Why is the direction of the Tawāf counter clockwise? RENÉ GUÉNON | Office Hours #4

[@prostagma7234]

Interesting. I couldn't help but think of a corollary on my part as an Orthodox Christian. During the Divine Liturgy, the altar and direction of prayer is eastwards, the entrance faces west. Male and female members of the laity are separated - men congregate on the right i.e the south (yang/active) and females on the left i.e the north (yin/passive). There is a part in the liturgy where the priest moves around the church with the sacred censer in a clockwise direction, starting from the east then moving from south to north before returning to the east. The tradition is for the laity to face the priest as he circumnavigates the church - depending on the size of the church this will vary accordingly. Prior to this the priest will have already circumambulated the altar with the censer (also clockwise). Now the liturgy is comprised of moments of veiling and unveiling where the altar is hidden and revealed to the laity so I can't be sure exactly but from memory, I believe the priests do circumambulate the altar counter-clockwise as well during key moments. Interestingly when receiving the eucharist itself we approach from the right then move toward the left in a counter-clockwise movement. Perhaps symbolizing a returning to the primordial state in paradise. I haven't really thought about this before so I'll need to look into it. The Divine Liturgy can be as long as 2 hours of prayer with what appears to be an endless amount of symbolism going on therein but this prompts further study so I thank you. And keep up the good work, I prefer to learn about Islam from a scholar who's dedicated their life to the pursuit of wisdom rather than the likes of Jay Smith, David Wood etc who borrow too much in sophistry from their new-atheist spawn!

[@prostagma7234]

Additionally: I just thought of the most obvious example of movement in a counter-clockwise direction within Orthodoxy: During the Easter Resurrection Service, nearing the end of 40 days of fasting - Orthodox Christians circumambulate the outside of the church counter-clockwise with candles lit from the Holy Light (from Jerusalem) proclaiming 'Christos Anesti' at the end of the procession.

[@SaiyadNizamuddinAhmad]

Thank you very much for sharing your insights into the Orthodox Divine Liturgy and your words of encourgement. I have always been very interested in the tradition of Orthodoxy and how profoundly different it is from the Catholicism and Protestantism.

[@prostagma7234]

@Chungus Trismegistus You may find this interesting kzbin.info/www/bejne/oJzQmWluqtd8bKM

[@mohsintahir1142]

Thank you for the video Saiyad, May Allah (swt) reward your efforts

[@SaiyadNizamuddinAhmad]

May Allah bless you.

[@LillyC-77]

Excellent, thank you.

[@siddiquekatiya]

At the time early islam the polytheist used to circle the kabbah clockwise and naked , the prophet instruct to circule anti-clockwise and to wear the ihram - also the direction of earth around the sun is also anti-clockwise

[@mohsintahir1142]

Amazing video, thank you for addressing this

[@SaiyadNizamuddinAhmad]

Thank you. I am very glad you found it to be useful

[@awasimdar]

During Hindu marriage ceremony the bride and bridegroom circle around Agni counter clockwise

[@JillFreeman-kb4ih]

in your practice, are females merely empowered through marriage, whereas males are allotted power at birth? that seems to be the result especially in works like the Ramayana

[@personanongrata7976]

I'm trying to understand why the polar orientation would be considered primordial, or more primordial than the solar orientation. The best I can come up with is that the solar situation is messy, so to speak, in a way that the polar is not. Solar orientation emphasizes a cosmos that has been knocked askew, as it were (by sin.) I incorrectly anticipated that the Islamic orientation would be solar because it's so hot over there, frankly. All joking aside, thank you, Dr., for teaching me to respect Islam. I asked God to teach me, and he directed me to your channel.

[@melly4158]

I love this, thank you for making this

[@KumailAhmed]

Assalamalikum professor, just curious what is the book "ilm-ul-yaqeen" about in your bookshelf :)

[@wahnano]

All praises be to the almighty.

[@adminomhfoz1908]

so much talk - but i still didnt understand why