Islam today is the most misunderstood and controversial religion. In this series Akbar Ahmed, the leading Islamic scholar in the world, takes us on a journey to the beauty and sophistication of Islamic art and architecture.

In three stunning programs we see the glories of the great historical cites of Istanbul, Damascus and Cairo.

Program 1

The first program in the series looks at the achievements of the first Islamic dynasty, the Umayyads, who established their capital at Damascus.

This program does not just deal with mosque or religious architecture. At Jericho we see the remains of one of the Arab conquerors’ luxurious desert palaces, with its famous gazelle mosaic that has become an icon of Islamic visual art.  From the Ayyubid period we see the mighty citadel of Aleppo, only conquered by Tamerlane himself.

 

Program 2

This introduces a main theme of the program – how Islam, for centuries, has held a special respect for knowledge and learning – “ilm” in Arabic. Professor Ahmed argues that it was when this respect for learning was weakened, so was the force of the whole religion.  He finds cause for optimism in the huge modern library built at Alexandria, on the site of the old Hellenic library. It is a magnificent building where the most sophisticated computer data-banks go sit near precious manuscripts of medieval poets.

Cairo the subject of program 2 was also a centre for glassware and ceramics. The city’s influence spread throughout – even modern Sicily displays evidence of the time when the Fatimids ruled the island.

 

Program 3

The final program of the three deals with the last great Islamic dynasty, the Ottomans, and their great capital at Istanbul.

The Ottomans continued the theme of borrowing from, or adapting, the work of their Byzantine predecessors. The two dominating buildings of historic Istanbul are the Blue Mosque and Haghia Sophia. The latter is a converted Christian cathedral, still containing the images of Jesus and Mary alongside the motifs of the early caliphs.

This episode also looks at calligraphy, the peculiarly Islamic art-form which grew out of the careful copying of the word of God.

Akbar Ahmed also considers Sufism, a warm and attractive branch of Islam which focuses on meditation, inner strength and religious passion. There is something of a revival of Sufism in Turkey; in Istanbul the dances of the whirling dervishes often first bring this gentle and thoughtful movement to the tourist’s attention.

The influence of Sufism can be found too in modern Turkish painting: some of today’s artists are trying to reconcile traditional religious themes with difficult concepts such as homo-eroticism.

Akbar Ahmed is the author of numerous books on Islam and associated topics, he is Ibn Khaldun Professor of Islamic Studies at the American University, Washington DC.  Akbar Ahmed was the Pakistani High Commissioner in London and has taught at Cambridge and Princeton Universities. 

He has been in the forefront of efforts to reconcile the adherents of different religious faith, working with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Chief Rabbi of the UK and working especially with the father of Daniel Pearl, the American journalist murdered in Pakistan.  He has just finished a major research project and book for the Brookings Institution.

Akbar Ahmed is a regular contributor to the BBC and to American stations including Fox, CNN, CBS and NBC.

 

Presented by Akbar Ahmed the leading Islamic scholar in the world.  The author of numerous books on Islam and associated topics, he is Ibn Khaldun Professor of Islamic Studies at the American University, Washington DC.  Akbar Ahmed was the Pakistani High Commissioner in London and has taught at Cambridge and Princeton Universities. 

Lighting Cameramen
Frank Hodge
Mumtaz Al-Baloua

Picture Editor
Chris Roots

Producer
Howard Anderson

Director
Roger Thomas