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Inside Mecca (2003)
Inside Mecca.Major aspects of Islam
Kaaba is a replica of the celestial house of God that existed before everything was and a symbol of worship of one God, God of Abraham. It is known that every religion has a center and Kaaba is a center for muslims. The faith of muslims requires going to Kaaba and performing Hajj. The film illustrates some of the most important concepts in Islam including following of Muhammad, strong belief in forgiveness of God Almighty, equality of people and so on.
Going to Kaaba is very important in Islamic tradition and is done for remembrance of God. This trip is considered a spiritual journey after which a person will not be the same as before. The three pilgrimages forgot their background, what they did and who they were and became the same and near God. They spent a week with a crowd of sweaty people and tried to control their feelings for the love of God that connected them altogether. So, going to Hajj means you forget everything that was before and concentrate only on one God and worship God. People of different ages, nationality, gender, social status are equal in this journey and there is nothing important but remembrance and worship of God. It is perfectly illustrated that when the time for prayer comes everything stops, shops are closed and the whole street becomes the place for prayer. During the week people devote themselves for worship of God and this changes their minds, priorities and lives. After the symbolic exile of satan people cut their hair as a symbol of a new state of being. This process is similar to Brahmans that are called twice-born men due to spiritual growth that is considered as second birth. In the film it is said that people won't be the same after Hajj and they start a new life.
The another aspect of muslims is that they try hard to follow and be like prophet Muhammad. As Quran doesn't cover all the aspects it is not enough to get full knowledge from it. So people use also Hadiths that are words and actions of prophet Muhammad. From this it is clear that after God and Quran, Muhammad is the person to be followed. Pilgrims perform tawaf that is the going round the Kaaba counterclockwise 7 times as did prophet. They go to Jaba Rahma where prophet gave final sermon seeking nearness to him. In addition, muslims try to repeat Muhammad's actions as sleeping under the stars or
cut hair after satan exile. The South African pilgrim while walking to valley of Mina, says «our prophet was over 60 when he performed Hajj, and I am only 40 and can walk why I should get bus when Muhammad walked». This shows how muslims try to follow their prophet and repeat his actions and try to be like him by personality, too. The other thing is that the author says the people are surrounded by millions and are together in space and in faith, but yet alone before God. This illustrates another belief of muslims that no one can defend people, they are alone with their soul and sins before God. Unlike in Christianity that believe Jesus Christ was crucified to atone sins of people in Islam people are only ones who is responsible for their deeds and sins. It is said that no one can speak and ask for forgiveness for people unless God permits, however, the idea is that people are alone before God.
Another concept that is seen from the movie is focusing on forgiveness of God. During the five day quest people constantly pray for forgiveness. Muslims believe that God is merciful and forgives all the possible sins if you understand your mistake and ask for forgiveness. However, there is a restriction that if it is too late like before death the sins are not forgiven. During the period of Hajj people perform many rituals that came from Abraham but the very reason of Hajj is asking for utter mercy from God and absolution. The African pilgrim says «God can forgive everything people have done and give grace». From the readings it is seen that God will use any chance to forgive people. For instance, if one person commits sin God will look to the overall performance of that person and if he is good, the sin is forgiven. The pilgrim believes that the thing that is important is how sincere people are when asking for mercy. We are humans and commit a lot of sins but God forgives. So the goal is not to be ideal and without sins but understand them and constantly improve yourself. The American pilgrim says «you can't just confess and be forgiven but be improved do not repeat the same mistakes» that is the idea of Islam. After the end of Hajj Malaysian pilgrim says that he is struggling with inner poverty and wants to be a better person, better father, better worker and better subordinate. This shows that the main goal is improvement of people, people are not ideal and allowed to make mistakes, sins but the thing is you understand and do not repeat them again. Constant improving is what Islam teaches people.
One of the main ideas of Islam is equality. The pilgrim from Africa says «don't ask me who am I or where I am from or who's my father, it is Islam that brought me here». According to Islamic tradition people believe that God doesn't look at your face, body, who you're, millionaire, or poor God looks at your heart. The striving for equality is illustrated with the special cloth for men and modest clothes for women. The special cloth consists of two pieces for upper and lower bodies. The idea of this is that all people rich, poor, literate and illiterate look the same and the focus is drawn away from cloth and the soul becomes the center. The Hajj is a perfect illustration of equality where people of different race, nationality come together in one place and concentrate worshipping one God. The other thing that is mentioned in the film is that American pilgrim needed to obtain permission from her son to travel. She says that she never read restrictions in the Quran and it seems that Saudi people themselves created this restriction. In Quran it is said "If any do deeds of righteousness be they male or female and have faith, they will enter Heaven ''. So there is no inequality between genders and they are spiritually equal. Also, in the readings it is mentioned that the phrase that men are one step above women doesn't mean one is more deserving than the other. This means that men and women are only functionally unequal meaning that men should feed the family. And if for some reason male cannot do it and instead the woman supports the family then he is no longer above the woman.
