The Dance Of The Soul – Khan, (Mesmerizing Visual Journey Inside Mosques)

Jameh’s mosque in Esfahan, Iran, 900 years old

Shahe-Cheragh’s mosque in Shiraz, Iran

Making this my day of seeking spiritual beauty and soul searching. I am hypnotized by the beauty of Sufi poetry,  that so speaks to the heart. Also, I have added for eye-candy purposes only,  amazing images of Mosques in Iran, most of which are centuries old. I cannot think of a better offering than stunning architecture and  the beauty of these priceless Mosque’ ceilings. ~Eve

For more ceilings:

http://www.boredpanda.com/mosque-ceilings/

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“I have loved in life and I have been loved.
I have drunk the bowl of poison from the hands of love as nectar,
and have been raised above life’s joy and sorrow.
My heart, aflame in love, set afire every heart that came in touch with it.
My heart has been rent and joined again;
My heart has been broken and again made whole;
My heart has been wounded and healed again;
A thousand deaths my heart has died, and thanks be to love, it lives yet.
I went through hell and saw there love’s raging fire,
and I entered heaven illumined with the light of love.

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I wept in love and made all weep with me;
I mourned in love and pierced the hearts of men;
And when my fiery glance fell on the rocks, the rocks burst forth as volcanoes.
The whole world sank in the flood caused by my one tear;
With my deep sigh the earth trembled, and when I cried aloud the name of my beloved,
I shook the throne of God in heaven.
I bowed my head low in humility, and on my knees I begged of love,
“Disclose to me, I pray thee, O love, thy secret.”
She took me gently by my arms and lifted me above the earth, and spoke softly in my ear,
“My dear one, thou thyself art love, art lover,
and thyself art the beloved whom thou hast adored.” ~ Hazrat Inayat Khan,The Dance of the Soul

Shiraz, Iran

Beauty and Aesthetics in Islamic Art

From the spiritual and ethical point of view, Islamic art originates essentially from the Qur’anic Message, whose values it aims to translate into the plane of physical shapes. Every external image is complemented by an inner reality which is its hidden internal essence. The outward form, or dhâhir, underlines the quantitative, physical aspect that is obvious, and easily and readily intelligible. It is represented in the shape of a building, the shell of a vessel, the body of man, or the outward form of religious rites. Meanwhile, the essential, qualitative aspect is the hidden or inward (bâtin) which is present in all beings and things. In order to know each in its completeness, one must seek the knowledge and understanding of its outward and temporal reality, as well as its essential and inward corporeality, where the eternal beauty of every object resides. It is the scholar who comprehends the logic of the composition, while the unlearned only appreciates its aesthetic value. This interpretive concept forms the most important philosophical aspect of Islamic aesthetics.

In classical Arabic, there is only one word to indicate a man who works with his hands, sâni’ (pl. sunnâ’), meaning a worker, an artisan, someone who practices a craft or a trade and is also creative in his work. It is the amalgamation of a trained craftsman and a creative artist, for which there is no literal translation in English. The traditional artist or artificer’s work is to make objects that would function as well as please the eye. The beauty of the artefact depends upon its perfection as a work of art and not on its appearance alone. A beautiful object is so because it is perfect; it is not perfect because it is beautiful. For the traditional artist, art is not a gift, but knowledge to be acquired and, therefore, traditional art is not in any current sense of the word ‘self-expressive.’ Anyone who insists on his own way is not an artist but an egoist.

• Al-Faruqi, I. and L. L., The Cultural Atlas of Islam, New York, 1986.
• Al-Faruqi, L. Bakhtiar, L. and Ardalan, N., The Sense of Unity, Chicago,

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Middle Eastern architecture is renowned for its kaleidoscopic beauty. If you haven’t had a chance, yet, to witness it for yourself, Instagram photographer m1rasoulifard can take you on a mesmerizing visual journey. He captures the best of Iran’s architectural details in his hypnotizing photos.

http://www.boredpanda.com/iran-mosque-ceilings-m1rasoulifard/

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                                       Hafez’s tomb in Shiraz,Fars, Iran

Hazrate-Masomeh’s mosque in Qom, Iran