 Welcome. Hello. We're going to get started in just a moment and let folks get in the room. Welcome to the library. Thank you for joining us today. If you know what territory you're occupying, you can also put that in our chat box. There comes a link to check if you don't know. Welcome. Right. Thank you for joining us on this. Beautiful San Francisco day. So we know there's a lot happening in our, our beautiful city this weekend and in the Bay area. So we appreciate you for joining us today and taking part in part of our climate action month series, which is what this talk is. This is what the campaign this talk is about. So first, some library news and information, you can definitely access the chat, you can use the q amp a today. We're going to have a nice dialogue. And so let it flow however you like in that that river of chat that will be our communication with each other, or use the q amp a, and we will catch those and welcome to our YouTube viewers as well. Thank you for joining the chat box to throw in links from library news and any resources that come up as our presenters are talking. And first off library news. All right, let's do this. Of course, we want to acknowledge this land that we live on and occupy. And not acknowledge that it's the unceded ancestral homeland of the Romitush alone tribal people. And they are the original inhabitants of our San Francisco peninsula. We recognize that we all benefit from living and working on their traditional homeland. And as uninvited guests we affirm their sovereign rights as first peoples, and wish to pay our respects to the ancestors, elders, and relatives of the Romitush community. And right now I'm going to pop in the chat box and great reading list and resource list for Bay Area, a lonely information. We know librarians love to make their book lists. We have a lot of reading material but also websites and information about land rights and a great women led organization in the Berkeley area, which is where song was from is security land trust, and they are doing such amazing work so please check them out some of the hardest working women in the Bay Area. And at the library we have the amazing poet Natalie Diaz, who is a Pulitzer Prize winning poet. And we have a campaign called on the same page where we encourage all of San Francisco to read the same book at the same time. You can walk into any of our 28 libraries right now and find this book on the shelf. We buy extra, and she will be in conversation with educator and author, Michelle Cruz Gonzalez. So come check that out April 26 on the same page. Tomorrow we have an in person event in our beautiful African American Center and poet, it's National Poetry Month as well as Climate Action Month, and we love poetry. So we have author Derek Austin who has a new book out called Tenderness and he will be in Congo with Keith Wilson. So you can see streets and the tender one tomorrow so you can do a lot of stuff. That's also the farmers market. So farmers market library Sunday streets all in like a three block radius, come down to the city. April 24 in our correct auditorium again in person. So here's a gorgeous space we can all spread out and still be together. We're celebrating our black poet laureates so come check that out. And just a few other events I want to tell you about the amazing Annie Sprinkle SF icon, and her partner Beth Stevens are going to be doing a eco sex clinic and an eco sex hike walk. And it's about, they definitely are earth lovers and climate lovers and climate social justice warriors, but also talking about how all of this like bad news with climate and the dire feelings that you also get along with it. How can you still find pleasure in living and pleasure in our beautiful nature and still be a fighter for climate justice. So on the 27th of April 27 in the virtual library the author Emily St. John Mandel author of stations 11 and HBO option to stations 11 series will be in conversation with Bay Area on Ali knew it's alright. It's all the library announcements and now we're going to get on with our amazing humans for the day. Selma Aristu and Dr. Basma Abdul Ghaffar. Aristu's book, our earth embracing all communities, and they're going to discuss the book it's an ecology in connection. It combines beauty of art, science, nature with versus from the Quran. Aristu is a brilliant author she uses beautiful layers of color, penetrating trekshers and pen and ink drawings to create a luminous luminous paintings that illustrate stories from the Quran. She's a Berkeley Berkeley resident, holding it down and the outside of the alone land. And she has been, she's a native of Rajasthan, India. She's been creating and exhibiting her paintings internationally since graduating with a master's degree in fine art from MS University, Baroda, India. Her art and technique are greatly interwoven with Arabic calligraphy, miniature art and folk patterns. Her major influences are through travel. She's exhibited nationally and internationally and has won several prestigious awards including the East Bay Community's Funds for Artists. She has a public art piece in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and San Diego, California. And she has written and published five books on art and poetry, including her recent ecological consciousness from the Quranic verse, our earth, which is the one we're talking about today. And we will be, I will put a link for where you can find the book but also, we hope to have it in the library soon. And joining us to be in conversation today is Dr. Basma Abduldafar, who is an avid reader and reflector on the meanings of the Quran and the Sunnah. She is also the Vice President of the Montcasside Institute and Professor of Public Policy. She consults and