topic: islamic expansion
BN BATTUTA’S PRAISE FOR THE GOOD MUSLIMS OF MALI, 1352
HONESTY
“They do not interfere with the property of the white man who dies in their country even though it may consist of great wealth, but rather, they entrust it to the hand of someone dependable among the white men, until it is taken by the rightful claimant.”
PIETY
“…they meticulously observe the times of prayer…When it is Friday, if a man does not come early to the Mosque he will not find a place to pray because of the numbers of the crowd.”
CLEANLINESS
“… putting on of good white clothes on Friday. If a man among them has nothing except a tattered shirt he washes and cleans it and attends the Friday prayer in it.”
I need to illustrate what Ibn Battuta saw when he looked at the Mali Muslims according to his opinion/interpretation/observation of their values and culture, but I have no artistic creativity. Any ideas?
You could just use symbols:
honesty: hand on a Qu'ran
piety: a prostrate man
cleanliness: a bar of soap