Olives and Olive Oil in Monotheistic Religions - Islamic Faith
29-11-2024
17:25
Dome of Hagia Sophia Mosque; Part of the 35th verse of the Nur Surah, Calligrapher Kazasker Mustafa İzzet Efendi (1801-1876, ney player, composer, inventor of the "Tarz-ı Cedid" makam)
The Arabian Peninsula, where the Islamic faith emerged, was probably adjacent to the Middle East and the Red Sea regions of East Africa, where olive cultivation was not very common at that time, but had been practiced for centuries. At that time in history, the Islamic faith emerged from a people who had transformed from a nomadic Bedouin lifestyle to a settled lifestyle relatively recently compared to these two neighboring regions. In the city of Medina to the north of Mecca and the lands of Yemen to the south, there were a considerable number of Jewish people who were neighbors of the people, whose holy book, the Torah, repeatedly mentioned olives and olive oil. When compared to the other two holy books that emerged before it, it will be understood that there are very few statements in the Quran related to olive and olive oil culture. The reason for this is probably the fact that the Islamic faith emerged from semi-nomadic Bedouin people who were relatively foreign to the culture of olive cultivation.
In the Islamic period of the history of the monotheistic belief originating from the Middle East, the sanctity of olives and olive oil in the consciousness of the people of the region began to disappear, but it can be said that their value as a created blessing continues. The reason for this is probably that it is possible to obtain enough olives compared to the past, olives and especially olive oil are no longer a commodity that is very scarce and difficult to obtain.
When the six surahs in the Quran where the olive is mentioned are examined, in the first five, the olive is mentioned as a “created blessing”. There is no sacredness or ritual role of olive and olive oil. However, its use in the Nur surah is different, in this surah the olive tree and olive oil function as a symbol or metaphor used to describe/define Allah.
The olive tree is indirectly mentioned in the 20th verse of the Surah Al-Mu'minun : “And We raised a tree which grows from Mount Sinai, and is oily; it is a condiment for those who eat.” Some commentators have claimed that it is not correct to translate the word as “Mount Sinai” and that Mount Sinai should be understood as a mountain that is “plentiful in blessings”, “multiplying” and “yielding abundant fruit”. Although the word “olive” is not used in the verse, Quran commentators agree that the tree in question is the olive tree that grew in that region and was believed to be sacred in pre-Islamic monotheistic beliefs . The verse contains the symbol of “the tree as the center of the world and abundance” and the symbol of “the sacred mountain”, which are present in many myths and beliefs. The sacredness of mountains is very common in the history of belief. In monotheistic beliefs originating from the Middle East, the mountain is the place where prophets communicate with God through a channel of inspiration/revelation. There are mountains that are sacred in paganism, as well as in Judaism and Christianity. The most famous is Mount Sinai, the second highest mountain in the Sinai Peninsula, at 2285 meters. The prophet of Islam, Hz. Muhammad, retreated to the cave of Hira on Mount Nur, about 6 km north of Mecca, and the first words of the book - some say the entire book at one time - were divinely inspired to him here.
The fruits created by Allah are described in the 99th verse of Surah An'am . It has been interpreted that the olive symbolically represents unity and oneness, and the pomegranate represents the whole, and the whole represents the grain. When viewed in terms of unity and oneness; it can be speculated that a divine or rational quality is referred to through the symbolism of the tree (root, trunk, branch and fruit). When the literature in the history of philosophy and belief is examined; it will be seen that many interpretations and discussions have been made on the opposition of part and whole, nature and God, and the idea of the unity of these elements, which is the exact opposite of this idea.
The 11th verse of the Surah An-Nahl is similar in content and meaning to the section in the Surah An'am. The growth of these fruits is a sign of God's existence and power. The surah generally mentions the worldly blessings bestowed by God (water, milk-yielding animals, dates, grapes and especially bees), as well as the spouses, sons and grandchildren granted to man.
The Abese sura is about the believer not being ungrateful and thinking about these created blessings. One of the fruits that is given as an example among the blessings created by Allah is the olive.
The Tin Surah includes an oath taken on an olive along with a fig, which is interpreted as a sign of the sacredness of the olive. In Islamic belief, swearing on objects instead of God has always been a subject of debate. "Expressing oneself by swearing" must have been a common behavior in the communication style of the Arab people of that period. However, there is also the view that the names of these two fruits were the names of mountains where olives and figs were grown at that time, and that one could not swear on fruits. The region where these two trees were most commonly found at that time was Jerusalem. When evaluated in terms of imagery, it seems that references were made to elements believed to be sacred; the tree or its fruit, the mountain and the place.