provides training internationally on policy, governance, and Muslim affairs. She has worked in the Canadian federal government, academia, and third sector. She has contributed to the development and graduate studies in public policy at the American University of Cairo, Cairo, Qatar Foundation, and International Peace College of South Africa. She has a keen interest in teaching in public policy and governance in Islam, as well as in Muslim history, thought, institution, and communities. She obtained her PhD in public policy from Carlton University in Ottawa. In 2003, her publications, some of which have been translated into several languages cover topics ranging from intellectual property to morality. Amazing women, can I say that? I have a very amazing job that I get to post such amazing women and I want to thank them both for being here. And like I said, use the chat box, use the Q&A, and we will get this conversation started now. Salma and Basma, take it away. Thank you. Thank you, Anissa, for this introduction, very kind introduction, and thank you for inviting me to present my book, Our Earth, Embracing All Communities. It is an honor for me. And the concept for this book has been in my mind for almost five years, and I have been reading the Quran every day and make note of verses that speak about love, mercy, unity, compassion, and sharing from the Quran and creating large paintings with Arabic calligraphy, because my intention was to bring the positive wisdom of Quran to the common man. So gradually I started noticing these verses from Quran which talk about nature, and I was really amazed, spellbound with the descriptions, and especially I couldn't imagine it, not only talked about the water and the land or earth, plants, trees, animals, birds, but even for ant, bees, and spiders. And I was just wondering, it's such a beautiful wisdom. And then in the end of these verses, it would always ask us to go out and look at it and find out why this creation was done by Allah SWT. So it has been my, I have been processing all this for the last five years, and there's one more thing I want to add here, Quran describes nature, presence, signs of God as divine is manifest in nature, and guides to study nature as a reference to the wisdom of Quran. So in my conclusion, Quran is the textbook, and nature is the workbook. So that's how I have been thinking about it, and during my walks in the morning at the bay, I've been trying to absorb the beauty and the wisdom of God, you know, in the nature. Moving forward, in December 2019, I applied for East Bay Community Foundation Individual Artist Award for my project. Our earth embracing all communities, as I wanted to get funding to publish the book, because I was doing so much research and I was sure is going to be a positive book. And I wanted to share with the local communities, libraries and schools, and I was hoping that I'll spread the knowledge from Quran to every place, you know, so I wanted funding. So I applied for the funding, individual artist funding. And in March 2020, when pandemic started, and I got an email from East Bay Community Foundation saying that your proposal is accepted, and your grant is released, a grant amount is released. So I was so happy. It was, I know it was a sad time with the pandemic on us, but it was a perfect time for me because I could lock down in my studio and just kept painting, you know, so so I almost painted for five months, and I was deep into this subject. And I created about 40 paintings, though I had verses about 60 70 in my research that I did, but I selected 40 verses from which I was inspired to do these images, the paintings. It was a beautiful journey, felt very close to nature felt very close to Quran and it was a wonderful journey but now my question I was thinking in my mind I was planning my book, as I wanted to publish as a book that how should I whom should I find who's the right person who can put these verses from Quran and my paintings like I needed some description of these wise words from Quran, because it's not easy to totally absorb the meaning of them. So I was just looking through my friends and my, you know, some scholars I know locally. Suddenly I thought about Basma Basma, I just met her few times on zoom, where she was describing Quran, like, and she just her description just melted my heart. That's what I can say. Like I felt, wow, she speaks so beautifully her language is so lyrical and so plain so simple, so easy to understand. So I was so interest by her presentations, you know, so she was the first one on my list. So I just went ahead and sent her email. She didn't know me. There was no introduction between us before that. So I just sent her a letter saying that this is my project. Would you be interested in doing the description of this book for me. And to my surprise, the reply came pretty quickly and all she said yes. Yes, I have been thinking about it for a long time and I will join you and I will do this project for you. So I'm very grateful to her and here she is later. I will ask her to describe her thoughts now. Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem in the name of Allah the most merciful, the giver of mercy. Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. Peace, blessings and mercy on everybody attending with us today. It is a huge privilege. I'd like to thank the San Francisco Public Library for having me and definitely huge gratitude to the artist, Sister Salma Arastu, who privileged me and I've told her this often with inviting me to be a part of something so amazing. And so what we decided today jointly was that she would give this introduction and then I will talk a little bit about the conception of the earth in the Quran generally. And then I'll hand it back to Salma and she will go through the paintings because obviously we believe that's why most of you are joining with us this morning or yes this morning for you this afternoon for me. So the earth in the Quran is this wondrous creation and narratives about the earth and its inhabitants demonstrate God's mercy, the purposefulness of creation, its connectivity and its diversity. They're intended for the reader to conjure these images that prompt us to think, to reflect and to reconnect. These images are of beauty and adornment and giving and nurturing, but they're also about corruption and domination and destruction, waste and alienation. When people forget or choose not to believe that all creation has a right to pursue paths of purposefulness, beauty and to worship their Lord. So we read in the Quran, for instance, do you not see that God is glorified by whomever is in the skies and the earth and the birds in rows or procession. Each knows its prayers and glorifications and God is knowing of what they do. It also tells us the seven skies and the earth and whomever is in them glorify him. And there is not a single thing except that glorifies his praises, but you do not understand their glorifications. Indeed, he is forbearing forgiving. So they're abundant metaphors in the Quran that liken humans and human life or behaviors to various dimensions or conditions of the earth. These metaphors are intended to engage us in a process that not only situates our species as humans within a wide and rich web of life, but that humbles our tendency to believe in individualism and invincibility. So some lessons remind us that just as the rain revives a land that has become parched and dead. And this also leads us to the revelation impacts our souls, showing us that our collective flourishing is just as dependent on our giving of life as the earth gives life when she is beautified adorned producing everything we need to keep us healthy and joyful. Through the Quran we develop a deeper understanding, not only of our true nature, but our connection to the earth and our responsibility towards her and towards each other. And when I say each other, I don't just mean humans towards one another, but all of creation. It is not an other that is isolated, but it is necessarily of us and we are of it. So through the Quran we develop this deeper understanding. And this means that our well being as communities is interdependent. We cannot live on this earth with thoughts of isolation and individualism. The Quran encourages us to develop a sensitivity towards the earth and its inhabitants all the way from as Selma and I were talking from an aunt or even smaller than an aunt to respect its way of life and to reconsider waste and corruption and destruction of natural systems of pollution. Anything really that disturbs the balance that enables all of us and all of those other forms of life again to pursue purposeful paths. You'll also notice that I said she, the earth is feminine in Arabic. It is a she, she is animate possessing life, beauty, adornment, light. She is responsive to her creator and ultimately she yields to his command. These are the powerful images that Selma expresses in her art. She masterfully depicts the connectivity and holism that is conveyed in the Quran and expressed in nature and human behavior. Her work contrasts beauty, mercy, harmony, stewardship with the unwanted or ugly side of greed, corruption and neglect. Her choice of verses covers a wide range of truths about the earth, the skies, the seas, the plants, the animals, the celestial bodies and much more. And she integrates calligraphy with some of her works emphasizing the inseparability of the word of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala of God with the world as we understand it. Her project to me is one of hope. I am privileged to be a part of it and to be here this morning talking about it. In one line, the earth's embrace of all of its communities is a lesson for every merciful and living heart. So I'm going to stop at that this morning, turn it back to Selma and let's hear more about her different works of art. Oh, thank you Basma. Just thank you. You speak so beautifully and you have explained so well the beauty of the Quran and my intentions. So I'm really grateful to you. Yes. And so to move on, I think I would open my slideshow and go over each slide. I'll just give you a minute. Okay, so thank you all for coming today and it's my pleasure and honor to share this book with you. So in this slideshow I've selected about 10 slides and 10 verses rather. And let me walk with you on these works. So this is the first cover of the book and the next one. So I just wanted to start before my talk, I just wanted to read a couple of lines from a statement because they show my intention and me as a human being trying to connect humanity, soul and soil. So I paint to connect with the oneness. I listen into the unity for the design. When I paint, it is an expression of both our primordial nature and the potential of our higher place in connection to God. Where you may see playfulness in my work, I experience myself reflecting on the joy of this connection. All life is one. My commitment is to both paint and celebrate all living beings that make up the totality of a unique and generous family. My highest dream is that the work that comes through me may help our human family to wake up to our very special place in this complex and beautiful web of life. For me, love is the only way to protect life's generous chemistry. So this is the first painting I wanted to talk about this verse. In fact, this is the first verse which inspired me to start this project. First, I'll read the words for you. And there's no trading creature in