I’ve been thinking about the number three lately. Not unusual if you consider how much three pops-up in our collective psyche: three cheers; red, yellow, green; the Holy Trinity; birth, life, death; three primary colors. Three expresses the tripartite wholeness of our universe. We instinctively recognize it. Three is a group. Less is nothing much really and more than three is excessive or redundant.

I started looking for three in Moroccan design. There is only one pattern I can think of that is clearly triangular. I call it water because it flows. I’m not sure what the formal name of the pattern is. I tried creating it a few times and realized I need a triangle grid, not square, to get the motion right. It makes use of a six-point star; two triangles, Seal of Solomon.

In Sumerian language, numbers were called man, woman, many. In Greek culture, the monad (one) and dyad (two) were considered parents of all other numbers. Like numbers, descriptions for colors also vary across time and from culture to culture. But all cultures have words for at least black, white and red. This limited vocabulary expresses that there is color, absence of color, and then infinite color. Three is the threshold to many. Three introduces infinity and infinite possibility.

There is no number like three. It is the only number of infinite many that is the sum of all numbers that precede it.

The first shape to emerge from the vesica pisces is the triangle. It is the first shape born of space (circles) and nonspace (point). It resolves the duality of two circles and lets surface forms emerge. Triangles are the surface of our universe. The pattern goes on forever. We ourselves are three parts, head, body, limbs. We recognize three within ourselves and within our world. It ties us, mysteriously, to the whole. Somehow, three becomes one.

I wrote an article about the story of two and the archway that is so common in Morocco and how it is formed by the vesica pisces. But two has no harmony. Two is a tension, and expression of polarity, a reflection of opposites. Two is the black and white; the yes-and-no world. There must be a third to resolve the tension of two and create harmony. The archway is nothing without the keystone. Two coming together make three. Like two chemicals introduced to each other, if there is any reaction both are changed and emerge as a third.

I look for three in Moroccan patterns. I mentioned one where it is evident. The other patterns don’t seem to pay the number three specific tribute. But three is in every pattern; the 12-point star, the underlying grids, the surface of our world. Anything that expresses the infinite or the interconnectedness of our universe and our lives makes use of the number three.

In Hay Riad, Rabat, there is a street that has new government buildings, including the wedge-shaped Institute for Amizigh Culture. At the end of this street is a gateway, an arched transition. I cannot read the Arabic mixed with the geometric ornament on the gate’s façade. But I know what the doorway represents. It calls attention to the action of coming and going, one and two, moving between the square (worldly) and circular (perfect).

Arched doorways are all over the place in Morocco. “Moroccans sure like walls.” an American tourist commented as we drove through Fes to tour the Merinid tombs, “They have walls that don’t have anything inside; that don’t surround anything!” His observation is accurate. But where there is a wall there is a doorway, and it is the doorway that matters.

Arched doorways in Morocco and the walls that hold them straight are found in homes, gardens, mosques, and even intersections. The door may guard nothing more than the momentary flow of traffic, but they always draw attention to the transition from interior to exterior, from public to private, or from one to many, such as when a street meets a roundabout.

An understanding of the story of the numbers one and two provides insight into the symbolism of the arched doorway and its use in Morocco and other cultures.

It takes two to create. Male and female; individual and society; point and line; a need left unfulfilled; a passion seeking expression. It takes some form of duality, conflict, or tension to spark-up the energy needed to combat life’s inertia with creation or creation’s attempt. It takes two circles to form the vesica piscis (also called mandorla or almond), which is the geometric construction behind the arched doorway.

Man and Woman

In Darija, the Arabic dialect spoken in Morocco, the word for two is juj, which means pair and husband. That Moroccans use the word juj for two as opposed to the standard Arabic word for two, ithinin, speaks to the ancient roots of Moroccan design traditions. Sumerians, one of the earliest human civilizations and one of the early inventors of language, saw the number two as male. Sumerians didn’t have numbers as we know them, rather language and numbers were the same. They used the terms woman (one), man (two), and many to describe quantity. There is a rationale to this impractical approach to numbers, which was provided later by Greek philosophers.

