David Williamson recently published an audiobook called, “The Audio Quran: A Cinematic Experience.” It’s a dramatized reading of the Abdullah Yusuf Ali translation of the Quran, complete with voice actors, sound effects, and so on.
Here’s the audiobook listing from Amazon:
“Enter the World of the Qur’an!”
Hear the Qur’an in English like never before! AudioIlm presents the first fully dramatized, full-cast audiobook of the holiest scripture of Islam in English.
The full Qur’an, brought to life with:
- 55 voice actors (cameo from YouTuber Paul Williams)
- 1000s of sound effects
- Custom immersive soundscapes for every location and setting (with reverb and sound design for accuracy!)
- Dolby Atmos 360° sound design (hear the voices and sounds all around you!)
The Qur’an, recited daily by over 2 billion Muslims, is the final revelation sent by God (Allah) to mankind, conveyed over 23 years to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) through the Angel Gabriel. It speaks directly in the first person as the verbatim word of God, addressing: the nature of God, mankind’s responsibilities, and the afterlife. Additionally, it features the Islamic stories of Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Joseph and many other prophets!
This audiobook uses the Abdullah Yusuf Ali translation, one of the most enduring and widely read English renderings of the Qur’an, praised for its poetic fidelity and scholarly depth.
The best audio English Qur’an for kids and first-time listeners!
From Executive Producer, Narrator, and Director David Williamson.
I haven’t listened to the entire book yet, just snippets. But I will listen to the entire thing soon.
I’ve seen a few people criticize the project. I don’t see any problem with it, other than the fact the actor voicing Shaytan played it too over-the-top evil. I imagine it closer to something like Jeremy Irons voicing Scar in The Lion King – a more sophisticated-sounding bad guy.
But don’t take my word for it or anyone else’s. Listen for yourself and make up your own mind.
Some of the criticism is around “is this even halal?”
An English translation is not the Quran, and therefore does not take the same rulings. This much should be obvious to anyone with an above-room-temperature IQ. However, for the everything-is-haram-until-proven-halal types, there is a fatwa. Scroll down to the bottom of this page and click on “Scholarly Endorsement.”
I’ll quote from the fatwa for those of you who don’t want to read it in full:
By ensuring strict adherence to scholarly guidelines and maintaining an atmosphere of reverence, this project respects the Qurʾān’s sanctity while offering a fresh engagement for listeners.
It is crucial to remember that translations, while valuable for understanding, are interpretations of the Qurʾān’s meanings and not replacements for the original Arabic text. As Islamic history shows, translations have always served as tools for connection and comprehension, while the Arabic Qurʾān remains irreplaceable.
We encourage scholars from various traditions to support such initiatives, ensuring they reflect the diversity and richness of the global ummah.
This project represents a balance between preserving the sanctity of the Qurʾān and meeting the needs of a diverse and global ummah. It is not a departure from tradition but an extension of the Qurʾān’s universal appeal.
May Allah bless this effort, grant it acceptance, and make it a means of guidance, barakah, and entry into Paradise for all involved. Āmīn.
Good enough for me. The bottom line is we need far more projects of this nature. Another recent one that was a step in the right direction was Mohammed Hijab’s TV series that he released on YouTube. The haram police had a problem with that as well. But it was a net positive overall.
For what it’s worth, I don’t listen to the criticism of passive consumers who have never created anything. They are the suckerfish you see attached to sharks and whales.
Here’s the Editor in Chief of Qawwam Magazine, Abdullah Yousef:
Seeing a lot of confusion, discomfort, or straight up opposition to this from the outset (I’ll exclude the morons who don’t realize there’s no visual component to David’s project, he just used AI for marketing material.)
I’ve known about this project when it was in development for a while because David Williamson and I are good friends, and I encouraged him to go along with it (knowing he had some kind of scholarly consulting and guidance), not just because he’s my friend, but because it does something experimental that was worth the risk. His project here, in essence, combines certain specific aspects of the Western method of storytelling (drama, a play) with the eastern method (oral transmission). It’s the kind of cultural synthesis that, assuming it’s done right, I’ve always been a a fan of. This I think is the source of the discomfort for many, it’s not culturally custom for them to receive religious education in this way. You guys should read the short story by Borges “Averroes Search” to see more of what I mean, you can finish it very quickly.
