endowed set or a direct gift comes into the waqf.

  2. 2

    Income is held in trust

    Funds are kept separately and used only for the waqf's stated purposes.

  3. 3

    The works stay alive

    Money pays for reprints, editing and publishing new volumes, and recording lectures.

  4. 4

    The surplus is given away

    Free copies go to masjids, libraries, prisons, students and new Muslims who ask for them.

Where the income goes

  • Completing the tafsir. Fourteen volumes are published, running to the end of Surah al-A'raf. The waqf is dedicated to completing the remaining 25 volumes.
  • The simplified translation. Finishing a version of the translation for young people and those who speak English as a second language.
  • Keeping the books in print. Reprinting sold-out volumes so that no reader is left with an incomplete set.
  • Free and subsidised copies. Sets for institutions that cannot afford them, and single copies for individuals who ask.
  • The lecture archive. Recording, restoring and hosting the Imam's lectures, talks and interviews so they stay freely available.
  • Audio and ePub editions. Producing audio and e-book editions of the translation already completed.

Governance

Taq Waqf Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity based in Stephens City, Virginia (EIN 27-0977938). Donations are tax-deductible in the United States, and the waqf files an annual Form 990 with the IRS.

The waqf is managed by its board, who act as mutawalli. They are responsible for keeping waqf funds separate, spending them only on the purposes above, and accounting for them openly.

Questions

Is buying a book the same as giving to the waqf?

A purchase is a sale, and you receive the book. The waqf's share of the income goes to its charitable purposes, so every purchase supports the work. If you want your money to be a gift in full, endow a set or give directly.

Are donations tax-deductible?

Yes, in the United States. Taq Waqf Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 27-0977938. Keep your receipt for your tax records.

Can I give my zakat to TAQ Waqf?

Zakat may only go to the categories of recipient named in the Qur'an, so please contact us before giving zakat and check with a scholar you trust. Sadaqah and endowments can be given freely.

Can I endow a set on behalf of someone who has died?

Yes. Tell us their name when you get in touch, and the set will be dedicated to them as a continuing charity.

How can a library or masjid request free copies?

Write to us through the Contact page with the name of the institution, who will use the books, and a delivery address. Requests are met as funds allow.

Is TAQ Waqf the publisher?

Yes. TAQ Waqf publishes and distributes Imam al-Asi's works, including the remaining volumes of the tafsir and the new editions of the translation.

About the Imam

Imam Muhammad H. al-Asi was born in the United States in 1951. He was elected imam of the Islamic Center of Washington, D.C., and has spent decades teaching the Qur'an to English-speaking Muslims.

His tafsir, The Ascendant Qur'an, began appearing in 2008. It is the first commentary on the Qur'an written directly in English and has been the subject of academic study in the UK and South Africa. His translation of the meanings of the Qur'an was written as its companion.

Contact

Get in touch

For orders, bulk and institutional purchases, endowments, or interview requests.