Week 5: Historical Progression and Writing the Quran
This image is meant to portray the transition from Quran as recitation to Quran as writing. The face on the rights side (as Arabic is read right to left) represents the Prophet Mohammed. From his mouth extends the Quran in swirling bits. Closest to him are intangibles of muslim faith (portrayed just as swirls), then the word “Allah” in Arabic is discernable in a swirl, next comes the Arabic alphabet (representing the writing and cementing of the Quran), and finally “The Opening” in English.
The image is black and white because it is meant to portray darkness and light. The gradient in his words (the swirls)—darker nearer to the Prophet and lighter further away—signifies how distance from the words of the prophet (in time, in language, in lifestyle, etc.) makes his words harder to interpret as versions are disputed, mixed, and convoluted. The gradient in the background—darker further from the prophet and lighter closer to him—similarly represents the confusion of the global community of Muslims as sects and ideologies split apart as history moves forward.
This blog is a creative depiction of the themes discussed in the historical explanation of Islam. I was thinking about the chart handed out of the significant figures for each sect of Islam. And also Professor Asani’s historical account of how Islamic teachings became codified into a book. Political and military powers were tied to competing accounts of the Quran. The more politically powerful created the lasting religious norms. To me this potentially could have convoluted the original words of the Prophet.
Finally the word “GOD” is hidden in the swirls. This alludes subtly to similarities of all monotheists. Underlying the words of the Quran, the Torah, and the Bible is a common concept: belief. Even through all of the confusion of history, faith as a concept remains strong.