It would be understandable for those opposing it if there was a physical component to this, but there isn’t — the actors are reciting a script that isn’t their own, which is a translation that’s already had scholarly approval for many years. I do agree none of these actors should be saying “I play (Prophet X)”, that just sounds weird and isn’t artistically accurate, as any actor knows that with any “character” the actor inserts his own interpretation of them in their work. That doesn’t seem to be the case here at all.
Some have said also that still, even if it’s just their voices, these actors are still adding their own interpretation through intonation and cadence, their own emotions, etc., and I think this should be discussed. This shows, to me, that this kind of project could not possibly ever be done in Arabic — the Quran in Arabic, i.e. as it is actually known, has different fiqh than a translation, which by consensus isn’t treated the same as the physical arabic Quran when in book form. So does this criticism apply for a translation? I don’t know, but it seems strange to me to freak out about ambient sound of rain and ocean waves in the background of a translation nonetheless. Scholars please discuss.
Now though, I’m very glad David completed this cultural synthesis project and will be listening to it soon. You should also give it a listen!
And finally, here’s a response from David Williamson himself.
A Response to the Critics Re: The Qur’an Dramatized
Over the past couple of days, there has been a lot of praise, excitement, and yes, also a lot of pushback about The Audio Quran. The first clarification is that (as the name implies) it is not a movie or a TV series, it’s an English audiobook, of which several already exist for the Qur’an in English, including 1 with multiple actors in it (TCQ audiobook). I understand how the visuals used for advertising may have been misleading for someone who didn’t watch the full video (17 seconds) or read any of the other posts on the thread, but I hope that clears up that bit.
Now for the actual audiobook.
I created this audiobook to make the Qur’an more accessible to a wider audience by presenting it it’s meaning in a unique and engaging way. The use of multiple actors, voice effects, sound effects and sound design provide a high level of production quality that makes it much easier to digest compared to a single narrator.
Off the bat, this is an audiobook of a translation of the Qur’an, which as many scholars will tell you 1. isn’t the actual Qur’an since there’s no way to perfectly translate Allah’s words, and 2. has different fiqh associated with it. I would be MUCH more hesitant to do this in Arabic as the recitation of the Qur’an with tajweed is more beautiful than any audiobook reading in any language ever could be.
Now, I had a feeling that, given the much more strict rules and sacredness of the Qur’an compared to the scripture of other religions, this project would make some people uncomfortable. This is precisely why I spoke to my beloved local shaykh, Farhan Siddiqi, whom I have known and studied under for more than 4 years, before I even started the pre-production. The nightmare scenario would be to finish the entire project with no guidance, only to find out that’s unequivocally haram– thus wasting all my time and effort. I also wanted to produce something in the highest quality possible– appropriate for the prestige of the Qur’an, but in a way that wasn’t over-the-top to the point that it violates the sanctity of the text. This production process involved lots of consulting, prayer, and istikhara to determine the best way to do justice to the scope of the Qur’an while also dealing with limited resources and access to A-level talent. Needless to say, with Allah’s help, I think it turned out really well, and I’ll let the people who’ve listened to some of it already be the better judges on that.
The first contention I have to deal with is the idea of “voice acting” the Qur’an. I think there’s a bit of a misunderstanding of voice acting entails. It includes narration. Anytime you read a piece of text in any language out loud, unless it’s robotic and monotone, if you apply any amount of intonation or emotion, you are doing voice acting. If I tell the story of Satan to my friend or peer and I say “and then Allah said: “What prevented thee from bowing down when I commanded thee?”” and I apply the emotion of a question, I’ve done voice acting. Am I “representing the voice of Allah”? Am I saying that “God sounds like this”? Of course not. At least to my knowledge, none of my actors have claimed prophethood, they simply read the lines for all the various characters. You might ask, “well, why is that necessary?” to which I would respond that using multiple voices is essential for the understanding of the listener. This is why even single narrator audiobooks of novels (which I have narrated a few) will have the actor change his or her voice for each character so that way the listener doesn’t get lost in the dialogue (the Qur’an is of course not a novel, but still has multiple characters- hence the comparison). There is no visual component and this is not a “depiction” of any of the prophets as the disclaimer on the sales page helps clarify. If the goal of “translations of the Qur’an” is to convey the meaning, then an audiobook should do the same thing, and The Audio Quran uses the best technique available (multiple actors) to stop the listener from being confused and also keep them engaged. Also, to reiterate, since it’s in English, and no prophets or characters spoke English, this in no way claims to represent what anyone actually sounded like.
