In The Mysteries of Purification (Kitab asrar al tahara), the third of the forty books of the Revival of the Religious Sciences (Ihya' 'ulum al-din), Abu Hamid al-Ghazali explains the fundamentals of the purification that is necessary in order to perform the five daily prayers.

In this translation of a portion of the fiqh section of the Futuhat al-Makkiyyah, at least two startling key issues emerge. Being startled, in itself, is the first key. And the second is the 'Arabic language' which means that language which the original audience of the Qur'an understood. Also startling are all the twists & turns, all the secrets & mysteries, all the bizarre & strange permutations of the original text. Although the translation is quite literal & over 300 pages, with careful reading special academic preparation is not necessary. This book is a spiritual & intellectual treat, & a great hope for a more authentic & deep Islamic discourse.