Arguing that Islam is a lyrical view of life in which sexuality enjoys a privileged status, this work represents an attempt to integrate the religious and the sexual. It examines the problem of whether this harmony of sexuality and religious faith is achieved in practice.

Born in 1932 in Kairouan, Tunisia, Abdelwahab Bouhdiba is professor of Islamic sociology at the University of Tunis, where he is also director of the Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Economiques et Sociales. He has served as an adviser to international organizations such as UNESCO and the United Nations. He was awarded the Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture in 2004.