One

The ancient Greeks called one, the Sumerian woman/mother, the Monad, which represents unity, perfection, and wholeness. The physcial expression of the Monad, written in the sand by ancient geometers, is a dot, which expanded becomes a circle (this is where the design part begins). The circle, using the geometers’ tool the compass or a string attached to a stick anchored in the sand, is the parent of all other shapes, just as one is the parent of all other numbers. But it is a parent that only recreates itself. For when a number is multiplied or divided by one, it remains the same (1x1x1…x1=1). In this way, one is the common denominator of the universe.

Two

For creation to take place, the Monad needs another. But one can only recreate itself. This means that one, physically expressed as a circle, needs another circle. Consequently, creation in the world of geometric design begins with two circles overlapping like a dividing cell, a configuration known as the vesica piscis (Latin for “bladder of the fish”). It is also called mandorla, which means almond in Italian. In Moroccan, the corresponding shape is also called almond, luz, and is used in constructing geometric designs.

The vesica piscis is also a yonic symbol in Indian culture and can be interpreted as an opening womb associated with virgin birth. The vesica piscis is a geometric construct that gives birth to other shapes and numbers.

Within the two overlapping circles of the vesica piscis, there are born two points that connect to form a line. This new line is the physcial expression of the number two, juj, pair, husband. Called Dyad by the ancient Greeks and seen as an element of chaos, two, the line, creates both a boundary and a link. It rests between the one (Monad, perfection, mother) and the many (3, 4, 5…and all those numbers represent), so that it pulls towards perfection and wholeness and also towards multiplicity and the unknown.

Parenthood

The ancient Greeks considered the Monad and Dyad the parents of numbers, not actual numbers themselves, similar to the way the Sumerians saw numbers as man, woman, and many. The Greeks added a reasonable explination to the idea of parent numbers. The physical representations of one and two, the dot and the line, are only one dimensional, mere concepts. As explained by Michael Schneider in his book Beginners Guide to Constructing the Universe

Nobody can hold a true point or line in his hand. Likewise, no one or two points or angles will create any actual form by themselves. But an ongoing interplay beginning with a point and line is all that is required to construct the world’s geometric patterns.

Through the expression of one and two, the woman/mother and man/father, we get a pair juj, but not a new creation. The vesica piscis gives us a visual of a line poking the insides of a delicately opening circle (hint, hint). Ultimately, new creation comes from this pairing, be it a new shape from point and line or new life from woman and man. The archway is a reminder of transitioning from one, wholeness, simplicity, the safety of life behind the womb, to the infinite many that comes with a pairing, juj and the creative urge the pairing of male and female represents. Or, it can be seen as a funnel that takes us from the world of the many back to the world of the One, which is the particular meaning of the arched doorway used on mosques, churches and other sacred buildings. The archway in the above photo funnels two lanes of traffic into one.

Bravo for reading this far! As a reward, the following diagram, which is worth way more than a thousand of my words. The following has been extracted from Schneider’s book, shows how a vesica piscis is used to create an arched doorway. (At least now you have an appreciation for what the vesica piscis represents).

In constructing the doorway, the almond-shape made by the vescia piscis is squared off as it meets the ground. In nubmer symbolism four, which is visualized as a square, represents the earth. So, the structure and shape of the archway is also a meeting of the heavenly, perfect circle, the creative tension of its pairing, and the meeting of the divine creative energy with the square earth.

To learn more about numbers and their role in creation, I highly recommend Schneider’s book, Beginners Guide to Constructing the Universe. It is a dense read, I am only up to the number four, but I find it hard to write about the subject of numbers and their connection to our lives without quoting him directly. It seem he has said everything and said it well. The book changed the way I view math, philosophy, life, doorways to intersections, and walls that surround nothing.

