| Was Shakespeare a Muslim? |
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12/2/2003 11:02:00 AM GMT http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/review/article_full_story.asp?service_ID=5835 |
Well-known authors, scholars and artists are participating in the unique program which takes place from October to December. The program includes gatherings ranging from talks, master classes and readings of rarely performed texts, all designed to engage with a cross-cultural audience.
The centerpiece of the Globe's season was a host of events tying in with Islam Awareness Week (Nov 22-28), seven days of promoting the Islamic culture in Britain in an attempt to ease tensions and bring understanding among different cultures.
The Globe theatre, a replica of an Elizabethan playhouse, was turned into an Arabic souq, showcasing everything from Islamic arts and crafts to live performances of tales and anecdotes from the Arab world performed by the Khayaal Theatre Company. Also the theatre showed a series of "Souq Lectures", bringing into discussion subjects like "Islam in the Modern World," "The Concept of the Hereafter in Islam" as well as "Islamic Art" among others.
At least 10,000 people attended the event, which shows how much the West is interested in going behind the sensationalist headlines and discovering more about the culture from the Arab and Islamic worlds.
Speaking to The Daily Star, Peter Spottiswoode, the director of Globe education, revealed the inspiration behind the program: "I had a conversation with the Ambassador of Morocco, who is convinced that Othello was based on the Moroccan Ambassador who came to England in 1600. He told me a lot of England's relationship with Morocco and it made me realize that what we need to do is explore the context of Othello, politically, socially and culturally of the early 17th Century. We wanted to explore England's perceptions of Islam and Islamic lands."
Spottiswoode stressed the relevance of Shakespeare's works specially in these hard times.
"We're very conscious that we mustn't be pickled in the past. We must be a theatre about now.
We wanted to add depth and resonance, as well as build bridges at a time when real awareness and truth about faith and cultures is absolutely essential to share. We wanted to celebrate the myriad of cultures that make up faith. Shakespeare has been translated into over 90 languages. He has a universality now that can bring people together."
On the other hand, Sheikh Hamza Yusuf, a Muslim scholar who is lecturing on Shakespeare and Islam at The Globe this week said: "Shakespeare's plays are not about good versus evil, not about a world in which you are either 'with us or against us'" .
"Shakespeare refuses to indulge in those cartoon caricatures of right and wrong. His plays are too complex for that."
In an interviews, Sheikh Yusuf, an American convert to Islam who heads an Islamic foundation in California, said that "Poets have an immense amount to teach us." "We listen too much to our social engineers and social scientists and not enough to our poets."
What was interesting about most of the talks at this event was that they were hinting that Shakespeare himself had been influenced by Islamic culture.
Respected academic Dr. Martin Lings brought to discussion the thesis that Shakespeare was a member of a spiritual order closely tied to the philosophy of the Islamic Sufi sect. Speaking at a lecture, he commented, "Shakespeare would have delighted in Sufism."
In "King Lear", Lings explained that the journey of Edgar was similar to a Sufi's journey in search for truth, while Lear's own words echo Sufi beliefs with his speech to his daughter, "Upon such sacrifices, my Cordelia, the gods throw themselves incense."
The most spectacular of all was the decision by the organizers to project images from the Islamic world onto the walls of the Globe.
"We came up with the idea of projecting photographs of Islamic lands, peoples and architecture onto the white walls of the Globe so that Islam enfolds the Globe," Spottiswoode explained."
Shakespeare and the Globe are icons of Britishness. This way the Globe is being embraced by Islam. I thought it would be a beautiful, visual symbol of what we're trying to do."
Spottiswoode added that he hopes that the lessons of Shakespeare's celebrated tragedies are learned before we are left to lament, in his own words, "Alas, poor world, what treasure hast thou lost."
Regardless to Shakespeare's intentions 400 years ago, organisers of the Islamic Awareness Week believe his concepts can help boost the relations between Muslims and non-Muslims.
"Shakespeare is part of our heritage," said Shafeeq Sadiq, national coordinator of Islamic Awareness Week.
"His plays remind us of the global communities that we live in and the need for respect and goodwill."
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{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
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