Now available as one paperback volume, the second edition of this authoritative text provides a survey of Islamic history and thought with new chapters on intellectual thought and medieval developments. It seeks to redress the lack of critical thought that appears in so many introductory books on Islam. Rippin examines the elements which come together to form Islam, in particular the Qur'an and the traditions from Muhammad. He traces the way these sources have interacted through history to create the disciplines of theology and law and provide the basis for the "alternative visions" of Islam found in Shi'ism and Sufism.