the earth or a flying creature that fries with its wings, except that form communities like yours. We have not overlooked anything in the book then to their Lord shall they be gathered. As Basma explained that we are just different communities depending on each other interlinked and interdependent, and we cannot survive alone. So this was a beautiful ayat which the words which really kept coming back in my mind, and I didn't know how I will try to show it but I think it just happened. I started with the 12 by 12 inches square canvas and the circle is the representing earth, and I just started painting different communities. It became very simple that how I want to do it. So I tried to paint as many as I could think of that time. So there are initially they were 12, but I have done some more now I have almost 16 communities and who knows I might add some more later on. So, in these paintings, I would like to say that my work is inspired from folk art and miniature arts, and also calligraphy. So it will come gradually and other paintings but this one particularly is only penning drawing which I really enjoy and light wash of acrylic paints on these. And they just I just wanted to make them very simple and direct communicating with the common man. This is the second words, which came in my mind when I started the project. This one says, and the earth he has set for all living creatures. It's the, I mean, this is the universal law, I mean universal plan that earth was a spread for all. It wasn't to spread only for human beings as we think. And as we own this earth, you know the behavior, which is coming out, you know, from the human beings as if we own this earth, but it actually belongs to all animals and small insects or words or fishes anything. So any living creature. So, this is what happened, and I just took a large canvas is 30 by 60. And, and before I say that I wanted to add that I painted these on the paper first, because I like the textures and I got this handmade paper, Korean paper is 30 by 60. First I painted on the paper, then I mounted on the canvas actually. So, again here I did the same thing first is my, my love for drawing with the pen and ink so I just drew the whole scene, you know, adding different animals and, and it's not only the painting, I finished the painting and the sketch, it develops, like I give one coat of light yellow, then blue, maybe I use minimum colors but the direct colors I don't mix the colors on the palette, because I don't like the madness I don't like any gray and black there I just wanted to use the direct yellow blue green for the nature. So I give this light washes with the acrylic paints but I made make them very light glazes, and then I add details again like the plants that the writing, it's added and given again another wash. So it's a process, like I do some detailing, I give a light color wash and then again work and add colors for different animals or whatever you see there. So, so it's a graduate process, and it comes back and gives me feedback and then I return with it you know and put my feedback you know it's a constant effort to paint I mean to bring out what I want to say, and it's always a grace of God that it comes through, because I always feel I'm the tool and everything from my heart comes to the canvas directly with the head and there's no interference of my ego or my thinking or my mind. So, this one is another beautiful words it says and sky he has raised and set the balance. This balance word was so beautiful I taught you know you know, more you look into the nature you see the balance of the sky water and earth. So this, this painting came up very naturally in this also I made some insects also you can see them when you look at the painting closely. So the insects and animals and little birds they're all spread on the earth and the fishes in the water and the birds on the sky with the moon and this sun. So, basically, just wanted to show this balance and how we are destroying this balance that is the cause of all this coming on us now. So, this third, this one is, these are actually two verses I was inspired by two verses, but let me tell you they are at least 4050 verses in Quran they talk about the water. So, these are only two I'm showing here the abundance of water that is poured from the sky, like it's amazing like you know when you read those verses and how they generate regenerate the earth and how we get these fruits and flowers and grains, it's a beautiful story, you know, so I try to develop that story as it said like I read this this verse to you, then let the human consider his her food that we poured water and abundance, then we cleave the earth, a great division so we planted in our seats and grapes and clovers and olives and palms and lush gardens and fruits and heritage and enjoyment for you and for your cattle. So it's so beautiful like you know and this this talks about the biodiversity, like you are not going to just have olives and only palm trees or only flowers know it is showing the biodiversity is not the monoculture which we have developed now which is again causing all these climate changes and the problems. And let me add here something more. These verses are as it is translated by Basma also. So it's her language, and it's so beautiful. So, so I just wanted to let you know that so, so this was painting you know it just happened as I was thinking I was as I was reading. So, these were just coming on my canvas. So Salma you have a question to these images come in your mind instantly. What's the process from the verse to the concept. Let me tell you, I'll be reading these verses again and again. It's not only once and it was there in my mind, but I never planned my painting seriously speaking I didn't