As somewhat of a romanticist, I believe we all seek beauty from the moment we open our eyes. From the radiant warmth of my mother’s embrace as an infant to the wondrous gazing up at the moon through the window of my childhood bedroom, I recall my entire being in constant gravitation towards the beauty of my own little corner of the world. Now in my early adulthood, I grow more enchanted by the beauty of familiar faces in unfamiliar spaces. I find myself entranced in the beauty of my grandfather’s backyard, as he lovingly feeds flocks of neighbourhood Cockatoos with Lebanese bread and honey.
I find all these disconnected wonders in life to be interlinked. Personally, I observe such beauties with a prayer whispered almost habitually: SubhanAllah. This unconscious act of praising the glory of the seemingly mundane draws me deeper into my faith. Through a personal journey of connecting with my Islamic roots, I came to realise seeking this beauty is a divine, spiritual act of faith in itself.
The concept of seeking beauty in Allah and His creation is known as Al-Ihsan, loosely translating to “excellence”. It was described by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as the pinnacle of Islam in a fascinating reccount (Hadith 2, 40 Hadith an-Nawawi). Unknowingly speaking to Angel Gabriel (who was disguised in human form), the Prophet said Ihsan is to “serve Allah as though you could see Him”, and strive for excellence in all that you do — whether in a deep-focused prayer, or devoting oneself to doing good with tenderness and earnesty. Ihsan is to seek the best in our surroundings and to emulate goodness into our own lives and unto others.
However, I came to learn Ihsan also means “the act of seeking beauty” in a conversation I had with my father not so long ago. He reminded me why Muslims grow into the habit of praising our surroundings with accustomed phrases such as MashAllah, Allahu Akbar, and SubhanAllah — because the act of admiring the beauty of Allah’s creation is an act of worship in itself. The very act of acknowledging the wonders of life is an inner-manifestation of faith I was unconscious to.
I find myself most in tune with my beliefs by exploring the art and history of my predecessors. Many centuries ago, Ihsan was the foundation of the Islamic Golden Age, igniting the passion of Muslims in past civilisations to integrate their faith into all forms of creativity: Islamic architecture, scientific and arithmetic discoveries, literature, and even cuisine. I encountered this in the warmth of the Mediterranean sun, with my elbows sunken into the fine sand as I immersed myself in one of Rumi’s poetry books. Despite being grotesquely misunderstood in Western art culture, Rumi did not write his love poems to a mortal lover. In fact, Rumi was a poet mused by his faith and wrote about the beauty of God. He made the grandest proclamation of devotion one can ever make: a sheer devotion to Allah in the praise and admiration of His grandeur. The epitome of faith: Ihsan.
With my predecessors setting the greatest example, I have grown to channel the act of Ihsan by consciously seeking the beauty in the little and large fragments of my day. I have started to slow my pace as I walk underneath far-reaching branches and blossoms of the jacaranda trees. I admire the beauty of blossoming friendships as classmates lounge in the sun of the Quadrangle. I watch the way my father never fails to bring my mum her morning cup of coffee, and the way my mother always irons my father’s shirt for work. The way my parents pray for each other’s health and happiness, and teach us kids to always remember to say “Alhamdulillah” in the good and bad times. It is in the everyday interactions and environments that I have come to reconcile with practising my faith. By being more conscious of seeking beauty in Allah’s Creation, I strengthen my connection with Islam. Because it is in this deep sense of inner-faith that I find encouragement to seek excellence in the special moments in my own little corner of the world. SubhanAllah.
