These are just alternatives to the terms used within the translations proposed above [and probably below by the time I post this entry].

كتاب الله : simply The Holy Quran.

سنة الرسول : The Code of the Prophet.

سنة الرسول has been translated as the Tradition of the Prophet before, but "tradition" (also used for حديث) and other alternatives (such as teachings) fail to capture the concept of a wholesome system; not just teachings and practices, but a code (a systematically arranged and comprehensive set of laws).

إيجاب وقبول شرعيين : religious consent although one would wonder about the use of religious instead of legal or more so lawful consent. Also إيجاب (affirmative) is subsumed under consent. As I have pointed out in previous postings, this is another case of hendiadys.


I would avoid acronyms such as (PBUH) in this translation. PBUH means nothing to English speakers.

Also note that this is a marriage contract in progress. While the Arabic text refers to the spouses as husband and wife, they are actually "bridegroom and bride" [or to put it in a more natural English pattern, bride and bridegroom] about to be married (or have recently married).

As for لفظ الجلالة، الله, the word God should suffice.

Remember this is a legal document after all and not a religious scripture. The communicative aspect of the contract should be foregrounded.

Cheers
Ali












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Note added at 2002-12-06 19:51:13 (GMT)
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Further to the above, كتاب الله is metonymic (مجازي) for القرآن الكريم. In most cases, metonymy is language specific and does not readily transfer to another language because of the absence of intersubjectivity or common knowledge among source language and target language speakers. It is therefore wiser in this case to explicate (The Holy Quran) from the metonymic expression. Otherwise, the Book of God does not convery the intended meaning. It is indeed metonymic for (The Holy Bible) in English. Now, if you use (the Book of Allah), it functions as a metonymy
for The Holy Quran only to those who know what the word (Allah) stands for - that is Muslims (and interested parties of course). For those who do not, the Book of Allah is simply the book of some god other than God. Net result: message distortion.



I hope this will help.

Cheers
Ali


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Note added at 2002-12-06 22:34:56 (GMT)
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convery = convey [sorry about the typo].

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Note added at 2002-12-07 07:22:48 (GMT)
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Sorry guys, but looking and the various suggestions here and elsewhere, there is little wonder why there is such a gulf in communication between East and West.

A lawfully wedded couple is زوجان شرعيان in a church or mosque. A Christian marriage is lawful; a Muslim marriage is lawful. There is a distinction between legal and lawful. حلال is lawful. حرام is unlawful in the sight of God.

As I said earlier, Sunnah of the prophet means little to an English speaker. Calquing doesn\'t work in this case. Ask the first layperson you meet in the street and they would think it\'s a curse of some sort. The Book of Allah has a similar effect.

About 90% of the world\'s problems are caused by translation.

Have a nice day.







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Note added at 2002-12-07 07:29:33 (GMT)
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Louay, I totally and wholeheartedly agree with you about (lawful). Many Thanks.

A lawful marriage in accordance with the book of God and the teachings of his prophet, peace be upon him, with the legal consent and acceptance of both the husband and the representative of the wife.

أرى أن استخدام الكلمة "شرعي" يأتي هنا بمعنى قانوني وليس ديني.

The word شرعي refers to legitimacy from an Islamic perspective rather than a civil law perspective. This regardless of whether or not the marriage also conforms to civil law. The best way to express this is by describing it as Islamic.

For English rendering, it is much clearer to say Quran and Sunnah instead of translating their idiomatic description كتاب الله و سنة رسوله.

The sentence can be rendered:

"An Islamic marriage according to the Quran and Sunna comprising the proper proposition and acceptance between the the groom and the bride's agent."

Note that الإيجاب و القبول refers to what is called in Family shariah صيغة العقد which in its most basic and minimal form consists of the agent (in this case the father) stating to the groom:
زوجتك ابنتي
and the groom responding
قبلت
This is why I have translated the term as "proposition and acceptance" instead of consent and acceptance. Although the proposition may also imply a consent to marry one's daughter to the groom.

Hope this helps.

Alaa Zeineldine

A lawful marriage according to the Holy Book of God "Quran" and the Code of His Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him).

I had to re-write the answer here because there is not enough space in the answer slot.

This is a very interesting discussion and I would not miss this opportunity to voice my opinion because I come across such documents on daily basis.

Since we are trying to remove any confusion in the text, it is not enough to mention the "Holy Book of God" or "Quran" alone. These two expressions should be used together, because God, as we know, has many Holy Books.


On the same token we have to specify His Prophet as Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him), because God has sent us many universally recognized prophets.