Also, if you enjoy any of the content on this site, please visit a sponsored link or leave a comment to help me justify the time I spend writing. Thanks!

I got an e-mail from an artist who is constructing Islamic patterns and was wondering about the use of a grid. Since there are only three regular tessellations; square, hexagon, and triangle, I think each of those grid types would be useful as a base for constructing complex patterns. I found some free downloadable grid papers online. Scroll down the page and you’ll find triangles, hexagons, and even octagons, all which should be very useful for learning how to construct zillij patterns. Some writers state zillij designs are constructed through circles, but I am confident there are more straight forward grids underlying them. Let me know how it works out for you if you try them.

I haven’t read the following book but hear it is helpful in constructing patterns; Geometric Concepts in Islamic Art by Issam El-Said and Ayse Parman published in 1976. This expensive book is supposed to contain comprehensive instructions on how to use underlying grids to make complex designs.

As for understanding the designs, I just discovered a book that may be indirectly helpful; Language of Ornament by James Trilling, former curator at the Textile Museum in Washington, DC, published in 2001. I haven’t read it yet and don’t plan on doing so any time soon because I have blown my budget on books this month. Plus, it seems to focus more on Asian art, as most museums in DC tend to. So, if you read it, let me know what you think and if it contains any useful information on Moroccan design. I suggest it because Moroccan design is an ornamental language.

I will be on vacation for the rest of the month. I am going to Arizona with the intention of seeing a vibrant night sky in the desert. I wanted to go to Kitt Peak National Observatory. However, they booked their night tours months ago. So, I will be in Tuscon with my lovely hubby anyway. I plan on driving off into the desert and look at the sky with my naked eye. We will listen to Flamenco guitar and look at big skies. I very much enjoy big skies. Ahh…back to the true origins of design. I hope the moon doesn’t get in the way of the darkness.

I have found myself neck deep in Pythagorean theory, which is interesting since Pythagoras didn’t write anything. I got here by researching the origins of zillij. I’m researching connections between astronomy, Pythagoras, Sufism, and Islamic ornamentation.

What do Free Masons and Moroccan artisans have in common? Pythagoras. While the artisan might not be conscious of the connection, the Free Masons refer are much more aware of the historical roots of sacred geometry. At least, that is what I hear. Free masons must be men.

Links below will tell you more about Pythagoras, where he was born, and what is known about his beliefs. He didn’t document his ideas and his followers were sworn to secrecy, so its hard to know what is known. But, he had a clear influence on Plato, Aristotle, and Islamic artisans.

Pythagoras

• Pythagoras Biography
• Pythagoras, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
• Pythagoras and Music of the Spheres, unit from a course in Geometry in Art and Architecture at Dartmouth
• The Neoplatonist Roots of Sufi Philosophy, comparative philosophy research paper by Kamuran Godelek at Boston University
• Pythagograms
• Pythagorean & Fractal Geometric Art

Gnomon

• 
  The Gnomon, The Labyrinth & The Celestial Tree of Life Presentation by Vincent Bridges at the Subtle Technologies Conference, April 19th 1998, Toronto, Canada.

Astronomy

• Brief History of Astronomy, University of California, San Diego, Center for Astrophysics & Space Sciences

Arabic Numerals

• Arabic Modal Theory
• History of Arabic Numerals
• Arabic Numerals and Trigonometry

Sufism

• Universal Principals of Islamic Art
• Sufisim and Hinduism
• University of Georgia – Sufism and Sufi Orders
• Ibn Arabi’s Conception of Archetypes
• Sufism Journal
• What is Sufism
• Sufism Overview

Note: The painting is by Marion Drennen and is on a board that has Golden Section Dimensions and the space is broken up into the Golden Section Proportions. Visit Marrion’s website Marion Drennen’s Quantum Connections to learn about and see more her wonderful artwork.

