<P>Da'wa, a concept rooted in the scriptural and classical tradition of Islam, has been dramatically re-appropriated in modern times across the Muslim world. Championed by a variety of actors in diverse contexts, <I>da'wa</I> -"inviting" to Islam, or Islamic missionary activity - has become central to the vocabulary of contemporary Islamic activism.</P>
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<P>Da'wa <I>and Other Religions</I> explores the modern resurgence of <I>da'wa</I> through the lens of inter-religious relations and within the two horizons of Islamic history and modernity. Part I provides an account of <I>da'wa</I> from the Qur'an to the present. It demonstrates the close relationship that has existed between <I>da'wa</I> and inter-religious relations throughout Islamic history and sheds light on the diversity of <I>da'wa</I> over time. The book also argues that Muslim communities in colonial and post-colonial India shed light on these themes with particular clarity. Part II, therefore, analyzes and juxtaposes two prominent <I>da'wa</I> organizations to emerge from the Indian subcontinent in the past century: the Tablīghī Jamā'at and the Islamic Research Foundation of Zakir Naik. By investigating the formative histories and inter-religious discourses of these movements, Part II elucidates the influential roles Indian Muslims have played in modern <I>da'wa</I>.</P>
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<P>This book makes important contributions to the study of <I>da'wa</I> in general and to the study of the Tablīghī Jamā'at, one of the world's largest <I>da'wa</I> movements. It also provides the first major scholarly study of Zakir Naik and the Islamic Research Foundation.<B> </B>Further, it challenges common assumptions and enriches our understanding of modern Islam. It will have a broad appeal for students and scholars of Islamic Studies, Indian religious history and anyone interested in <I>da'wa</I> and inter-religious relations throughout Islamic history.</P>