Olfactory Visuals A Case of Saffron Prohibition in Ḥadīṯ Commentary
A review of the Ṣiḥāḥ corpus of prophetic traditions reveals multiple accounts on the application of perfume. Here the social role perfume and cosmetics could assume in Muslim worldview is examined through a closer look at the specific case of the prophetic saffron prohibition for men, expounded upo...
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| Wydane w: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/beo, |
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| 1. autor: | |
| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Język: | Anglais |
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Bulletin d’études orientales
2016
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| Hasła przedmiotowe: | |
| Dostęp online: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| Streszczenie: | A review of the Ṣiḥāḥ corpus of prophetic traditions reveals multiple accounts on the application of perfume. Here the social role perfume and cosmetics could assume in Muslim worldview is examined through a closer look at the specific case of the prophetic saffron prohibition for men, expounded upon in the authoritative Fatḥ al‑Bārī bi‑Šarḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al‑Buḫārī commentary of Ibn Ḥaǧar al‑ʿAsqalānī (d. 1449). Prohibition of saffron usage by men is put in the light of a historically established interpretative and linguistic tradition supported by drawing on a solid body of previous sources, mainly within the Šāfiʿīte maḏhab. In case we need to build a hierarchy of sensory perceptions in order to decode the cultural role of saffron, it is difficult to say whether the olfactory or the visual element prevails. Yet, both saffron smell and colour can be perceived as pointing to a meaning beyond themselves. A saffron ban imposed in such a manner is made reasonable only within the discourses of legally charged ḥadīṯ interpretation; it is here where aspects of smell and sight play a significatory role with regards to cultural practices and occupy a transcendentally substantiated position. |
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