Rafey Habib hopes his translation of the Qur’an will inspire readers to appreciate its literary value
Rafey Habib sees poetry in the Qur’an — literally.
Habib, a Rutgers English professor and poet, is translating portions of the Qur’an into verse. He hopes that those who view Islam as the harsh faith of extremists will recognize its spiritual message and moral value.
“It teaches piety and prayer, charity and being honest. All these things are fundamentals of a way of life,” says Habib, who teaches at Rutgers-Camden. “People committing atrocities in various parts of the world don’t represent Islam, but they get attention in the media. We have to look at the distinctions between how people abuse Islam and what it actually teaches. Most people who criticize Islam haven’t read the Qur’an.”
Habib was recently named a Fulbright specialist scholar and has been invited to help reconfigure the English curriculum at the University of al-Akhawayn in Morocco. He also won a Fulbright in 2004 to conduct research in Malaysia.
In his translation of the Qur’an, Habib wants readers to appreciate its literary value.
“I’m trying to convey the rhythm of the words, the cadence, and the aesthetic qualities of the language,’’ says Habib, who lives in Cherry Hill.
Habib writes about his faith in his first collection of poetry, “Shades of Islam’’ (2010). Some of the poems are political, condemning terrorists and tyrannical governments. In “To a Suicide Bomber,’’ he writes:
Because of you, I am reviled;
Because of you, your own people suffer;
Because of you Oppression speaks louder.
Becauseof you, my religion reels in shame.
Other poems concern love and the experience of migration. While very young, Habib immigrated from Hyderabad, India, to England.
His mother wrote poetry and the Habibs’ community of Urdu-speaking immigrants included many poets.
“In the west, poetry has become very academic, but in India and other countries, it’s seenas something very public and is often used for political purposes,’’ Habib says.
As for his own work, he doesn’t like to offer interpretations of its meaning.
“It’s not for an author to say,’’ explains Habib. “In reading, you bring your entire subjectivity to bear on a text. It’s an interaction between you and the text.’’