Throughout the ages mystics & theologians have used geometry as a contemplative focus, as it enables the viewer a vision
of the underyling order of both the cosmos and the natural world. The cyclical movement of heavenly bodies, which Plato
described as the ‘music of the spheres’, finds its Earthly reflection in the natural symmetries found throughout nature
and most strikingly within the world of flowers, the proportions of which are governed by simple geometric laws. The
origin of the word ‘cosmos’ is adornment (from which we derive the modern word ‘cosmetics’) and the adornment of sacred
buildings with both floral and geometric patterns makes the viewer sensitive to the subtle harmonies uniting the natural
world around us with the cosmos.
In Islamic art the geometric figure of the circle represents the primordial symbol of unity and the ultimate source of
all diversity in creation. The natural division of the circle into regular divisions is the ritual starting point for
many traditional Islamic patterns, as demonstrated in the drawings below.
This page was coded by Zahra Beg 🦋