The root slm in Arabic means "to be in peace, to be an integral whole." From this root comes islām, meaning "to surrender to God's law and thus to be an integral whole," and muslim, a person who so surrenders. It is important to note that two other key terms used in the Qurʾān with high frequency have similar root meanings: īmān (from amn), "to be safe and at peace with oneself," and taqwā (from wqy), "to protect or save." These definitions give us an insight into the most fundamental religious attitude of Islam: to maintain wholeness and proper order, as the opposite of disintegration, by accepting God's law. It is in this sense that the entire universe and its content are declared by the Qurʾān to be muslim, that is, endowed with order through obedience to God's...