Secondly, people have issue with the dialogue of Allah in the English– specifically the use of reverb. This is done because the Qur’an is written from the first-person view and so it can sometimes be difficult to tell what is dialogue from Allah in a story, vs. what is Allah speaking as the narrator (7:157 is a great example). To alleviate this differentiation, I applied voice effects to help make this clear. It is IN NO WAY meant to be a ‘representation’ of Allah’s voice because Allah’s likeness CANNOT be represented. Besides, The Clear Qur’an audiobook also used the same technique, and that project has endorsements from several major scholars and Al-Azhar university. Additionally, most of the Qur’an recitation videos you see ALSO HAVE REVERB– and they are in ARABIC using the actual text of the Qur’an. Is reverb ok then, but not for English?
The third issue is the removal of some speech attributives (“he said”, “she said”). This isn’t something new for the medium. Pretty much all multicast audiobooks remove these since it’s very repetitive in most dialogues and it only disrupts flow. Also, since you can tell who’s speaking based on the voice actor, there’s no need to keep using “he said” in a back-and-forth dialogue. I did keep all the attributives when the speaker is unclear or when there’s action involved (“when he did X, he said…”) since removing those would fundamentally change the meaning of the Qur’an.
All of the 3 points mentioned above were things I asked about before including them in the actual production since, like you, I was also unsure. But after receiving the green light, I decided to pursue since the benefit outweighs whatever pushback I may receive (and have received).
There’s a fatwa on my website (listed in website under this tweet) for anyone who cares to read it, endorsed by 5 scholars. It includes citations. In fiqh, everything is permissible until PROVEN otherwise. Nobody has formally declared this haram with actual citations and proof, and even if they did, then there’s a true khilaf on the matter and people can choose not to listen or endorse if they feel uncomfortable (totally fine!).
To reiterate, I created this project to expand the reach of the Qur’an by presenting it in a unique, accessible and engaging way that doesn’t violate its sanctity. Just like translations of the Qur’an themselves, cameras, or the typewriter, I suspect that this will be something that a lot of people will hate at first, but once they actually understand it better along with its benefits, it will become more widely received.
I thank Allah for the honor of doing this, despite my young age, and I pray that it touches the hearts of everyone who listens and that it allows people to connect with Allah, and allows people to enter the fold of Islam. May Allah bless all the MANY people who helped to put this together or have supported me or my work in anyway, ameen.
Regardless, if you still feel uncomfortable, that’s totally your right, but don’t take away others’ opportunities to benefit and connect with the Qur’an. I encourage those with doubts to check out the 5 minute audio sample on the sales page of Surah al-Baqarah (in second tweet). Give it an open mind and see if it aids in your understanding an connection to the meanings of the Qur’an.
Jazakallah khayr for reading,
David Williamson, Executive Producer, Audio Ilm.P.S. The Audio Qur’an is currently the #1 Islamic audiobook on Audible.
Well said. It’s clear a lot of thought and care went into this project by people who fear Allah.
Al-Ma’idah (5:54)
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مَن يَرْتَدَّ مِنكُمْ عَن دِينِهِۦ فَسَوْفَ يَأْتِى ٱللَّهُ بِقَوْمٍۢ يُحِبُّهُمْ وَيُحِبُّونَهُۥٓ أَذِلَّةٍ عَلَى ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَعِزَّةٍ عَلَى ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ يُجَـٰهِدُونَ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَلَا يَخَافُونَ لَوْمَةَ لَآئِمٍۢ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ فَضْلُ ٱللَّهِ يُؤْتِيهِ مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ وَٰسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ ٥٤
O ye who believe! Whoso of you becometh a renegade from his religion, (know that in his stead) Allah will bring a people whom He loveth and who love Him, humble toward believers, stern toward disbelievers, striving in the way of Allah, and fearing not the blame of any blamer. Such is the grace of Allah which He giveth unto whom He will. Allah is All-Embracing, All-Knowing.
— M. Pickthall
Listen to The Audio Quran here →
And while you’re there, grab the paperbacks of:
- 40 Hadith on Masculinity: How to Be a Good Man
- 40 Hadith on Femininity: How to Be a Good Woman