Does Islam forbid Muslims to read holy books of other faiths?

Thanks for A2A. Your friend is correct in this regard. Here is a link to a fatwa regarding this - http://islamqa.info/en/10817 PS- The fatwa was issued by one of the most knowledgeable scholars of modern times.

It's a bit unclear where the Muslim doctrine stands on this matter; so I don't have a clear answer. Arguments againstThe Quran does forbid believing in other gods and religions quite explicitly over and over again. (Eg: Quran [3:85] Anyone who accepts other than Islam his religion, it will not be accepted from Him, and in the Hereafter, he will be with the losers). There isn't any doctrine specifically against reading the religious texts of other religions. However, fatwas declared by maulvis of the Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i madhabs rule the study of any sort of philosophy as haraam...presumably Quran (29:51) "And is it not enough for them that we have sent down to thee the Book which is rehearsed to them? Verily, in it is Mercy and a Reminder (or admonition) to  those who believe." is the basis for these rulings. Arguments forNow here's where the matter becomes complicated. The Islamic doctrine states that humans are special (i.e. different from other animals) in the fact that they have been given knowledge. This is based on Quran (2:31) "And He taught Adam the nature of all things; then He placed them before  the angels, and said: "Tell me the nature of these if ye are right." and Quran (96:1-5) "Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and  Cherisher, Who created; Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed  blood. Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful, He Who taught (the use of) the penhttp://... Taught man that which he knew not." You will notice that pursuit of knowledge isn't explicitly promoted in the Quran itself; however, it is explicitly promoted in the Hadith of Abu Dawood in book 25; he states: "If anyone travels on a road in search of knowledge, Allah will cause him  to travel on one of the roads of Paradise. The angels will lower their  wings in their great pleasure with one who seeks knowledge, the  inhabitants of the heavens and the Earth and the fish in the deep waters  will ask forgiveness for the learned man. The superiority of the  learned man over the devout is like that of the moon, on the night when  it is full, over the rest of the stars. The learned are the heirs of the  Prophets, and the Prophets leave neither dinar nor dirham, leaving only  knowledge, and he who takes it takes an abundant portion." So there you have it, depending on which part you refer to, you can support either of the claims; but long story short, the Quran doesn't explicitly say anything about reading the religious texts of other religions, it only forbids believing in the other gods. PS: I have used the translations by Abdullah Yusuf Ali. You can refer to them here: http://www.islam101.com/quran/yusufAli/

Dude, Islam and the Quran actually expects you to have healthy discussions and debates with other religions with an aim to better understand each other and this universe we live in. I guess all of us can conclude that irrespective of what we believe in , (or don't believe in), we are all the same; Humans. So our creator has to be the same. (Btw  if you are an atheist, then I'm a sore loser)

What do I think personally about reading other holy books? I have read Mahabharata along with Bhagwad Geeta. I have seen Ramayana aired on DD national in 90s. I found reading Bible a tedious task, so couldn't read it completely. Does Islam allow reading holy books of other religions? It doesn't stop you. Quran doesn't have mention of it neither is there any hadith against it. Most of the modern Muslim TV evangelists have obviously read other religious scriptures including the likes of Zakir Naik, sheikh deedat, Yusuf Estes etc. I see no harm in it. In fact , I would say Indian Muslims should at least once read few Hindu works so as to understand some parts of Indian philosophy and to make sense of our cultural practices. Although I had lived in a neighborhood with mixed population , I wasn't aware of the finer points in some of the practices around  but the real naunced understanding came with reading these works.  So I would say, go ahead and invest time , yes it an investment , in these books.

Asking such questions means you aren't clear with what religion/spirituality actually is(or the person prohibiting you). I find that the best way to answer such questions is to ask yourself: would Prophet Mohammed/Krishna/Buddha prevent me from doing so, or ask me to do so ? A man of God would never be afraid of Truth and would never shy off things. Yes, there is a concept of Isht Nishtha in Hinduism...and this say that once you have read, reasoned, argued and settled onto a Truth that you feel is worth pursuing, shut off outside influence and develop it within yourself. Eg. if one chooses to meditate on his breath, but his mind vancillates and decides to do so on a point in middle of eyebrows, it isn't "wrong", but such vancillation won't get him anywhere. Consistency matters. I think this is the sole reason most religions(especially those which are almost exclusively based on Faith, like Islam and Christianity) prohibit reading other scriptures. You need to decide for yourself if it's going to damage your "focus", or whether you are still in search of a "locus".

As far as I know there is no such a thing that a Muslim should not read holy books of other religions.Its only a misunderstanding.Its actually encouraged to study about other religions and compare it with Islam.If a person doubt that reading holy books of other religions will lead him to doubt Islam then he should understand that his belief is not firm.He need to strengthen it.I would like you to watch some videos of Dr.Zakir Naik (expert on comparitive religion) who have studied  holy books of other religions and is able to clear doubts related to this topics.I don't know any citation from Quran allowing one to read other Holy books.Let me try.Anyway Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) had taught us to respect all other religions(not to follow their rituals).

Of course he would never. He was wary of the time he had invested in getting accustomed to Islamic teachings would be wasted swept away by few mere shlokas of Geeta. They can impose their ownself onto you but when it comes your turn, they simply deny and run away. Islam is a religion of paradoxes.

I don't think it is a problem, I have a collection of scriptures of other religion and I have read them several time.every scriptures come to enlight our way to Good

Ask him to watch this. You too. Get ready to be inspired by a little Muslim girl. She won the prestigious Geetha Chanting Championship last month. Watch and learn.