We often discussed in the seminar the Qur’an being an audio experience. When it was first revealed to the Prophet Mohamad PBUH, the Qur’an was not in a written form. It was recited to him by Gibreel, an angel sent by Allah. The Prophet himself did not know how to read or write so he memorized the Qur’an that Gibreel recited to him. Nowadays, however, more emphasis is placed on the written form of the Qur’an. The book with the written words of Allah is highly respected within the Muslim community. Although the recited Qur’an is also respected, there is a huge difference in the degree of respect given to each. This is seems odd as the oral Qur’an can reach more people than the written Qur’an. Not everyone knows how to read and write. Furthermore, when the Qur’an is presented to people in the oral form, everyone gets to claim power over it and interpret the meaning behind it based on their own experiences. The written Qur’an on the other hand, is restricted to those who can read and write. These people claim power over it and offer interpretation to the general public based on their personal experience which does not seem fair.
This piece is just a representation of that. It shows that more emphasis needs to be placed on the auditory experience of the Qur’an. There’s the ear and waves next to it representing the sense of hearing. I also included a drawing of the “Mushaf” which is the book of Qur’an. There’s a verse from the Qur’an in Arabic Caligraphy and a radio because it is the most common way to listen to the Qur’an in Sudan.