Muslim Footprints

Our first episode features David Damrosch, Ernest Bernbaum Professor of Comparative Literature at Harvard University and Director of Harvard’s Institute for World Literature. The episode focuses on his work, “Around the World in 80 books”.

Entitled Tales from Muslim Lands, Professor Damrosch takes us through examples of key works from three regions - the Middle East, where he gives examples of Stories Within Stories; Palestine/Israel, which he unites under the theme Strangers in a Strange Land, and Persia, where he takes us from Tehran to Shiraz - showing both the diversity of Muslim narratives and emphasising the interconnectedness of stories across cultures. 

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For our final episode of this season we are delighted to welcome Professor Soulaymane Bachir Diagne, who teaches at Columbia University, and is one of the world's most distinguished philosophers.

Professor Diagne guides us through his autobiography, "Le Fagot de Ma Memoire." Le fagot is a bundle of twigs. In Francophone Africa it refers to the wood that’s used to make a fire. Here, Professor Diagne has collected the twigs of his memory, interweaving the story of his professional trajectory, and the Muslim beliefs and motivations that have guided him.

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Our latest episode tells the story of how Islam arrived in America, possibly as early as the 1400s on ships from Europe and West Africa. 

We have two guests on this episode. One is Sylviane Diouf, a visiting scholar at the Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice at Brown University. She has written of the role that Islam played in the lives of African Muslims enslaved in the Americas. Our other guest is Dr Hussein Rashid, assistant dean for Religion and Public Life at Harvard Divinity School, whose research focuses on Muslims and US popular culture.

Muslims governed for almost a thousand years in the Iberian Peninsula, with Arabo-Islamic culture leading the way in science and art, philosophy and theology. It’s a period known for its cosmopolitanism – where Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived and worked together in peaceful coexistence.

The history of al-Andalus is not one of foreign occupation. It is not an anomaly, nor is it an exception. It represents, rather, an integral part of the historical process that created not only modern Spain and Portugal but modern Europe too.

Brian Catlos, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder, authored the book Kingdoms of Faith, which tells the story of Muslim Spain. He joins us on this episode for a whirlwind journey through al-Andalus.

Ismailis from South Asia find their origins in Gujarat, Sindh and Punjab. Their ancestors belonged to various castes such as the Lohana and Bhatia communities, who found themselves drawn to the teachings of Muslim saints, known as pirs or sayyids.

According to community tradition, Ismaili pirs were sent from Persia by the Imams – or spiritual leaders – to spread knowledge of who the Ismaili Imams are, and the notion of the Imam as the guide to spiritual enlightenment.  The pirs did this through ginans, one thousand or more religious hymns that are assumed to date as far back as the thirteenth century. The people that accepted these teachings came to be known as Satpanthis: those who followed Satpanth, or the True Path.

On this episode, Ali Asani, professor of Indo-Muslim and Islamic Religion and Cultures at Harvard University, speaks to us about ginans, and the fascinating evolution of this particular Ismaili tradition over the past 800 years.

The early suras of the Qur’an are the short, hymnic passages associated with the first revelations to the Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him and his progeny). They reveal many of the central values of Islam: generosity, kindness, prayer, and good deeds – in other words, a vision of a just and meaningful life. They also often refer to nature - the moon, sun, and stars; the sky and sea; night and day – highlighting the inextricable link between people and the environment.

Michael Sells, a renowned expert on the Qur’an, joins us for this episode of Muslim Footprints to discuss what he describes as “some of the most powerful prophetic and revelatory passages in religious history.” Dr Sells is the John Barrows Professor of Islamic History and Literature at the University of Chicago. He has studied and taught in the areas of Qur’anic studies; Sufism; Arabic and Islamic love poetry; and mystical literature.

Welcome to a bonus episode of Muslim Footprints!

This week, we’re reflecting back on the stories we’ve covered so far in our journey, and sharing additional insights from our guests. From the founders of the faith to empire builders, from Islam’s spiritual underpinnings to its enduring contributions to culture, we've covered a lot of ground - let's dive in and hear more!

As always, thanks for listening and sharing.

Muslims governed Sicily for about 200 years starting around 830 CE. A thousand years later, the influence of Muslim civilization remains. You can find it in the language, in local place names, and even in its cakes and sweets!

If you visit Sicily you also still see Muslim influence in its built environment – churches with domes and Arabic inscriptions, irrigation systems still in operation. And of course, Palermo itself, which recalls the urban design of North Africa’s historic cities.

The influence of Islam may extend beyond these tangible items - to culture as we understand it today. In this episode we hear from Bill Granara, research professor of Arabic at Harvard University, who talks about the Sicilian poet Ibn Hamdis, among the island’s most famous Muslims. We are also joined by Nicola Carpentieri, Professor of Arabic at the University of Padua, who researches Muslim Sicily - including the link between its Arabic poetry and European culture at large.

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