BUANASENI

Title: Al-Asr
Medium: Computer Graphics (Microsoft Paintbrush)
Artist: Johan Ishak & Mohd Shuhairi
Time/Date: (Time and date not recorded) 1994
Place of creation: South Yarra, Australia
www.buanaseni.blogspot.com

T is 4:26pm now on 18 Jan 2010 and its close to the Muslim prayer time Asar. Asar starts at 4:49pm today and I still haven't done the prayers for Zohor which is the prayer time just before Asar. So, I ought to go for my Zohor prayers now before Asar kicks in. All this reminded me of a paintbrush piece I did back in 1994 with a friend, Shuhairi (a.k.a Mosh). I think he did the sand storm on the sky bit whereas the rest was all from me.

Al-Asr, ie the "Time" literally translated from Arabic, means both Time as well as the prayer time Asar. Asar is set during the most busy part of a day, ie after lunch when traders are actively completing all sales transaction for the day. This is also true for modern day when people realised that they have wasted much of their morning in the office and only left to clear work in the evening. Having said so, its the best time for man to forget their prayers. Hence this Quranic verses to remind man to stop with earthly activities just for 5 minutes and to pray to God. From a simple "Time" perspective, the verse also reminds man to make good use of time as time, cannot be replaced.

The translation of the Quranic verse, I think, as far as I remember, is as follows, but of course open to everyone's intellectual interpretation:

In the name of Time
Man are at lost
Unless,
Those with faith and good deeds
And those who stand by the truth
And those who embrace patience

Well, its 4:37pm now,.. I'd better save and publish this and head for the sejadah for prayers.