Ustazah Asni Spreads The Message Of Islam Through Art

By Balkish Awang

KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama) -- Celebrity preacher and motivational speaker, Ustazah Asni Abu MaZAnsor is not the typical Muslim preacher who spreads the message of Islam through Islamic forums.

She has taken the creative route in her dakwah or Islamic missionary work  by transforming Islamic knowledge through her work of art.

Inspired by the historical sites she visited, Asni captured the images and moments through her paintings.  Just as the spoken word that carries a certain energy, both physical and emotional, the brushstroke serves as a perfect vehicle for the artist's emotions. 

Driven by her lifelong mission to propagate Islam, the 46-year old preacher has nearly 300 paintings under her belt since 2015.

An avid artist over the past eight years, Asni began drawing and painting from a young age, with her mother and her own children as her source of inspiration and support. 

PERSONAL SATISFACTION

Painting, which gives Ustazah Asni Mansor personal satisfaction, has a therapeutic effect on her.

Asni said she achieved satisfaction through her artworks. To date, she has drawn portraits of the Nabawi Mosque during her visit to Madinah al -Munawwarah, the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Baitulmuqaddis (Jerusalem) in Palestine and the Sarajevo town during her humanitarian mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina.

"In  my view, painting is a form of visual communication in spreading dakwah, albeit in a silent way, yet can touch the hearts of artistic minds. 

Art is of the heart. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words; it is often easier to show something in a picture than to describe it with words. Art is uniquely positioned to move people," she told Bernama recently.

For the ustazah, it has been a practice for her to bring along her own canvas and art supplies during her travels and will stop to capture the moments through her paintings.

Popular motivational speaker Ustazah Asni Abu Mansor giving the final touches to her painting on Elephant Rock during her visit to the archaeological site at Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia.

"This is how I convey my message across to the people through my paintings. In fact, at every place that I visited, I would come up with a piece of artwork as remembrance. and from there, I would document information on the places that I have painted," she said.  Asni said she derives personal satisfaction from paintings, a self-therapy for her. For the audience,  standing in front of an artwork often evokes an emotional response. 

In addition to her personal collections, some of Asni's paintings are sold between RM300 to RM10,000 depending on their aesthetic value. Her artpieces have so far attracted orders from celebrities, her fans as well as businesspeople.

Some of the proceeds from the sale of her artworks were chanelled to the less fortunate during her humanitarian missions to several countries.

Asni has showcased her talents by painting while sharing her Islamic knowledge through various Islamic programmes on local television, including "Ku Seru NamaMu" on TV Alhijrah, which focuses on the 99 names and attributes of Allah.

LESSONS FROM ELEPHANT ROCK STORY

Ustazah Asni Abu Mansor’s painting on Elephant Rock at the historical site at Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia.

On Nov 12, Asni had the opportunity to visit a historical site and managed to paint a portrait of the area, which was once the city that Prophet Saleh was sent to, called al-Hijr. At an unknown point in ancient times, the site was abandoned and possibly functionally replaced by Al-'Ula, Saudi Arabia.  

 Al-'Ula is located north of Saudi Arabia, an attractive region and a tourist attraction to the kingdom. At  Al-'Ula, there is a rock known as Elephant Rock while the local people call it Jabal AlFil.

The Elephant Rock, a monolith rock formation resembling that of an elephant, is about 171 ft or 52 metres in height, with its trunk touching the ground.

During her visit there, Asni painted the Elephant Rock amid the spectacular sunset. The destination, she said, has its own story which serves as lessons for Muslims today.

"Through my painting of Elephant Rock, Al-'Ula, I was driving home the message that how fortunate we as Muslims are to be the followers of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as we have not been punished for our wrongdoings, and are allowed to seek forgiveness from Allah SWT, unlike others (followers of other prophets) who were immediately punished then," she said.

Ustazah Asni Abu Mansor poses with her painting of the enigmatic Elephant Rock at the historical site of Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia.

"This place (Elephant Rock)  is a historical site where the Thamud, an ancient polytheistic ethnic tribesmen who were followers of Prophet Saleh,  were destroyed by Allah for rejecting the message of the prophet.

"Prophet Saleh had warned the Tsamud people that a great torment would be upon them within three days and he continued to hope they would seek Allah's forgiveness.

"After three days, his warning came to pass. The sky was filled with lightning and thunder and the earth shook violently. Allah destroyed the city of Tsamud and the people died in a torment of fear and disbelief.

"What's left is the memory of a life that once occupied the ancient stone and mud walled city. Allah has saved these ruins for us so that we can draw lessons from them. It also proves that Allah's punishment to those who disobey Him, is real," she said.

Besides the enigmatic Al-'Ula archaelogical site, Asni said, the people are encouraged to visit the historical place and witness for themselves the effects of Allah's wrath towards the Tsamud tribe who disobeyed Him.

CROWDS CAPTIVATED BY HER ARTWORK

In Madinah, Asni drew crowds from the local Arab women who gathered to watch the Malaysian preacher cum artist produce her work of art with her signature brushstrokes.

Nordiana Arshad poses against the iconic background of Elephant Rock at Al-‘Ula, a historical site which was once occupied by the Tsamud tribe, followers of Prophet Saleh.

According to Nordiana Arshad, 36, a Malaysian who has been residing in Madinah for the past six years, the crowds grew steadily to watch Asni at work.

"Asni was mixing colours on the palette with a brush and applying in on the canvas, when her women fans mainly from the Arab community, started to edge nearer to her for a close-up of the painting she was drawing. They were all captivated by her work and some told me that it was the first live painting ever staged by a woman artist, in the city," she shared.

Born in Klang, Selangor, Nordiana, who also visited the place together with Asni, said local fans there also captured the moments on video when Asni was at work.

Nordiana Arshad (left) poses with celebrity Asni Abu Mansor (second from left) during their visit to a historical site at Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia.

"After completing her work, ustazah Asni also recited several surahs (chapters) from the holy Quran related to the Tsamud tribe and Prophet Saleh, such as Surah Al-Fil, causing foreign visitors and local folks to be mesmerised by the ustazah's voice," said the nurse who is attached to the hemodialysis unit at the Madinah Hospital. 

Meanwhile, Nordiana said the story of Al-'Ula  relating to Prophet Saleh's tribe who were disobedient towards Allah, was mentioned in the holy Quran.

"Visitors can draw lessons (ibrah) from the history of Al 'Ula, a Muslim heritage site.Furthermore, the present Saudi Arabian government has announced a new tourism master plan to turn Al 'Ula into a global destination for travellers offering heritage, nature, art and culture," she said.

Translated by Salbiah Said

BERNAMA