Surah An-Nur, Verse 35: “Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth. The representation of His light is as follows: A cell in the wall, within which is a lamp, and the lamp in a glass globe. The globe is like a star shining like a pearl. It is kindled from a blessed tree, an olive tree of neither the East nor the West. Its oil is almost as clear as light, even if untouched by fire. Light upon light. Allah guides to His light whomever He wills. Allah sets forth examples for mankind. Allah has full knowledge of all things.”
In this verse, it seems that an attempt is made to define God through metaphors and symbols, and to answer the question, "What is God?" In the first metaphor, He is described as "light." Light is depicted through the bright flames in the olive oil lamps that were used for lighting in temples and only in the homes of the upper class and wealthy nobles.
The word light is also used in the sense of truth and knowledge. There have been those who interpreted the expression “a cell in the wall; a lamp inside, and the lamp inside a glass globe” as a symbol or analogy of the human brain and human intellect. However, when viewed from the perspective of the history of science, this interpretation is speculative because those were the times when we were still in our infancy regarding the brain and brain functions. Although the first claims close to reality regarding the functions of the brain and nervous system were put forward by the physician philosopher Galen of Pergamon who dissected cadaver monkeys; there was probably no difference between the mind and the heart in the consciousness of the Arab people of the period, the center of thought was the heart, and the texts in the Quran seem to support this judgment. In addition; it is also debatable how often “reasoning” or in the contemporary definition “reason” is used in the holy texts and the Quran, or how much emphasis is placed on the importance of reason. For the Bedouin people of the period, reason is a function that “stores traces in memory”, so that one does not lose one’s way in the desert and does not forget the laws one must follow in social life.
The fact that the source of light is in a glass globe seems to indicate that it is not affected by external factors, and "emitting light without being touched by fire" seems to indicate its eternity, transcendence, self-existence and eternity.
The word light is also used in the sense of truth and knowledge. There have been those who interpreted the expression “a cell in the wall; a lamp inside, and the lamp inside a glass globe” as a symbol or analogy of the human brain and human intellect. However, when viewed from the perspective of the history of science, this interpretation is speculative because those were the times when we were still in our infancy regarding the brain and brain functions. Although the first claims close to reality regarding the functions of the brain and nervous system were put forward by the physician philosopher Galen of Pergamon who dissected cadaver monkeys; there was probably no difference between the mind and the heart in the consciousness of the Arab people of the period, the center of thought was the heart, and the texts in the Quran seem to support this judgment. In addition; it is also debatable how often “reasoning” or in the contemporary definition “reason” is used in the holy texts and the Quran, or how much emphasis is placed on the importance of reason. For the Bedouin people of the period, reason is a function that “stores traces in memory”, so that one does not lose one’s way in the desert and does not forget the laws one must follow in social life.
The fact that the source of light is in a glass globe seems to indicate that it is not affected by external factors, and "emitting light without being touched by fire" seems to indicate its eternity, transcendence, self-existence and eternity.
The small cell-shaped (bottomless chimney) space in the wall where a lamp or lamp is placed is also called mishkat. In the Alevi and Bektashi faith, the opening of worship is done by reading this verse.
A similar expression to "...from the olive tree that belongs neither to the east nor to the west..." was expressed long ago by Homer. In the Iliad of Homer, the ancient Greek poet, perhaps the elite of his time, the spokesman of the gods, the prophet of the polytheistic peoples, the olive tree whispers in his ear; "I belong to everyone and to no one."
Compiled by: Uğur Saraçoğlu ( ugisaracoglu@yahoo.com.tr )
Compiled by: Uğur Saraçoğlu ( ugisaracoglu@yahoo.com.tr )
Source:
1. The Explanation of the Concepts of "Nur" and "Mishkat" in Alevism and Bektashism in the Context of the 35th Verse of the An-Nur Surah and Their Transformation into a Form of Worship; Ramazan Sönmez, Assistant Professor, KTO Karatay University, School of Foreign Languages, Department of Arabic Translation and Interpretation, Turkish Culture and Hacı Bektaş Veli Research Journal, Spring 20121, Issue 97.
2. Is the Quran Absolute? Is It Independent of Time and Space?; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hasan Aydın, Science and Future Magazine, Issue 125, 2014.
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6. 24. Is the Quran Absolute? Is it Independent of Time and Space?; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hasan Aydın, Science and Future Journal, Issue 125, 2014.
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