Maarif al-Quran (The Wisdoms of the Quran) by Mufti Muhammad Shafi al-Deobandi (d. 1976 CE) is an eight-volume Quranic commentary originally written in Urdu and translated into English. Its primary objective is to provide educated Muslim readers with a comprehensive explanation of the Quran that integrates classical tafsir scholarship with thorough Hanafi legal analysis and spiritual and moral guidance. The manhaj draws on classical Arabic tafsir sources, particularly in the tradition of tafsir bi-al-mathur, while giving extensive attention to ayat al-ahkam (legal verses) through the Hanafi madhhab, making it one of the most detailed fiqhi tafsir works available in English. Muhammad Shafi was a senior scholar of Dar al-Ulum in Deoband and served as the first Grand Mufti of Pakistan; his work reflects the Deobandi tradition's emphasis on traditional scholarship, classical learning, and Sufi spiritual values alongside legal rigor. He follows the Maturidi school, and in fiqh he is firmly Hanafi. The work is the most widely used English tafsir in South Asian Muslim communities, particularly in the United Kingdom and diaspora settings, and is the standard reference tafsir in many Deobandi educational institutions. More...