Farid closed the book. "We have not made a beautiful Quran. We have made a faithful skeleton. Let the poets dress it in silk. But let the seeker first touch the bone."
"Iyyaka na'budu" became "You (alone) we worship." (Not "You alone we worship" — but You (alone) we worship , preserving the Arabic emphasis on You coming first.) word to word translation of quran in english
Farid put down his quill. "Precisely. The Quran is not an English book. It is an Arabic recitation. A word-for-word translation is a crutch — ugly, wooden, but useful. The student reads: 'The day (of) judgment (the) Master (of)' — and thinks, 'Ah, that's not natural. What is the original? Maliki yawmiddeen. Now I see the structure.' Then he goes to learn Arabic." Farid closed the book