The more I research, the more I am amazed the way Arabic/Islamic contributions to Western intellectual development have been erased from common history. It is bizarre.

Its great that I can basically give myself an ivy league education for free online, but I think I may go broke doing it. Want to click on an ad for me? I’m making about .18 cents a day. Ah, it doesn’t matter. I’m on my way now.

If you have a useful resource to add to this dense subject, please leave a comment. Thanks.

Driving through the Washington, DC, suburbs, it’s easy to feel the wonder has been stripped from the world. Gas is 3.699 per gallon. A bright red sign in shop windows advertises 50% off spring merchandise. People on the side of the street hold signs reading “Closeout: Leather Living Furniture. Everything Must Go!” or “Vietnam Veteran. Homeless. Please Help. God Bless.” Talk radio transmits news and events in far off places. I sit passively behind the wheel of my car, surrounded by steel.

It is easy to forget that shapes have simple, integrated language. The beautiful geometry expressed by nature, which illustrates unified design, is too often clouded by shapes and messages of our design, born of disconnected purposes. Snowflakes, brilliantly designed beehives, ocean waves, and artful splatters of raindrops are obscured by our own overlapping, disconnected creations. Pavement, marginalized sidewalks, haphazard buildings swallowed by parking lots scar the suburban landscape.

I once had a job that required me to work in an office building that was located in a Chili’s restaurant parking lot. The outside of the building was made of neatly formed squares. The interior was cut into rooms of varying shape and no apparent order. A small wall covered half my office window. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit how much of a negative impact this had on my feelings towards my job. The poor design of the building seemed symbolic of the organizational difficulties that plagued management. I left after six months.

Today, at least in the suburbs, we are surrounded by examples of thoughtless design. Constrasting ideas compete for our attention. But, language, mathematics, and design once formed an integrated method for communicating the underlying unified order of creation. Mathematics was much more than a way to measure quantities. Geometrical constructions, including language and architecture, were used to inspire creative processes and reflect the order of the universe. In fact, the word universe means “one turn” in Latin, reflecting the one turn of the compass required to make a circle, the symbol of the cosmos.

Before we had words and numbers, we used basic shapes for expression. In around 8000 BC people began to use tokens, such as a cone or sphere, to communicate quantities of grain or oil. The number and shape of the tokens indicated the quantity of the represented object. Five was not yet a concept separate from the existence of five specific objects. Gradually, the design of the tokens became more complex, but they began as simple shapes.

For philosophical mathematicians and ancient civilizations there was an intimate link between language, mathematics, and design. The ancient Greek Pythagoras who lived around 500 BC founded a religious philosophy that centered on mathematics as the ultimate reality. Observing the patterns of life around him, he searched for the commonality in all existence and found it in number. He was the first person to call himself a philosopher, lover of wisdom, and had a great influence on the philosophers who followed him, such as Plato. “Both Pythagoras and Plato suggested all citizens learn the properties of the first ten numbers as a form of moral instruction.”

Parthenon, temple of Athena

Numbers, language, and design represented a unified view of the cosmos. “Archetypes of numbers and shape were personified…as various gods, goddesses, and world-builders. Temples were designed according to geometric proportions of the represented deity.” By associating specific numbers with corresponding letters, words resulted in sums that matched the associated meaning of the word and number. For example, seven was known as the “virgin” because no number below seven divides into. Consequently, seven doesn’t “reproduce” any other number below 10 in the way eight, for example, reproduces four or six reproduces three. “Through gematria, the Greek letters of the name of the maiden goddess Athena add up to seventy-seven.” Careful design principals applicable to her name and value were applied in constructing her temple, the Parthenon.

Rockville Pike sky photo snatched from Flickr

Driving through the suburbs of DC, I see little to reflect a unity. Through my windshield, I see design that stampedes life. Marginalized sidewalks, congested streets, haphazard buildings with walk-ways impeded by parking lots. As one of the most developed nations on Earth, I wonder why, in this affluent suburb, I can find nearly any product available to mankind, yet shapes and constructions seem random, based on budget and compromise rather than beauty, expression, and faith. Driving down Rockville Pike, my eyes find little by way of geometric beauty, at least, without hard effort on the part of my mind.