The state of Ihram required while doing Hajj shows what traits of personality are important in Islam. This state is essential to perform Hajj that is the pure frame of mind, patience, courtesy and respect. Muslims are required to have these traits even in ordinary life. During the journey pilgrims faced many challenges that require patience and tolerance and they overcame them due to their faith. As arguing and losing of temper is forbidden during Ihram the African pilgrim changes group after he was discriminated because of his skin color. The comments and words of other women towards American woman made her upset however it is important to keep patience and tolerate. Moreover, the challenges of transport and living places tested their patience. All the pilgrims eventually overcame the challenges due to faith. And it is clear that these personality traits such as tolerance, patience are important in Islamic tradition.
In Islam society and brotherhood are important. Allah says «look after my mankind».
Also in the reading it is said that the society that doesn't take care of socially vulnerable members as orphans, poor will collapse. So the charity is basic principle of Islam.
The African sees another side of the city with poor and hungry children and helps them. The element of charity is similar to christianity where charity is believed to be one of the reasons why christianity spread quickly. The African here also mentions an important point he says «I do it for the service of God». This is also an important point as when muslims say «I love you for serve of God or I do it for serve of God» this is a sign of agreement so in the day of judgement God will reward them for these deeds. And this words are unique for muslims and they have very important meaning.
To sum up, the film illustrates the concepts of Islam and shows what things are important for muslims. It is clear that followers of Islam do not adhere to all the requirement of the religion as they sometimes show intolerance, critique and so on. But the important thing is not to be perfect but constantly improve and learn from mistakes that is the teaching of Islam. The film and also readings were useful as they have clarified two things for me. First, the prejudice that in Islam women are lower than men, now it is clear that they are spiritually equal and the difference is in the functions. Another thing is the words ''I do it for the service of God». This phrase seemed insincere as how can people do things without their wish and just for the sake of God. Now it is clear that when you do good things you mention God and God will reward you for this.
Islamic Art: Mirror of the Invisible World (2011)
Religious aspects of film
The film shows that after a long history of Islam and its struggle one of the greatest gifts it has given for civilization is its creativity and intelligence embodied in Islamic art. The nuance and elegance of Islamic art is appreciated regardless of one's belief and religion. The art is used to depict the true and deepest emotions and also aspirations of people who follow Islam. Other from reflecting the essence of Islamic world it also shows the development of Islam throughout the complex world with influence of different traditions. The given film effectively shows the role of art in muslim tradition and how it reflects culture and aspirations of people of that community.
First of all, the great emphasis of Islamic art on writings illustrates the importance of it to Islamic culture. As Jesus Christ, the son of God is a gift of God to Christians, Qur'an is a gift for muslims. Our'an teaches the law and the way of life, but most importantly it is very word of God. So, for muslisms the Qur'an is not just a holy book or poetry but it is word of Allah. As Allah revealed himself through words the art of calligraphy, or beautiful writing is the most important art in Islamic tradition. So the Qur'an is a focus of devotion and also the focus of art as people try to make manuscripts as beautiful as possible. And the use of word everywhere is the distinctive feature of Islam different from other religious traditions. Various breathtaking mosques including Taj Mahal and Alhambra while having enormous territory, are full of scriptures on their walls. These are the words from the holy book that are painted painstakingly with great precision and attention. People also used glass cubes with gold foils, the most expensive kind of cubes. In addition, special minerals as cobalt from Iran were used to create unusual and vivid colors. This also reflects the extraordinary wealth of Islamic leaders. The meticulous attention of people to materials needed to calligraphy as reed pen, tools used to sharpen it, usage of expensive animal skins and also special treatment of paper prior writing on it shows the relation of people to writing and its importance. For muslims, copying Qur'an was the experience of divine presence in those words, and it was a kind of prayer and meditation.
