“The exhibition is the result of the close and happy cooperation between the British Museum and the King Abdul Aziz Public Library,” wrote Neil MacGregor, director of the museum, in the foreword to the exhibition catalog. “We are grateful to our colleagues there for their unstinting help.”
One of the challenges to mounting the exhibition was to make the spiritual content of Haj relevant in modern secular and scientific society. In human spiritual history Haj in terms of an expression of religious devotion, is not unusual. The symbols and rituals of a religion or philosophy give adherents access to a difficult to comprehend reality that has no rational explanation.
The resulting exhibition addresses the “Why, How and What” of the Haj. The “Why” is the religious requirement, the “How” is the journey and rituals and the “What” is the physical appurtenances from ihram to zam zam water bottles, old and modern.
The exhibition uses the artifacts of Islam as exhibits, and to access the meta-reality that they stand for or represent requires a little work from the visitor. The explanation of the meanings in a way that was both accessible to the casual visitor and non-Muslim was itself something of a challenge but has succeeded with the publication of the extensive companion catalog and the comprehensive labeling of the exhibits.
The organizers of the exhibition also included reflections on Haj both as diaries, some old, some modern, written by Hajis of many nationalities and ages. One is a perfect example of the currency of the ancient tradition of Haj and was written by Saleena Nurmohamed, aged ten on her first Haj. In English and neat round hand, she recorded her experience of Haj in 2006 when Haj fell on a Friday (Haj Al Akhbar – the Great Haj). The diary is a genuine and moving account of the physical and spiritual effort of just one young pilgrim.
Accompanying the modern memorabilia are voiced reflections, played as background to an exhibit of the trappings of Haj. This inspired touch brings the esoteric nature of the pilgrimage very much into the realm of the non-Muslim visitor and gives pause for contemplation, concluding in the thought that Haj and all that surrounds it and despite its atavistic rituals, really does have great meaning and relevance to modern Muslims.
Venetia Porter, the Curator of Islamic and Modern Middle Eastern Art at the museum described the process of bringing together the exhibition as monumental.
“However, from the very beginning, we encountered nothing but kindness, support and trust that hopefully we would do a good job,” she said during a quiet moment during a day of final preparation. “That was very important to us because it was in the early conversations with the Saudi Ambassador here in London that really encouraged us to think that we could mount this exhibition.”
It was during the summer of 2010 that the King Abdulaziz Library joined with the British Museum in the project. They became the organizational partner and were of core value in sourcing and assisting with the exhibition.
“This was a result of a huge team of people working together,” said Porter, indicating the exhibition space still in the throes of final preparation last Friday. Behind the scenes teams involved the curators, graphics, exhibition design and layout through to Web designers and electrical and lighting specialists, one of whom was scurrying about as we spoke, checking the evenness of the lighting on wall hangings with an incident light meter. Even apparently mundane tasks such as attaching the information labels to the correct exhibits has to be done with the greatest care and has to be double-checked.
“And this exhibition was very special,” she said. “I feel that this is probably the most important thing that I have ever done.” Porter noted that a great number of the exhibitions have been about historical events, but the Haj exhibition was a snapshot of a living religion. “This is about a living experience that has an amazing continuity that goes back to early Islam, and that is what we have tried to show.”
Project Curator for the exhibition Qaisra Khan appeared considerably more relaxed close to the opening day than one might expect of an event organizer. Clearly the myriad strands of the exhibition had woven themselves into the fabric of the display.
“It’s been really good, everything just fell into place. The majority of loans we had been anticipating came through and that was pretty marvelous,” she said. “It was very moving seeing it all come together.”
Khan was hard pushed to identify what might be the main attraction of the exhibition. She said that from the groups of guests who had previewed the exhibition had their own various favorites.
“I feel and hope that people, as they go round the gallery, will feel the build-up of the atmosphere. As they read the texts and look at the objects, some of which are quite quirky, it’s the balance of the thing that will decide. It’s going to be a very personal thing,” she said.
Asked for her own choice, she replied. “Depends on what day it is — it changes!”
Khan had hopes for the secular or non-Muslim visitor to the exhibition but was not sure what would come across to them.
“I am hoping that suddenly their eyes will be opened to something they have previously only seen in newspapers or on television. I am hoping they will see how extraordinary this annual gathering now of three million people really is and its sense of continuity, that people are doing now exactly as they were at the beginning of Islam.”
Khan said that the blend of old and new exhibits, ephemera and precious items and art “would evoke the very public act that Haj is but also something very personal to the individual.”
The exhibition is in place and the hopes of the organizers and contributor are yet to be realized. When the visitors arrive, only then will they know if they have succeeded. What can be guaranteed is that every effort has been made to make this a remarkable and, for those who have eyes to see it, a sensitive insight to the meaning and operation of the biggest peaceful gathering on earth, Haj.
