Nigeria and South Africa provide the socioeconomic and political contrasts in the African condition. Some of these contrasts can be demonstrated in the following dialectics: Nigeria is the Africa of human resources; South Africa is a land of mineral resources; Nigeria is repellant to European settlement; South Africa is a magnet for such settlement; Nigeria is a mono-racial society; South Africa is a multiracial society; Nigeria is grappling with the politics of religion; South Africa's is pre-occupied with the politics of secularism; Nigeria is Africa's largest exporter of oil; South Africa is Africa's largest consumer of oil; Nigeria is a paradigm of indigenization; South Africa is a paragon of Westernization. Building on these contrasts; Professor Ali Mazrui; master of the dialectical approach to socio-political analysis; demonstrates how the two most influential countries between the Niger and the Cape of Good Hope are alternative faces of Africa. _______________________ Professor Ali Mazrui needs no introduction to any student of African politics. Recently nominated as one of the 100 greatest living public intellectuals in the world by the Washington-based journal; Foreign Policy; Professor Mazrui is the author of more than twenty books and hundreds of articles published all over the world. He was the author and narrator of the highly regarded television series The Africans: A Triple Heritage (BBC/PBS; 1986). He is currently Director of the Institute of Global Cultural Studies and Albert Schweitzer Professor in the Humanities; State University of New York at Binghamton. He is also Andrew D. White Professor-at-Large Emeritus and Senior Scholar in Africana Studies; Cornell University; Ithaca; New York; USA; Chancellor; Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology; Thika; Kenya as well as the Albert Luthuli Professor-at-Large at the University of Jos; Nigeria. James Karioki is Professor of International Relations with a special interest in the African Diaspora. He has published extensively on African Politics; Global Africa and International Relations. He currently works at the Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA) in Pretoria where he is the Head of the African Diaspora Unit.
#2324725 in Books Taha Publishers 1995-03Original language:ArabicPDF # 1 1.00 #File Name: 1897940254212 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Highly recommendedBy Shahid USThe book gives a living picture of the times of early history of Islam. The translation is very good too.3 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Great translation of a Masterpiece from one of Islam's best scholars!By KnowledgeWisdomFirst of all I would like to say to anyone reading the reviews to completely ignore the review that attacked this amazing book. That person is obviously extremely biased and comes from a Shi'ite background; which is a small sect that claims that most of the Prophet Mohammad's closest helpers and companions were liars and turned their back on Islam. Nothing could be a worse slander against Islam and it's Prophet. If the first 3 Caliphs stole the leadership; then why did the Prophet marry two of his beloved daughters to 'Uthman? Why did he take Abu Bakr as a close friend? And most of all; why did Imam Ali support Umar when he became Caliph? The facts of history speak for themselves and expose the absurdity of Shia-ism. The fact is that the first 4 Caliphs were righteous men who did everything they could to defend and spread the religion of Islam; it was through Umar that Islam spread to Byzantium and Persia! Anyway; enough with the polemics. Imam Suyuti is one of the greatest and most relied upon scholars of Islam; he was a scholar of the Shafi'i school of Islamic Jurisprudence; a Muhadith (hadith specialist) and a great mufasir (one who specializes in the commentary of the Holy Qur'an). This book is organized well and uses the most authentic traditions regarding the merits of the Rightly Guided Caliphs; it also does a great job of outlining their lives and achievements. Abdusamad Clarke did a wonderful job in translating it as the English flows very well. I highly recommend this book to both Muslims and non-Muslims who are interested in learning about the virtues and lives of these great men who sacrificed so much for the truth.3 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Excellent book; Excellent Read.By ToddThis is an excellent read regarding the life of the Khulafa ar-Rashidun. I recommend this book for anyone who wants a brief history of the early years of Islam.
