The Qur'an is the sacred text of Islam and one of the most influential books in human history. But to speak of the Qur'an as a "text" does not begin to address the numerous ways in which it is and has been perceived and experienced for many centuries. While the Qur'an is indeed contained in a physical book, it is also regarded as the eternal word of God, an oral tradition, an historical event, a body of words to be recited for worship, a moral message, a major cultural component of Islamic civilization, and a linguistic accomplishment. This course offers a survey of those different aspects of the Qur'an.