nazareth college just organized a wonderful conference on “sacred texts and human contexts: nature and environment in world religions.” i was able to attend one session and was fascinated by munjed murad’s lecture on “the cosmos is a tree – quranic commentary on the symbolism of the tree” which was based on “shajarat al-kawn” a 13th century treatise attributed (by most) to ibn al-arabi.
he started off by explaining how “ayah” is used to mean quranic verse. the literal translation of the word ayah is sign, evidence or symbol. interestingly enough, natural phenomena are also described as ayat (plural of ayah) meaning that nature, according to the quran, is also a revelation. nature is in constant dialogue with written scriptures.
shajarat al-kawn explains this conversation through the genesis of the tree. the cosmos is a multifaceted combination of everything seen and unseen, of both heaven and hell. it comes from the greek word for order and arrangement, for everything being in its proper place, hence the perfect imagery of the tree. verse (14:24) from surat ibrahim (abraham):
“seest thou not how allah coineth a similitude: a goodly saying, as a goodly tree, its root set firm, its branches reaching into heaven”
a good word is like a strong tree. the multiplicity of its seed manifests itself in the diversity of the tree. munjed didn’t have time to go into details but he mentioned how the word “kun” is the equivalent of “be” in the quran and how the treatise elaborates on what the kaaf stands for and what the noon stands for (in the word kun) and how they encompass the multiplicity and oneness of reality (how trees in heaven and hell are interconnected, how cool and warm breezes blend together).
the tree’s lower branches denote material concerns but its higher branches, reaching towards heaven, stand for spirituality. there is a right bough and a left bough but then there is an upright bough extending towards the sky. it represents communion with god, beyond right or wrong.
the sap of the tree is like the blood of a human being – unseen, yet the source of all life.
ibn al-arabi believed that our reason for existence is to come to know god: “i was a treasure, unknown, and i wanted to be known. i thus created the creatures, in order that they know Me.”
the knowledge of god is what makes us perfect or insaan ul kamil. this perfection is expressed in the tree’s leaves, flowers and fruit.
at the end of the lecture munjed urged us to see trees as more than firewood or paper products. they represent the multiplicity of the world within their singularity. they are a poetic theophany, a manifestation of god.
munjed murad is a thd student at the harvard divinity school and a junior fellow of the center for the study of world religions. he explores the concept of theophany in the natural world as explained by the islamic metaphysical traditions.