know how will I do. As I said, I, my works are not preplanned, they just happened. And when I read this word I normally paint on the wall, because I don't stretch my canvas in the beginning, or on the table I put my paper on the table. So I just start. I mean I just just reading this words, the right, the one on the right, it just talked about the water coming from the sky so I just put a sky, you know there and then slowly how it brings life to dead earth you know so all these things were a first step with a full coat of yellow color I think the light yellow and then I started adding blue and green and all that. So anyway frankly speaking know it happens right there. And then I need reference sometime that I wouldn't deny. So like, if I wanted to do palm trees so I looked at the picture you know quickly, though I know but sometimes I need reference that I'm doing going to do the palm trees here, or even the flowers you know sometimes I take a reference but when when it's happening is happening that time only, like, oh I have to look at this tree, how it does it look like. So maybe I'll go back and take the reference, but it happens right there. Yes. So that's a blessing actually. And this one is talking about the water and the water life, you know. I mean we are so blessed that God has given us such beautiful life under the water you know the fishes and and ornaments and amazing things we get from the water. So this word says and it is he who made the sea amenable so that you may eat tender meat and extract from it ornaments that you wear and you see the ships flying through it so that you make seek of his bounty and so that you may give thanks. So, when this worse came up and there are a couple of verses like this again. So I'm just showing two images here. So, fish is my favorite subject in my painting and the movement and energy. So I think I got the full freedom here that the everything was just moving and with the, you know, my transparent glazes of light acrylic colors and then adding again more fishes some details and again some wash and again some so this was just my joy, you know, and I think it's come up in the paintings because it just shows a moment and beauty, which we discovered underwater. So this one is about the creation of earth and sky. This verse is comes many times and God says, Allah says that I have everything is created from water. So this was a beautiful concept like everything is coming from water. How did it happen so anyway, there are many questions used to come in my mind but but I think these these flow of water as again my favorite subject as I walk on the Bay every day so so some of these happen very naturally again. So all do they who reject the truth not see that the skies and earth were fused. So we told them apart and made them work from water every living thing. Will they not believe. So, I tried my best as it was coming to my mind I just did it and I added calligraphy here. As basma said to prove that it is from the wisdom of Quran which is just words and these are the important knowledge for us wisdom for us, and I try to infuse them with my paintings. So on the top you see the, everything is coming from the water that one says that everything is coming from water so I tried to put animals, plants, birds, people, everything in the water. And the image below shows the, it's becoming two parts like sky and the earth and the water is in between, which is separating both. We have a question is the calligraphy a translation of the verse, the calligraphy is actually the verse in Arabic. It's it's the exact Arabic that you would find in the Quran. Yeah, so thank you for that basma yeah. So, yeah words is in calligraphy and this is the translation. No this is just a transition English, but it's an Arabic words yeah. So in this one I wanted to show about the corruption that human beings have been doing like you know, like this is something announced in the book that something you will do which will destroy you. It's a warning, which we have received not today's 1400 1500 years back. It's a warning, but we never took notice of that I think I didn't know and when I read this couple of times, I was really surprised. I said why we are still doing it I mean, so many people knew from so many years. So this was this was just saying corruption has appeared on land and see by what the hands of people have earned. And he may give them a test of some of their actions by chance to reconsider. So here I think it's more again universal plan like you will do this, and you will suffer, you will go through hell. And then perhaps you will realize. So, so this is again, we are going through this trial that we have brought this on ourselves with our own hands. So like if you go to fishing instead of fish you get the plastic bottles in your net, or if you go to the reverse the seas, you will see the clear water in the distance, but close to you will see that muddy dirty water I tried to put the red color just to show that we have killed. We have killed that beauty, and we are getting dead fish at the banks. So, so basically my purpose was to create the awareness. In all, you know, in all of us, you know that how what we are doing to our beautiful world and in this I have written something we are told in the Quran that human beings willfully assume the trust that was declined by other forms of creation. This trust appears to be closely associated with our duties and custodianship towards each other and the earth, which is ultimately reflective of a knowledge with our creator, the human being has betrayed that trust by abusing fellow creatures and spreading corruption on the earth. So, so this is what we have done, and we have to suffer and we have to amend this now we have to do something