Muslims ban depiction of prophet out of respect for him

The widespread prohibition in the Islamic world aganst depicting the Prophet Mohammed springs from a worry that even well-intentioned images could lead to idolatry or show disrespect for a figure Islam considers the model of human perfection.

Still, Islam’s holy book does not outright forbid such depiction, most clerics agree. Instead, the unwillingness to show his image stems from sayings of the Prophet and custom that has grown up over centuries, reaching the status of Sharia law in many Muslims’ minds.

The deep feelings many Muslims feel over Mohammed are part of the reason of the outrage sparked by caricatures satirising the prophet published in European papers.

“Out of respect for the prophet, we don’t want him shown in a manner that doesn’t befit him,” said Amin al-Kerdy, head of Islamic Affairs at Dar al-Fatwa, Lebanon’s highest Sunni Muslim religious authority.

“We believe he was perfect in looks and morals, so we need to preserve that perfection.”

No one knows what Mohammed looked like, so any image is likely to be wrong, “leaving in people’s minds a certain impression of the prophet that’s not accurate,” he said.

Omar al-Bastawisi, a scholar at Egypt’s Al-Azhar University, the oldest and most important seat of Sunni Muslim learning in the world, said even a respectful drawing could be marred in some way.

“It could be stepped on or dirtied, and that would not be right,” he said. “There are numerous verses in the Koran saying the Prophet Mohammed and other prophets hold a place of special esteem.”

The prohibition even extends to many of the 7th century companions of Mohammed, known as the Sahaba.

Egyptian television, for example, produces many historical TV series showing the early years of Islam – but never shows Mohammed or the Sahaba.

There are exceptions.

Some clerics and scholars, most of them Shiites, say Mohammed could be depicted if the artist’s intentions are sincere and the drawings follow the general descriptions of the prophet in religious books.

Among Shiites in Iran and Iraq, images of Ali and Hussein, the sect’s most revered saints, have been reproduced on keychains, rugs and posters hung in living rooms or pasted on car windows.

Although rare, some devout Muslims in, for instance, Iran’s provincial towns and villages, even carry photos said to be of the prophet.

“My own father, who is a Shiite Ayatollah, used to keep a portrait of the prophet on his desk,” said Mehdi Khalaji, a visiting fellow at The Washington Institute.

“Legally, Shiites don’t see anything against the depiction of the prophet if the picture is honourable and based on historical books that describe him,” Fawzi al-Saif, a Shiite cleric from the Saudi town of Qatif, told The Associated Press.

“However, there’s a difference between respectful drawings and those aimed at degrading people, such as the ones that appeared in the (Danish) newspaper and which constitute an aggression against the feelings of Muslims worldwide,” he added.

The issue of the prophet’s depiction came into focus following the publication of 12 caricatures of Mohammed in Denmark’s Jyllands-Posten in September. They were recently reprinted in European media and elsewhere in what the newspapers say is a statement of free speech.

Some of the pictures satirised Mohammed as violent – particularly one that showed him wearing a turban shaped as a bomb with a burning fuse.

Many Muslims will say the ban is part of Sharia law. The Koran does not mention anything about depicting the prophet, though its verses set idolatry as one of the worst sins in Islam and enjoin the faithful to respect Mohammed.

The holy book is not the only source of Sharia. The hadith – sayings and behaviour of the prophet – as well as other traditions have a role as well.

While no hadith directly bans depicting Mohammed, there are several that frown on depictions of any living creature, animal or human, on the grounds that it could lead to idolatry and that it presumes man has the same creative power as God.

In one hadith, Mohammed cursed a picture of Ibrahim and Ismail – the biblical Abraham and Ishmael, who are considered prophets in Islam – because he considered it inaccurate.

He said that on Judgement Day anyone who produced a picture will be asked to breathe life into it and when he fails, he will be punished by God.

In another, Mohammed’s wife Aisha gave him a pillow to relax on, but the prophet recoiled in horror when he saw it was decorated with pictures of animals. “Don’t you know that angels do not enter a house wherein there are pictures,” he told Aisha.

As a result, Islamic art has historically largely focused on calligraphy and graphic design – though in the modern age, pictures, photos and cartoons are everywhere without complaint.

Hasan al-Malki, a Saudi Sunni researcher who specialises in Islamic affairs, said those hadith have been misinterpreted as a ban on pictures.

He said what’s meant by the word picture in the hadith is really the statues that pre-Islamic societies worshipped.

“Those who ban the depiction confuse feelings with legalities,” he said.

“Legally, I can say there’s nothing against it. But on a personal level, I don’t want anyone to portray the prophet or any of the other prophets.”