Mufti Menk Lectures | Muslim Central | Audio

Someone commented that they want to learn about Islam from Muslim sources, to get an unbiased, inside look. So where does one begin?

Here I'll post some key sources to studying Islam.

Tafsir: This is an exegesis of the Qur'an. The Qur'an is hard to understand with a simple translation--the Arabic is very rich and complex. Ideally one should seek out a Muslim teacher to break down the Arabic and context of a chapter.
This is a well-known Pakistani tafsir in English: http://www.islamicstudies.info/tafheem.php

Nouman Ali Khan is a famous American lecturer who gives tafsir classes. You can find many on http://www.muslimcentral.com/audio/nouman-ali-khan/ . You can scroll through his lectures or search his name and the title of a chapter.
This is the most famous Quran website for reading, with many translations: http://www.quran.com

Lectures: There's a diversity of lecturers out there. Some famous and reliable ones are Mufti Menk, Nouman Ali Khan, and Omar Suleiman. Hamza Yusuf is also excellent. You can find them on YouTube or Muslim Central:
http://www.muslimcentral.com/audio/omar-suleiman/

Hadith: These are reports about the life of the prophet Muhammad. They are a complex science, people get doctorate's in hadith studies, but a good start is the 40 hadith of imam Nawawi. Many historical scholars have their "40," a collection of ~40 hadith they think are the most pertinent. This website is an excellent resource and starting point: http://40hadithnawawi.com/
It includes the 42 hadith of imam Nawawi as well as explanations and audio lectures.

Biography: Everything in Islam is focused around the life of the prophet Muhammad. It is highly contextual and takes time to gain a deep understanding. BBC Two has a great documentary on his life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVGieY0W6lY
You can also find biographies on Amazon.com, this is a famous one by Martin Lings (a convert): https://www.amazon.com/Muhammad-Life-Based-Earliest-Sources/dp/ [login to see] /ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid= [login to see] &sr=8-1&keywords=martin+lings+life+muhammad

History: Islamic history is another field to dig into. Lost Islamic History is a great book to start with: https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Islamic-History-Reclaiming-Civilisation/dp/ [login to see] /ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid= [login to see] &sr=8-1&keywords=lost+islamic+history

I also made a PowerPoint from a class I took at TCU last summer: https://www.dropbox.com/s/m8dueh7zz3g3ma1/History%20of%20Islamic%20Civilization.pptx?dl=0