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Calligraphy Project: Allah: The Merciful, The All-Knowing

The first project I had to do for this class was write the word Allah in arabic using any medium to convey a certain aspect of God.

For my project, I decided to use carving and photography as the medium to portray my idea of Allah as Al-Raḥmān, the Merciful and Al-`Alīm, All Knowing. I decided to carve the word Allah into an apple in Arabic and take a photograph of it outside in the snow. This idea ties back to the story of Adam and Eve, where Adam was tricked by Iblis (satan) to eat fruit that Allah specifically forbade. Iblis told them that what came with the forbidden fruit was immortality or a chance to become like the Angels.  Though in the Quran, the exact fruit is not mentioned by name, popular culture likes to tell this story using an apple as the forbidden fruit. I set my picture in the snow to symbolize the cold betrayal of Adam and Eve to Allah. In present day, the snow also coincides with low harvest. Yet in my photo, there lay an apple in an unusual setting to symbolize the miraculous nature of Allah. The tree in the background symbolizes the garden in Paradise where Adam and Eve betrayed Allah. Still, even in the snow and cold weather, there is this certain warmth to the picture. This symbolizes the forgiving nature of Allah when Adam and Eve realized what they had done and felt shame. Although it is commonly believed that Adam and Eve were punished to life on earth as a result of their actions, this is not completely true. God announced before the betrayal that he created Adam and Eve to be the new species on earth.  The oxidation of the word Allah shows that no matter how much you try to preserve something (through freezing it or by some other means), it will always change. But “Allah” will still remain nonetheless, just in a different way signifying the many islams that exist today. Finally, the last message I wanted to send is that knowledge is power, God is all knowing and powerful, and an apple is a symbol of knowledge.

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Why I Decided to Take this Class and More

Upon my arrival to Harvard, I felt as though I had left a big part of my identity behind. I am from the city of Dearborn, Michigan, a place known for its dense Arab and Muslim population. I knew that when I came here, I was not going to be surrounded by all the Arab markets I was so used to nor the mosques or other places of Islamic worship I would drive by regularly. I felt as if living away from such an atmosphere would taint my Arab blood and Islamic spirituality or worse, cause me to forget it.

I took this class initially because I thought it would bring me closer to my religion and answer questions that I had about my faith. Over the course of just shopping period though, I discovered that this course was a lot more than a class that lectured about what Islam entailed or what a good Muslim looked like. Immediately, Professor Asani drew the line between islam with a small i and Islam with a big I. Similarly, he drew the line between muslim and Muslim. Whenever anyone would ask Professor Asani something like “Is this okay in Islam?,” he would respond, “Which Islam?.” From then, I knew that this class would open my eyes to new perspectives. It would do something a little different, but equally as satisfying, than bringing me closer to my religion.

Now that I look back, it seems crazy that I feared forgetting my Islamic identity. Though I have only been in this class for a few weeks, I have already grown closer to Allah. Not necessarily in terms of faith, as this class does not promote Islam over other religions or aim to create converts. But rather in terms of knowledge. I’ve learned history. I’ve learned art. I’ve learned morality. This class combats the “Clash of Ignorance,” a theory that’s not foreign to people living in a post September 11 world.

Throughout the duration of this semester, I am supposed to respond to lectures and readings involving any aspect of Islam through six creative mediums. My projects will be documented through posts in this blog. I anticipate exploring with poetry, music, 3D art, and more to convey my Islam, others’ islam, and Islam through the Quran.

I hope you enjoy. I know I will.

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