Islam Needs a Martin Luther
Let a Muslim Martin Luther step to the front of the line and represent the way of truth, freedom, justice and equality.

Andy Warhol at Abu Ghraib
The War in Iraq is a living historical moment and, yet, many of the images coming from this particular place are diffuse, contextless, agentless, or nonexistent.

Writing and Dancing
Like any other art, calligraphy is not just about mastering a technique, it requires soul: you have to ‘feel’ the words as you write them. You must aspire to reach the truth in the streaming movement of lines that transcend the physical world and arrive at tawheed, Divine Unity. Becoming One with the Word. Your rivers of ink must find their way to the Ocean. A form of worship; a spiritual dance of the qalaam. In pursuit of understanding truth through beauty.

Madonna and the Mullah vs. Madame Rose: On Art, Sex, and Love
Stringent laws and traditions evolved to remedy what the Madonnas and Mullahs of our time have done, albeit in profoundly different ways, in reinforcing what should have long become the archaic notion that the human body is divorced from its mind and soul, and that its physical impulses have a mind of their own independent of its soul that must be set on either a carnal or cardinal course.

Ten More Trees
By Ayman Nabtiti View full drawing (new window) Ayman's drawing was one of the winning entries in the Palestine Children's Welfare Fund's "Why I Love Palestine" contest for children ages 6 through 14 from the Dhesheh, Rafah and Aida...

Ahmed Ahmed: From Helwan to Hollywood
“Look,” he says, “Jews and Muslims have more in common than any religion ever, if you think about it. Both Jews and Muslims don’t eat pork. We don’t celebrate Christmas. We both use ‘ccchhh’ in our pronunciation. And we’re both hairy creatures of God.”

The 99 Names of Allah
As-Sabur. The Patient One By Jawad Ali Hafeez is a painter and a graphic artist who lives in New York. He recently completed a series of 99 paintings depicting the names of Allah. This is his contribution to making...

Not a Leaf Falls...
...not a leaf falls, but He knows it... (Qur'an 6:59)

Rachel Corrie Spotted with Che and Mumia
It came to me as no surprise that a freshly painted Rachel Corrie had joined the ranks of Caesar Chavez and Malcolm X as the young hero of the downtrodden. In this mural she is seen lending her strength and beauty to the struggles of Che Guevara and Mumia Abu Jamal and a host of others.

El Halim, Most Kind
View larger image God will not call you to account for thoughtlessness in your oaths, but for the intention in your hearts, and (S)He is Most Forgiving, Most Kind. (Qur'an 2:225) By Ümit Akdemir, 6/6/03 Ümit Akdemir is an...

Nur
The Waterwheel Stay together, friends. Don't scatter and sleep. Our friendship is made of being awake. (Jelaluddin Rumi) Photo by E. Aton, 5/94 Hagia Sofia (Ayasofya) Interior, Istanbul...