By looking at different objects of Islamic art we can figure out what are the important things for muslims. For example, the symmetry and organization of columns and other objects in mosques illustrates the importance of geometry in religious and also everyday life of muslims. The geometry is required to determine the direction of prayer and also the time of prayer and this constitutes the religious importance of geometry. Moreover, the knowledge of geometry also was needed while traveling as a map in a desert landscape where people lived. So, the importance of geometry was reflected in the design and decoration of mosques that is common in different mosques throughout the world. This shows how Islamic art especially the decoration of mosque's walls reflects important aspects of people who follow Islam. In addition, the decoration as use of ornaments, mosaic paintings were also important as they created a play of light and gave special experience or feeling in a sacred place. So due to light playing people experience differently in summer, winter, sunrise or sunset. And this gives unusual feeling that is accesible to everyone. The special thing about the ornaments is that regardless of who you are muslim or of other religion you'd appreciate the beauty of them. This may bring to conclusion that the beauty of islamic art that reflect people's thought cannot call for hostility. The other important point is the water in Islamic tradition. So there can be a lot of reasons why water is important in Islamic tradition. Firstly, this can be due to scarcity of water in early and also present day Islamic societies. Also, it says «God make everything alive through water» in Qur'an and water is needed prior to prayer. So it is a sign of cleansing in a literal and metaphoric way that helps to put muslims in the right mental framework to approach the divine. So, a common feature of mosques are ablution places with water and also gardens that contain water and plants, too. So, the architectural design shows the importance of water in Islamic culture.
It is clear that islamic art reflects culture and also history of Islam, its development throughout the time and its interaction with other traditions. From the lecture we know that at the very beginning of emergence of Islam there was no clear distinction that this is the new religion, and at first there was believer's movement that included Hebrew and Christians, too. So we don't have clear distinction from the early times. Also the interaction of different traditions are illustrated in designs and architecture of mosques. For example, the earliest Quranic words found in stone building in Jerusalem the Dome of the Rock that borrows the form from Byzantine martyrdom. The Dome covers massive rock where prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven on his mystical night journey. So here we see the coexistence of different religions and their connection with each other. However, the new features are apparent in a way that the Arabic inscriptions are depicted throughout the Dome. This careful and beautiful writing is an indication of new culture. The another depiction of influence of other traditions on Islam is shown in the example of Emperor Jahangir. He collected European and also Christian art, and there is a picture of him with halo, that is a christian item. These findings show that Islam coexisted with other religious traditions in a peaceful environment and in tolerance towards them. And indeed, emergence of Islamic religion was not a breakage of preexisting traditions but their continuation.
The art reflects people's aspirations and deepest feelings. In the film Muhammad al-Asad says that Islam contains different people but need in shelter is common for all muslims. So, people put tremendous effort in what they build and therefore they reflect a great deal about them. Buildings reflect economic, social and cultural values. For example, the ornaments represent heaven that is the promise of God for his people. It is clear that the concept of heaven is important for muslims as they believe in resurrection when people will be judged by their deeds. So for proper behavior and righteousness they were promised with heaven and indeed most muslims carry the image of heaven in their hearts. The other reflection of religious aspirations of muslims by islamic art is representation of flora and fauna in other words the creatures of God. God says: "To know me, know my creatures". And as there is no depiction of God in Islam as in Christianity or Hinduism, muslims believe that they will get closer to God by deeply looking on its creatures and understand their essence. This belief is reflected in art in a form of living paintings on walls and rugs.
To sum up, I think that the purpose of the film was to show how islamic art reflects the people who believe in Islam. And that the art is common for whole humanity, one doesn't need to learn Islam to understand its art, everyone regardless of his religious background can appreciate the beauty of it. It shows who are the people that follow Islam, their religious and cultural aspirations. And their treatment of art and Quranic words with great attention, patience cannot beget violence. The beauty of Islamic art and architecture is universal and it teaches peace and unity of people. Knowing the essence and understanding the different religions are important in our world where we have various prejudice towards religions. The Islamic art is a very way to compehend Islam and its teachings.
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011)
The manifestation of religion in Jiro's life
Kristofer Schipper, talking about religion in China, mentions that religion has never become a separate part of society, so religion is nowhere to see but everywhere to experience. This saying also can be applied to Japan, where religion has immersed profoundly into society and has manifestation in everyday life, actions and relationships between people. This is perfectly illustrated by this film, where there is no direct display of religion, but one can feel its presence observing the people's behavior, their words and attitude towards each other. Throughout the film we can observe manifestations of different religions including Daoism and Confucianism. The film also proves that these religions don't have strong borders, instead they are intertwined.
