The second edition of the fundamental theological work ‘Islam: Creed, Worship, Morality, Law’ has been published with the participation of the Centre for Islamic Studies at St Petersburg University. The book by the Chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation, Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, became the first in the series ‘Islamic Thought in Russia: Revival and Rethinking’.

The book was created with the participation of University scholars: Professor Mikhail Piotrovsky, Dean of the Faculty of Asian and African Studies; Professor Damir Mukhetdinov, Director of the Centre for Islamic Studies at St Petersburg University; Irina Popova, Director of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts at the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Professor at St Petersburg University; and Alexander Knysh, Professor at St Petersburg University and at the University of Michigan.

This book opens the series ‘Islamic Thought in Russia: Revival and Rethinking’. This is a large-scale project designed to summarise the experience of Muslim thought in Russia, and to bring together leading religious and secular research centres in this work. St Petersburg University is the cradle of academic Islamic studies in Russia and a modern centre for training specialists in the field of the culture and history of Islam. Its role in our activities can hardly be overestimated.

Professor Damir Mukhetdinov, First Deputy Chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation and Director of the Centre for Islamic Studies at St Petersburg University 

The book ‘Islam: Creed, Worship, Morality, Law’ is suitable for readers with different levels of knowledge about Islam. It is written in understandable language, but at the same time it sticks to the fundamentals of classical theology. The book consists of four parts: Creed: The Six Pillars of Faith; Worship: A Religious Calendar; Morality: The Fundamentals of Islamic Virtue; and Law: Topical Issues. The book is intended not only for university students, but also for general readers: Muslims and everyone who is interested in Islamic religious culture.