Arif's Quranic Talisman
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| From 2008-10-12 Dubai Beach Volleyball Etc |
I bought a new car recently. The 1983 Mercedes was just having to go to the repair shop far too many times PER MONTH! So I found a 6 month old Altima in the classifieds and purchased it from a guy named Arif.
Arif was a fascinating guy. Very "Dubai". I couldn't seem to place his national identity through his facial features or his accent. When I asked I didn't feel so bad for not figuring it out. His parents are Pakistani. He was born in Tanzania and grew up there for half his life. They later moved to Sweden where he got citizenship and grew up through adolescence. They now live in Dubai and were about to move back to Sweden (I guess it was too much good weather here :). Pakistani, Tanzanian, Swedish, Dubai resident. Very "Dubai".
While I sat next to him as we were waiting to transfer the car registration I noticed this little container on his arm (pictured above). I asked him about it. He said that it contained Quranic verses and was constructed by an Islamic Sheikh from Australia. The family evidently follows the teachings of this Sheikh in particular. When I asked it what function it served he told me that he had recently received it as a wedding gift. It would prevent other family members from getting jealous of your life and possessions (maybe your wife too?) by preventing them from even seeing those things in your life. I guess the thought is that it almost makes them "invisible".
Comments or thoughts on this from readers?
4 comments:
The English word for this object is a talisman.
This act is something that enjoys no support from the Quran or traditions of our Prophet. It is a superstition which is found in the Indian subcontinent.
My guess is that it is an element of hindu culture.
Thanks LDU, you helped me title the post :)
I wonder if its presence reminds him to be more aware of what he has? More humble even?
Hi Genna,
I don't really think that was the idea that he conveyed to me. He really believed the object was magic and had power. Not to do anything in him but to do things for him against others. It wasn't like a "reminder", in other words. It has power because the Quran is the literal word of Allah and so it has power in and of itself.
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