I once saw Canadian comedian Jon Dore live; he had audience members complete connect-the-dot pictures on stage and then guess what the picture was, then he would reveal what the picture was of, all on a paper flipboard type thing. After some basic stuff, the 3rd or 4th picture that an audience member completed looked something like an angel, but then the caption revealed it to be the Prophet Mohammed, the joke being that the drawer was tricked into being fatwa’d. It was riotous and uncomfortable.
True — however, my understanding is that having ANY illustrations in or on a religious book is a no-no (understanding, of course, that no generalization hold true for a religion of two billion).
Great point. That is the case in a number of… I almost typed “denominations”, but there are only three major denominations of Islam. Basically, the stringency of the rule varies from place to place. Portrayal of religious figures is a general no-no (although there is a famous Persian painting depicting Mohammed’s trip to Paradise – his face is a blank, although the winged creature he rides has a woman’s face), but since Mohammed was supposed to be the last prophet, anyone born after him may be depicted (again, rules may vary). In Saudi Arabia, pedestrian crosswalks are indicated with the generic walking figure, but it has no head, thus circumventing the proscription. Palestinian TV ran an interesting, animated cartoon depicting the victory of Suleiman the Magnificent’s rag-tag army against the big, bad crusaders, and didn’t shy away from showing anyone’s face. The Bangladeshi ladies I knew in college all wanted their portraits done, and the guys all wanted portraits of their girlfriends. The guys also tended to have posters of the green-eyed Afghan girl from the National Geographic cover hanging on their dorm room walls! And, of course, demonstrators in Iran would wave huge pictures of whichever ayatollah they were praising. (The Iranian girl maintained that those people were either idiots or afraid to not go along with the crowd. She felt really embarrassed and worried any time that sort of thing appeared on the news.)
So, some Muslims might have no problem with the cartoon “average Muslim” in the workbook; others would take exception. This workbook is clearly intended for Muslims in English-speaking countries, presumably fairly new to the faith; it wouldn’t be found, or deemed necessary, in a land where Islam is ubiquitous.
Well, she was extremely photogenic, and the camera caught her in just the right pose. All the male students from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Somalia were just… It was like the posters of Farrah Fawcett, Marilyn Monroe or Betty Grable. I admit, I thought she looked really attractive myself, but mentioned that she’d look a zillion times prettier if she were smiling… or had much to smile about.
… Which reminds me: the Somalian ladies I studied with were not only gorgeous, but also always looking to be photographed or drawn. The Somalians in general were really laid-back about the religion; one time I was assisting a Bangladeshi lady in the library, and she commented on a detailed drawing in my sketchbook of my hand. She said the lines on the palm represent the numbers 18 and 81, which stand for the 99 names of God. Some of the Somalians had flocked around and started looking at their hands and nodding (I guess the belief isn’t common in Somalia). One guy had no lines at all on his hands (it happens), and he held up his palm and said, “Maybe this means I’m a prophet or something.” The Bangladeshi girl scolded him for uttering such “blasphemy”! 😀
Oh, and the smiles: The Somali ladies all had fantastic smiles, but the guys looked like they ate rocks for breakfast. Eventually I found out it was because families would spring for orthodontic work for the girls if they could afford it, so they’d look attractive; the boys just needed to get good jobs, so their teeth were left crooked unless the parents were really well-heeled.
I once saw Canadian comedian Jon Dore live; he had audience members complete connect-the-dot pictures on stage and then guess what the picture was, then he would reveal what the picture was of, all on a paper flipboard type thing. After some basic stuff, the 3rd or 4th picture that an audience member completed looked something like an angel, but then the caption revealed it to be the Prophet Mohammed, the joke being that the drawer was tricked into being fatwa’d. It was riotous and uncomfortable.
It’s possible that the cartoon character is supposed to be a little guide, but not Mohammed.
True — however, my understanding is that having ANY illustrations in or on a religious book is a no-no (understanding, of course, that no generalization hold true for a religion of two billion).
Great point. That is the case in a number of… I almost typed “denominations”, but there are only three major denominations of Islam. Basically, the stringency of the rule varies from place to place. Portrayal of religious figures is a general no-no (although there is a famous Persian painting depicting Mohammed’s trip to Paradise – his face is a blank, although the winged creature he rides has a woman’s face), but since Mohammed was supposed to be the last prophet, anyone born after him may be depicted (again, rules may vary). In Saudi Arabia, pedestrian crosswalks are indicated with the generic walking figure, but it has no head, thus circumventing the proscription. Palestinian TV ran an interesting, animated cartoon depicting the victory of Suleiman the Magnificent’s rag-tag army against the big, bad crusaders, and didn’t shy away from showing anyone’s face. The Bangladeshi ladies I knew in college all wanted their portraits done, and the guys all wanted portraits of their girlfriends. The guys also tended to have posters of the green-eyed Afghan girl from the National Geographic cover hanging on their dorm room walls! And, of course, demonstrators in Iran would wave huge pictures of whichever ayatollah they were praising. (The Iranian girl maintained that those people were either idiots or afraid to not go along with the crowd. She felt really embarrassed and worried any time that sort of thing appeared on the news.)
So, some Muslims might have no problem with the cartoon “average Muslim” in the workbook; others would take exception. This workbook is clearly intended for Muslims in English-speaking countries, presumably fairly new to the faith; it wouldn’t be found, or deemed necessary, in a land where Islam is ubiquitous.
LOL, that green-eyed girl…(even if my memory thought those eyes were blue…). Such a ruckus about her!
Well, she was extremely photogenic, and the camera caught her in just the right pose. All the male students from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Somalia were just… It was like the posters of Farrah Fawcett, Marilyn Monroe or Betty Grable. I admit, I thought she looked really attractive myself, but mentioned that she’d look a zillion times prettier if she were smiling… or had much to smile about.
… Which reminds me: the Somalian ladies I studied with were not only gorgeous, but also always looking to be photographed or drawn. The Somalians in general were really laid-back about the religion; one time I was assisting a Bangladeshi lady in the library, and she commented on a detailed drawing in my sketchbook of my hand. She said the lines on the palm represent the numbers 18 and 81, which stand for the 99 names of God. Some of the Somalians had flocked around and started looking at their hands and nodding (I guess the belief isn’t common in Somalia). One guy had no lines at all on his hands (it happens), and he held up his palm and said, “Maybe this means I’m a prophet or something.” The Bangladeshi girl scolded him for uttering such “blasphemy”! 😀
Oh, and the smiles: The Somali ladies all had fantastic smiles, but the guys looked like they ate rocks for breakfast. Eventually I found out it was because families would spring for orthodontic work for the girls if they could afford it, so they’d look attractive; the boys just needed to get good jobs, so their teeth were left crooked unless the parents were really well-heeled.
Thanks for the share! Learn something new every day. Ah, the “good” old days, when we only needed to be decorative, LOL.
Super Mario converted to Islam? This might build some bridges, if only for he and Luigi to leap over them.