The Satanic Verses is
Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of
Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used
magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters. The title refers to the
satanic verses, a group of
Quranic verses that allow intercessory prayers to be made to three
Pagan Meccan goddesses:
Allat,
Uzza, and
Manat. The part of the story that deals with the "satanic verses" was based on accounts from the historians
al-Waqidi and
al-Tabari.