The overall character of Islamic decorative arts is enhanced by the creative use of colors. Colors play an important role because of their remarkable qualities that can easily have an effect on people. Effects that colors can have on people are psychological, intellectual and spiritual. For instance, Abu Hamid al-Ghazali wrote that of the four things that give power of eye-sight is to look at the color green. And it is generally accepted that green color creates a feeling of harmony, peace, balance, sympathy and self-esteem.
COLOR
The overall character of Islamic decorative arts is enhanced by the creative use of colors. Colors play an important role because of their remarkable qualities that can easily have an effect on people. Effects that colors can have on people are psychological, intellectual and spiritual. For instance, Abu Hamid al-Ghazali wrote that of the four things that give power of eye-sight is to look at the color green.
It is generally accepted that green color creates a feeling of harmony, peace, balance, sympathy and self-esteem. It relieves nervous tension. Even the Holy Qur’an highlights that the green color is the color of some articles in Paradise (Jannah), such as pillows (Al-Rahman 76) and garments of fine silk (Al-Insan 21; Al-Kahf 31). Abdullah Yusuf Ali said that the color green is mentioned as the color of the clothes the residents of Jannah will wear because “it is the most refreshing to the eye, and fits in well with the Garden.”
Of the pleasures in Paradise (Jannah) that the Holy Qur’an draws attention to is this: “…there will be there all that the souls could desire, all that the eyes could delight in” (Al-Zukhruf 71). It stands to reason, therefore, that if the color green is the color of many articles in Paradise (Jannah), and if the eyes will delight in the appearance of things in Paradise (Jannah), than the color green must have some special significance for man’s psychological and spiritual well-being.
According to experts in the psychology of colors, currently the most popular decorating color is green. It symbolizes nature. “It is the easiest color on the eye and can improve vision. It is a calming, refreshing color. People waiting to appear on TV sit in “green rooms” to relax. Hospitals often use green because it relaxes patients.”
However, it is not only green color that dominates Islamic decorative arts. Other colors, such as blue, red and brown, all of which present different psychological qualities and advantages of their own, are also well represented.
Furthermore, creatively manipulating the power of colors can add to the prospect of transforming buildings into man-made “signs” revealing the presence and greatness of God. In fact, using colors in decoration in order that some spiritual initiatives are accomplished, for painting an object or a piece of a surface or for becoming a segment of a spectrum of an arabesque or a piece of a calligraphic writing — all this signifies an imitation of the ubiquitous spiritual paradigms in the natural kingdom. Man did not invent colors: their functions and impact on human psyche. Such is readily available everywhere around us on every plane of God’s creation. Colors are life’s integral part. There is no escaping the presence and functions of colors.
On this there are several verses in the Qur’an wherein the Almighty Creator highlights the significance of colors which are woven into His magnificent creation. The importance of the phenomenon of colors is dual: it adds to the corporeal enjoyment of men as well as of other living creatures, and it also serves some spiritual purposes. It is because of this that in some verses the Qur’an mentions colors as one of life’s foremost realities alongside the notion of the “sign” (ayah) or “message” (dhikra), whereby the people of a high spiritual discernment are invited never to stop reflecting upon the book of creation so that their spirituality can grow even higher. In one Qur’anic verse, for instance, having cited the phenomenon of multiple things on earth that exist in various colors, Allah concludes the verse by saying: “…Verily in this is a sign for men who are mindful (or who remember)” (Al-Nahl 13).
Another verse that highlights, among other things, nature’s multicolored goods, ends by these words: “…Truly, in this, is a Message of remembrance to men of understanding.” (Al-Zumar 21).
Yet another verse, wherein the variety of colors in all aspects of creation has been brought to light, ends in this manner: “…Those truly fear Allah, among His Servants who have knowledge. For Allah is Exalted in Might, Oft-Forgiving” (Fatir 28). In the last verse, a close relationship between reading nature’s signs (ayat) — a variety of colors being a part of it — and knowledge that leads to the recognition and fear of Allah, is clearly implied.
It follows that since colors are singled out as an important aspect of God’s artistry in creation, likewise colors are a very important aspect of decoration in the Islamic built environment. Nonetheless, this, not at all, connotes an imitation of nature, much less its glorification. Rather, this signifies a recognition and endorsement of the spiritual paradigms on which the physical aspects of existence rest. The quintessence of the same paradigms is then extended on the forms and functions of Muslim buildings because such buildings, in fact, are the facets of nature that have been utilized, processed or manipulated so that a framework for the implementation of man’s heavenly mission on earth is created. This way, nature and the Islamic built environment become unified serving similar ideological purposes.