How much more beautiful our society would be if we could use thoughts, messages, and numbers, to inspire instead applying them only to isolated purposes?

Modern building in Marrakesh, Morocco

In this age of information overload, I am making a call to remember the art of geometry. Geometry requires no measurement. It is ruled by proportion. It can offer us peace of mind instead of painfully disconnected specificity. We must return to our roots and remember that the world is a wonderful, orderly, interconnected place.

We could buy the bold geometry that has made its way into fashion. Cheap options are now available at Old Navy via their 2008 spring collection. Or, we could pull out a compass and find our center. Both are easy to do.

As my hairdresser said, “Life is short. Live pretty.”

All quotes are taken from the brilliant book, Beginners Guide to Constructing the Universe.

To read more about the use of tokens and the origins of mathematics, read Tokens: The Origins of Mathematics published online by Duncan J. Melville at the St. Lawrence University, NY.

Picture of Sumerian tokens from around 3000 BC taken from the Schoyen Collection website.

The shape that most clearly represents Morocco in my mind’s eye is the eight-point star. It is a simple shape made by overlapping two squares. The hard-edged lines make it indicative of Moroccan patterns, which are known for their use of straight lines in contrast to the curvilinear arabesque of the Middle East. It has a feel that is both modern and ancient. What is the meaning behind this particular shape and what does it represent? (Note: this article was revised on March 24, 2008)

Universal Symbolism

In truth, the eight-point star is not unique to Morocco. It appears in cultures around the globe. It can be found on national flags and in religious iconography. It carries various meaning associated with each culture that utilizes it. Eight is an important number in terms of realizing balance, and although it isn’t always illustrated by a star, it appears in the eight-paths in the way of Buddah and eight immortals in Chinesse tradition. Its universal symbolism is one of balance, harmony, and cosmic order. Its pattern is associated early astronomy, religion, and mysticism. It is symbolic of both stars and humanity’s earliest attempts to understand and communicate the order and unity inherent in Creation, nature’s rule.

Astrological Origins

The roots of the eight-point star symbol are in early astronomy. The eight lines are symbolic of the four corners of space (north, south, east, and west) and time (two solstices and two equinoxes). ¹

Above diagram taken from Resonateview.org

Use in Islam

By the middle-ages, the eight-point star is widely used as a symbol in Islamic art. It is called khatim or khatim sulayman, seal of the prophets, as in signet ring.^{see #1} The phrase “seal of the prophets” is also used in the Koran and has particular ideological meaning for Muslims. Moroccan zillij artisans also refer to the eight-point star as sibniyyah, sabniyyah, which is a derivative of the number seven sab’ah.

The design of the Muslim khatam was likely inspired by Jewish version, which is the Seal of Solomon. The seal of Solomon is a six point star formed by overlapping two triangles. According to the brilliant book, Beginners Guide to Constructing the Universe” Muslim legend recounts Solomon using the star to capture djinns, genies, the immaterial counterparts to humans.³

Ancient use of Eight-point Star Symbol

The eight-point star was used as a symbol long before the rise of Islam.