The commitment of Jiro to society that is reflected by his work can reveal both Daoist and Confucianist philosophy. Confucianism encourages people to cultivate five virtues and one of them is Ren, that is caring for humanity. It says that people are never alone, they need to be cared for when they are born and when they are old, so people should focus on relationships. Confucianists believe that we came to the world to improve it and Jiro is doing this by trying to give his best to the world around him. He chooses the best fish, takes care of every ingredient to be added to the sushi as rice that is specially cooked under high pressure and an octopus that should be massaged for 40-45 minutes. These actions show his desire to do best for his society. The Daoist aspect is that Daoism says that nothing just exists, everything helps each other. It teaches us that everything has its own place in the cosmos and has a function(natural being) that perfectly suits them. So if everything is allowed to naturally express itself then we can reach the ultimate and best functioning of the world, where everything coexists in its mutually beneficial state. This idea is observed from Jiro's careful attitude towards the customers, his desire to give the best to people and his relationships with dealers and also students. Apart from offering the best for the clients, he also established trustworthy relationships with the dealers. Jiro is influencing dealers and changing them, too, that is helping them also to function at their best. Dealers also specialize in selling one type of products and have mastered it. They say that they chose the products that are worthy of Jiro and don't want to sell to people who do not appreciate fish. In addition, the dealer of tuna says that he is inspired by the fact that Jiro trusts him and that encourages him to sell good fish. So this is the example of a mutual relationship where particles exist in their best state and help each other to function effectively. And the important thing is that these particles do the things that are natural for them without striving and anxiety. So as if Jiro found his path in making sushi and his profession is natural for him as everybody around benefits from it.
The other thing that is worth attention is that he does the same things on a daily basis during so many years. Given that he does the same actions for about 40-50 years as going to the work from the same station, the same place and making sushi, he is never tired and oppositely doing these makes him inspired. In Chinese religions everyday behavior plays an important role, so even the Highest God, Jade, is concerned about everyday activities and sends good fortune to those who behaved well. Moreover, Confucianism teaches us to treat every day of our life as meaningful and sacred. And Jiro does the same thing. Even though he has cooked thousands of fish and served thousands of people, it seems that every single sushi is special for him, and he works to make it delicious. And that makes his actions so meaningful. Also, Confucianists say that one shouldn't strive to be creative and make novelty because everything is already invented, so people need to just improve it. Jiro's elder son says that the history of sushi is long and they don't try to be exclusive and elite, their ingredients and methods are open and simple. The lack of striving for novelty and desire to make better the things that they already have is the religious behaviour of Jiro and his sons. Also, this religion encourages to cultivate good ritual habits and for Confucianists rituals have a different meaning, as they are not that we do on funerals but they are how we move and hold ourselves and think every day. So, people should treat what they do everyday with a ritual importance and try to do the same things everyday at their best possible way. These ideas are all found in Jiro's everyday actions, too. He does the same things as if they have ritual significance and tries to improve them every time.
Besides, his strive for harmony reflects Daoistic religious philosophy. He pays a lot of attention to the ingredients so that they go with each other such as the balance between rice and fish. Also, in Japan there is a certain order in serving dishes. So that one kind of fish goes first and another second and so on meaning that there is an order and there should be harmony in everything. Sushi is like a concert as when you eat in the correct order it seems that you are listening to the music, so that it is in harmony without disruption. Besides, he believes that if he does the same size of sushi for both males and females it will disrupt the pace of food and harmony that is important for him. This means that Jiro's philosophy is embodied in the taste of sushi. Similarly, different aspects of his actions, ideas are permeated with religion.
Jiro's striving for perfection and hard work can be accosted with Confucianism, where people are prompted to succeed based on their merits. They believe that these kinds of people are at their best. Confucianism teaches us to not stop learning and become better. He hone his skills throughout the decades but never satisfied with himself saying that he can do it even better. Jiro as Confucianists puts a lot of attention to hard work saying that the true gentlemen should work hard and deserve his merits. In addition, another aspect of Jiro is his graceful movements, it can be noticed while he is doing sushi and even when he sits and just talks to others. One of the five virtues of Confucianism is appropriateness when your actions like a dance moves that you have learned and that seems effortless. It seems that Jiro follows this virtue also.
One of the themes that is connected to all the religious traditions is the caring for nature. The oldest son of Jiro says that the business should have a balance between profit and preservation of nature. The religious teachings of Daoism and Confucianism both say that the human world and the natural world are inseparable and intertwined. So there should be a harmony between them. He shows his worry that the amount of fish is decreasing so the government should ban the catching of young fish as this will decrease the population. It is believed that by being in harmony with inner self people can bring harmony to nature. And the harmonic existence of these two worlds is natural.
To sum up, it is clear that the film contains more religion than it might be thought. It can be noticed that people put meaning to all the actions they do, and treat their work not only as a work that helps to survive but as a tool to serve for other people and improve overall surrounding. Self-criticism, a humble personality, a sense of harmony and commitment to society are all aspects of religion that exist in Japan and they penetrate people's everyday lives so profoundly that they are not separable.