In the Islamic built environment, decorative colors are employed in order that the effects of men’s involvement in creating buildings are denied, at most, and obscured, at least, thus validating the humility and submissiveness of men, the created, mortal and dependent servant, and the supremacy and greatness of God, the Creator, Sustainer and Lord. Colors are also made use of for creating conducive and favorable environments in which people live and work. It is a common truth that in Islamic decoration different contexts necessitated different approaches and perceptions. Decoration in mosques is not exactly like that in houses or in other public buildings, and decoration in houses is not exactly like that in tombs and mausoleums, and so forth. This precept reflected itself on the issue of colors as well, for they are virtually indispensable in decorative arts.
Just like in nature’s realm, decorative colors in the Islamic built environment also have a significant spiritual bearing. They are revealing, captivating, inspiring, stimulating and soothing. They act as agents that help one transcend the boundaries of this world and plunge his self into exploring the secrets of the otherworldliness of things and events. Just like the colors featured in all the tiers of the terrestrial existence, the otherworldliness of colors in Islamic decorative arts, likewise, cannot be perceived except by those who possess a strong insight into the spiritual dominion of life’s realities as expounded by the message of Islam. After all, signs (ayat), be they the signs in revelation, or in nature, or in buildings, are to be read, comprehended and, as a rule, acted upon. Otherwise, the roles of signs are bound to be limited, to arouse a shallow appreciation of their mere outer aspects, thus inflicting injustice to them and to those who established them. Ignorance and illiteracy have a number of modes. Without doubt, the spiritual ones are most detrimental.
LIGHT
The performance of Islamic decorative arts is further enhanced by ingeniously manipulating light, which is normally admitted in abundance into Islamic buildings through diverse media. Apart from richly illuminating the interior of buildings, thus promoting, among other things, the notion of energy efficient buildings, light is often maximized for the purpose of enhancing the performances of a building’s decorative schemes. Titus Burckhardt wrote that an artist who wishes to express the Islamic ideals, in particular the idea of the ‘unity in existence’ or the ‘unity of the real’ has “three means at his disposal: geometry, which translates unity into the spatial order, rhythm, which reveals it in the temporal order and also indirectly in space, and light which is to visible forms what Being is to limited existence.”
However, Titus Burckhardt continued, “there is no more perfect symbol of the Divine Unity than light. For this reason, the Muslim artist seeks to transform the very stuff he is fashioning into a vibration of light. It is to this end that he covers the interior surfaces of a mosque or palace — and occasionally the outer ones — with mosaics in ceramic tiles. This lining is often confined to the lower part of the walls, as if to dispel their heaviness. It is for the same purpose that the artist transforms other surfaces into perforated reliefs to filter the light. Muqarnas also serve to trap light and diffuse it with the most subtle gradations. Colors reveal the interior richness of light. Light viewed directly is blinding; it is through the harmony of colors that we divine its true nature, which bears every visual phenomenon within itself.”
The notion of light (nur) is very important in Islam. God has likened Himself to light in a Qur’anic chapter called al-Nur, which means Light. In it, God declares that He is the Light of the heavens and the earth (Al-Nur 35). A parable of His light is then presented in a breathtaking style. According to Abdullah Yusuf Ali, “the physical light is but a reflection of the true Light in the world of Reality, and that true Light is Allah. We can only think of Allah in terms of our phenomenal experience, and in the phenomenal world, light is the purest thing we know, but physical light has drawbacks incidental to its physical nature…The perfect Light of Allah is free from any such defects.”
The Qur’an also identifies divine revelations with nur or light which helps people to walk and persevere on the right path. Accordingly, the main job of prophets was to guide people from darkness to light (Al-Ma’idah 15, 44). The term nur in the Qur’an is used to express physical, moral and spiritual vision. The job of Satan, on the other hand, is to deceive people and (mis)lead them from light to darkness (Al-Baqarah 257). The whole of existence on earth is thus a struggle for supremacy between the forces of good and evil, truth and falsehood, enlightenment and ignorance, civilization and backwardness, vision and blindness, light and darkness.
Since Islamic architecture expresses the worldview of Muslims, light plays such an important role in its realm. It is used not only for illuminating buildings, but also as a decorative medium that helps people achieve the moral and spiritual vision of Islam, in general, and of Islamic decorative arts, in particular. Light also links internal space with general external space. It allows the users of internal spaces, which are generated by man, to stay permanently connected with external space, which is God’s physical realm governed by His physical laws. While both illuminating and beautifying the things fashioned by man, light underscores in its own ways the inconsequentiality, fragility, relativity and imperfection of man, his products and this world. It, at the same time, underscores the omnipotence, perfection, absoluteness, beauty and infinity of God. Everything completely depends on Him and His light and grace for survival, guidance and salvation in both worlds.
