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The visual performative of Senegalese Sufism
| Content Provider | Scilit |
|---|---|
| Copyright Year | 2016 |
| Abstract | The great majority of Senegalese are Muslims, and most follow three Sufi orders-the Tijaniya, Muridiya, and Layennes. The first was introduced from north Africa, and the other two were founded in Senegal itself.1 Each has its specificities of practice and history, but all share a visual performative, the study of which permits one to grasp the dynamic nature of expressive commonalities as well as singularities.2 Understanding such a perspective begins with pictures and how they are beheld according to local epistemology. As we shall see, sacred imagery abounds in Senegal.3 Here we shall consider ways that visual arts-in all their performativity-contribute to ever-developing senses of self and community through creation of pictorial environments. It should be noted that study of any performance implies intersubjectivity-that is, observers are implicated, whether they are audience members or academics like the present authors. Interpretations and opinions must matter, and no explanation can be a last word. Portraits of Senegalese Sufi holy men and women are icons insofar as they possess and provide the presence of such saints-with this the usual translation in French and English of wali Allah, the Arabic term for “companion of God” that is borrowed into Senegalese languages. Such inherence is tangible, and people touch images of saints to receive the blessing energies called baraka that they possess and convey.4 Pictures are also worn on one's person, and their baraka is often embodied through leather-backed photo-amulets sometimes containing scriptural verses or mystical devices. Tactility is only one aspect of the interactions of saints with devotees, however, for sacred images offer a reciprocal gaze and people know that via their portraits, saints are looking, listening, guiding, and protecting.5 Fragrance and images also reinforce each other in significant ways; and music and dance bring important dimensions to visual practices (and vice-versa, of course), especially through mesmerizingly repetitive zikr (dhikr) as chanted recollections of God. The cadence of zikr can be implied as well as intoned, and we shall consider an instance of “visual zikr” in a remarkable imageric environment. Even taste finds its place in exchanges between people and pictures, for Sufis often gather to share cool drinks and delicious meals in rooms graced and empowered by portraits of their saints-or abstain from such fare during the assiduously maintained fasts of Ramadan. In short, the built environments we are about to consider may be primarily pictorial, but they are fully sensorial as well.6 |
| Related Links | https://api.taylorfrancis.com/content/chapters/edit/download?identifierName=doi&identifierValue=10.4324/9781315625935-15&type=chapterpdf |
| Ending Page | 222 |
| Page Count | 34 |
| Starting Page | 189 |
| DOI | 10.4324/9781315625935-15 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited |
| Publisher Date | 2016-07-15 |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Book Name: Practicing Sufism Cultural Studies Built Environments |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Chapter |