An Italian nobleman named Pietro della Valle discovered the use of an eight-point star as a seal in the ruins of the ancient city of Ur (~2000BC), Tell al Muqayyar, in the mid-seventeenth century. He wrote “I found on the ground some pieces of black Marble…which seem to be a kind of Seal like what the Orientals use at this day: for their Seals are only letters or written words…Amongst the other letters I discovered in a short time was…a star of eight points…” ²

Abraham, the shared prophet of the monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) lived in the Sumerian city of Ur. Excavations from Ur reveal early use of the eight point star, often in the form of an eight petal rosette used in jewelry or metalwork decoratation. ^{see #2}

The Sumerians used an arrangement of lines as a symbol for both star and God. The linear eight-point star represented the goddess Inanna, Sumerian queen of the heavens and Ishtar (Astarte), the Babylonian goddess known as “The Lightbringer.” An eight-point star enclosed within a circle was the symbol for the sun god. The “Babylonian star-cult is the core and the archetype of subsequent astrology.” ³

For centuries, the Greeks believed that the morning and evening star we different entities. The Greeks recognized Venus as the morning and evening star is 400 BC, 1,500 years after Sumerians.⁴

Religous Integration of Symbol

How does the pagan symbol for God/star transform itself into an Islamic symbol? What could the connection be between the Islamic use of the eight-point star and its uses as a symbol in Sumerian culture?

I mention the Sumerian history to show the earliest origins of the eight-point star as a reflection of astronomical observations from one of the world’s oldest civilizations. Sumer is located in an era of the world where several civilizations, such as Babylonian, Arkadian (Semetic), Elam (proto Indo-Iranian), Egyptian, and Greek expanded and retracted. It doesn’t require much imagination to imagine how these symbol migrated to other cultures and eventually made its way into Islam. Why the eight point symbol endured instead of a six point star or some other shape is the real story, I suppose.

Additionally, all the monotheistic religions accommodate astrology in some way through fact that the stars are part of the Creation. Islam inherited pagan symbols along the same lines as other monotheistic religions, which share the same history and origins. ^{see #3} Muslims accommodated ancient symbols inasmuch as they supported the Islamic view of Creation.

Moreover, astronomy plays an important role in Islam in both its expansion, obligations (pilgrimage), and daily act of worship (five times of daily prayer done directed towards Mecca). Astrology had an impact on Muslim scholars as well. As inheritors of ancient texts and avid supporters of scholarly study, Islamic scholars poured over Greek learning, which included meanings attached to the movement and position of the stars. Pythagoras, who is credited as being the first person to call himself a philosopher (lover of wisdom), is of particular important to Muslim scholars. Pythagoras developed a system of belief that centered around mathematics. Pythagoras identified the planets as being spheres rotating around a central fire. Pythagoras also influenced Plato and Aristotle and the philosophies that followed.

The following picture, taken from www.discoverislamicart.org is of an astrolobe in the Batha Museum in Fez. “This astrolabe includes all of the component parts of the planispheric astrolabes that were indispensable to ancient astronomers for determining prayer times and the height of the stars, and for establishing horoscopes. It is one of the first portable astrolabes in the West.”

Use in Ornamentaion and Pattern Building

Further symbolism of the eight-point star can be discovered by examining its role in Islamic ornamentation and pattern building. The khatam is at the heart of many Islamic ornamental patterns.

Ornamentation is particularly important in Islam. Islam discourages representational art in an effort to avoid the temptation of idol worship that arises with created mimics of Creation. Therefore, Islamic art grew from the study of geometry and the practice of ornamental decoration, as well as the sciences, literature, and development of architecture. The idea in Islamic faith is to seek to understand Creation, not to worship it, but to honor the Creator through the application of understanding. “Praise God the creator who has bestowed upon Man the power to discover the significance of numbers” the Prophet Mohammad is quoted as saying. ^{see #1}

Furthermore, the mental disciplined, study, and restraint required for constructing complex, precise, geometric patterns support the Islamic belief that humans are the greatest of God’s creation.

The following photo shows detail of a zillij pattern used to decorate a wall in the media of Fes. The pattern contains multiple uses of the eight-point star, both as a center point and an encompassing shape of the pattern.

More complex patterns can be developed using the khatam or its variant as a centerpiece. The following diagram shows how a pattern that employs a symmetry of eight is built around a central khatam using a grid of four circles around a central circle.

The following picture shows a fountain in Fes that is decorated with various patterns based around a central khatam that radiates outwards into various star formations.