The Muslims and their buildings favor light, both symbolically and factually, also because there is nothing simpler, plainer and clearer than the truth. Moreover, there is no better secret to a happy and meaningful life than sheer simplicity, sincerity, transparency and honesty, with others and, more importantly, with one’s own self. There is nothing that symbolizes these notions better than the notion of light, just as there is nothing that symbolizes the opposites better than the notion of darkness. Surely, the life of a true believer is a simple, straightforward and a clearly defined affair, from the beginning till the end. Minimalism in form and appearances, and profundity, wisdom and luminosity in substance, meaning and purpose, it stands to reason, are synonymous with the lifestyle of a believer. A true believer, furthermore, has nothing to hide, camouflage, mystify or veil when it comes to his relationships with his Creator and with his very self and his consciousness.
There is nothing in his life that is susceptible to hesitation, skepticism, superstitions and unnecessary fears. In contrast, he is very confident of, and happy about, what and who he is, and what he normally does. He does not hesitate even for a moment to exhibit to his self, his intellect, and to the spiritual forces of existence, the truths about himself and about his life undertakings. Illuminating both his life and buildings, both metaphorically and factually, physically and spiritually, thus denotes to a believer the illuminating and upholding of his intellect and soul, i.e., his very self. It denotes that he is succeeding in keeping up being what he was always meant to be, that is, a dignified and enlightened vicegerent and at the same time servant of God who incessantly aims for the highest metaphysical lore and standing, but does not forget his earthly origins and provisional affiliations. Illuminating both his life and buildings further denotes to a believer that he is true to his self and to his Creator and Lord. Light to him signifies self-confidence, and the vigilance and competence of the consciousness and the soul. It signifies authenticity and success. Deliberate and pervasive darkness, on the other hand, signifies skepticism, wavering and pessimistic seclusion and escapism. Darkness is a sham and a failure. It is an aversion.
It was exactly because of this that when prophet Musa (Moses) was asked to make an appointment between himself and Pharaoh’s magicians for a duel between the truth and the falsehood, he chose a day of “the Festival” demanding that all the people gather in the early forenoon (Ta Ha, 59). Prophet Musa thus wanted everyone to be present as a witness to the triumph of the truth, and to do so in the early forenoon when the light of the day is at its brightest, and when the faculties and minds of the people are sharpest and most perceptive, so that the truth could be unmistakably witnessed by all and could be accepted by whosoever willed to do so of his or her own accord.
It is because of this, furthermore, that while mosques, for example, are always completely and very well illuminated – sometimes even excessively — in many temples and shrines, the depositories of the falsehood and delusions, light is frequently cleverly manipulated, rendering some curvatures, sections or images in the buildings deliberately dim or poorly lit, in addition to the strategic positioning of those curvatures, sections and images and how they are related to each other, so as to manipulate the feelings, impressions and thoughts of a visitor. This is so because the very concepts, philosophies and thoughts, which those temples and shrines personify, have themselves been shrouded in clouded mysteries, myths, fables and uncertainties, and so must always be presented in the same manner to ensure their acceptance and survival. In those places, one is to be overwhelmed and guided by manipulated, pseudo and inexpressible moods and emotions, rather than by objective and critical thinking and by rational reasoning and judgments.
Isma’il Raji al-Faruqi elaborates on the chief ontological reason why Islamic buildings are always clearly lit: “This legacy has made imperative that the Islamic building be clearly lit. Islam abhors darkness. It has no mysteries, no secrets and tolerates no paradoxes or ambiguities. Its aim is always perfect clarity, perfect vision, perfect obviousness and distinctness. It has never used or accepted the symbolism of the womb. Its revelation was not something born in darkness, shrouded in mystery, beset with ambiguity. The Prophet often received the revelations in presence of the public. Its advent never required or accompanied the slightest lapse of consciousness. On the contrary, the Prophet’s consciousness was always tauter and clearer under the impact of revelation. That is why Islam never entertained or tolerated any dilation of consciousness, any drunkenness, any psychotropia as having anything to do with the vision of the Holy, with religious experience.”
By: Dr. Spahic Omer is an Associate Professor –
Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design
International Islamic University Malaysia
Posted on: June 10, 2011