Mytical Signifigance

The Sufi mystic Ibn al-Arabi drew a diagram similar to the one used to develop a pattern around a khatam (see above). However, Al-Arabi’s diagram’s diagram is concerned with spirituality, not ornamentation. He drew it as part of his explanation that “all phenomena are nothing but manifestations of Being, which is one with God.” ⁶ Conincidentally, Al-Arabi was born in Spain at around the same time the practice of zillij, mosaic design, was starting to flourish. As Sufism had particular appeal to North Africa, his spirtual use of the pattern may explain the prolific use of the eight-point star and and symetries of eight in Moroccan Islamic patterns.

The number eight was important among Sufi mystics. “The octagon, with a ninth point in the center, is also central to the mystical symbology of Sufism. It is the seal or design which Ernest Scott says ‘reaches for the innermost secrets of man’. Meaning wholeness, power and perfection, this primary geometrical symbol is one which Sufis associate with Shambhala …” ⁷

On his website of natural patterns, Ian Alexander refers to the eight-point star as both the Sufi star and the Moroccan star. He offers the following explanation, as quoted from Friday mosque in Iran “Form is symbolised by the square. Expansion is symbolised by the square with triangles pointing outwards (an 8-pointed star). Contraction is symbolised by the square with triangles pointing inwards (a 4-pointed star). The two star-shapes together symbolise the cycle of creation, ‘the breath of the compassionate.’”

Breath of the Compassionate

The following pattern is created by repeating the khatam. The cross-like four-point star mentioned above appears in the negative space. This pattern is called the Breath of the Compassionate. Of the ninety-nine knowable names of God in Islamic tradition, the Compassionate is the highest pronounceable name. “Through the polar cycle of the divine breath the universe is periodically created, maintained, dissolved, and renewed…More than just an ornamental motif, the Breath of the Compassionate is a cosmological model symbolizing the interplay of polarities that manifest form.” ^{See #4} Given the Muslim belief in both humans and jinns and the squares association with material worlds, it is no wonder that the Breath of the Compassionate and the Seal of the Prophet in the Muslim context would also represent a balancing act between the two.

For more information on Islamic art in the Sufi tradition, I highly recommend reading Sufi: Expressions of the Mystic Quest (Art and Imagination) by Laleh Bakhtiar. The book provides several insights into spirituality and Islamic artisanal traditions that I hope to write about in the future. Also, I wrote an article on another blog about Sufism that may be of interest.

Keith Critchlow has extensively studied Islamic patterns and states the four-fold archetype “has a deep and profound relationship to the Moroccan genius, particularly as it relates to the crossroads of Africa and the migration of symbols from the south. Critchlow describes the Moroccan patterns language similar to late King Hassan II’s often quoted description of Morocco: “…drawn from the depths of Africa but transmuted in the light of Islam, memorized and learnt by heart and transmitted from generation to generation for the love of beauty.” ^{see #1}

Conclusion

The eight-point star as a symbol marks early human understanding of the intellegent order that underlies our universe. Today, it carries religous and mystical associations. Known as the khatam in Islamic cultures, it and its variants are found at the center of stunning zillij masterpieces throughout Morocco. Amidst the color and compostion, the khatam stands as a symbol of early astronomy, interconnectedness, and faith in the ultimate harmony of Creation. In this way, the khatam represents the highest virtues in Moroccan culture: learning, community, faith, and love of beauty.

Sources:

1. Zillij: The Art of Moroccan Ceramics
2. Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur
3. Beginners Guide to Constructing the Universe
4. Islamic Patterns: An Analytical and Cosmological Approach
5. Astrology: Between Religion and the Empirical
6. symbols.com
7. The World of Islam: Faith, People, Culture
8. Shambala as quoted on the Web at www.songsouponsea.com/Promenade/Monte.html

Do you know more about the eight-pointed star? Please leave a comment.