to improve our lives. I think this is the next one. Just let me see. Yeah. So this one is not directly from nature, the images, but this is a very important verse from Quran. It's about the social ecology. What we are doing socially, we are just wasting food, and we are not taking care of poor people, orphans. So this was saying no but you do not dignify the orphan nor do you urge and one another to feed the unfortunate. So here I wanted to emphasize that God has given so much food. I mean abundance of food. I mean the, that we saw that in the fruits and vegetables and greens and fish and animals like so much has been given to us. So what we do, we have big dinner parties, we have eat parties, we have great gatherings, we spread the tables with food, and we throw half of the food because we can't eat that much we cannot consume that much the plates you know people take the full servings and then they go and throw in the garbage. So this has been always hurting me for whenever I saw that. So this image was very important for me it was in my mind somewhere which I did nobody just came up during this project, because this verse asked me to do this. And then the right side image is saying that affluent people that just walk away they don't even look at beggars they don't even care for the orphans. So, so this is something we have to change ourselves to bring the justification that the justice to this earth. And in this one, I wanted to show that how corrupt the human beings are. So, I didn't know how to show that. So I put this mask. These are the corrupt people with masks. I'll read something I wrote about it. Every living being in nature glorifies the creator except we human beings wearing mask of masculinity or know it all mask. We wonder with pride on the mother earth, recognizing the spiritual dimension of all things ought to encourage humanity to preserve nature respect boundaries eliminate greed, reduce waste and root out corruption. So this verse is saying, and if he turns away or assumes authority, he strives in the earth to corrupt it and exhaust the land and the progeny and a lot does not like corruption. So, I'm hoping that we will realize that when we look at these images and we read this words, these words is, and this is the final image in my book. And this is the same, I think, worse, which was my mentioned in the in her little introduction that everything in nature is glorifying a lot. Winds, clouds, trees, birds, mountains, rocks, stars, sun, everything. And even the animals and human beings are supposed to bar down and in adoration. So, so this is something it was again, it happens so surprisingly, I should say I wasn't planning this painting but but I was so happy with the results because I feel this is conveying my feeling. So, so I read the words to you, do you not see that to Allah prostrates whoever is in the skies and in the earth and the sun and the moon and the stars and the monuments and the trees and the trading creatures and many of the people and for many application is justified and whoever Allah shames there's none who can grant honor where Allah does what he pleases. So, this was just my interpretation of these few verses. And I'll just say one more thing, the earth was given us as a gift. And it was a gift for humanity and the human being was created and established on this earth as vice chair. My heart pains to see that earth has become a commodity, land or realistic or capital of natural resources in today's material world. What are we witnessing in our world is a failure of humanity to maintain the balance. So with that, I end my slide talk and I will really appreciate your question answers and let me stop. That's actually not the verse that I read. And I want to say that for a reason. It shows how many times in the Quran, there's a similar meaning that everything in creation is purposeful. And the point of the Quran and emphasizing that everything in creation worships God or knows its Lord knows its creator is to instill within the human a respect for that and a humility that you may not understand. You may not know that everything is purposeful in this universe and everything has an inherent right to live out that path of purposefulness and of joy and of serenity. And so this is an oft repeated verse in the Quran in different ways, trying to get through kind of like the human thick skull of thinking that creation is not like us. And as Selma started by saying that they form communities like yours, then the Quran would go on to say and no less through worship and knowing their Lord and having a consciousness that we should be aware of and that we should be in awe of really. So I just wanted to add that. Thank you. Thank you for that. Yeah. Yeah, I want to hear to be here and really emphasize the points. Okay, if you have any questions here. You have a question Selma. The question is, someone is saying Billy is saying this is such a great connection to earth and climate. Thank you library. Anything Selma how do you narrow down what verses you selected for the books. Frankly, I don't know. I always feel as I'm guided. So I read Quran every day. And as I told you I was noticing these verses I was putting them on my book. So many of them actually, and then I connected with the famous scholar, you know, Imam Zed Shakir and I must thank him also because he also wrote an essay in my book and some other writers I'm so very grateful to all actually. So, so here I want to say that he told me that only on water there are 100 and some verses you know and do you want to do all do you want them all I said yes give me so that we have is collecting verses you know which we're talking about nature and but when I sat down. I don't know how I just read them again and again and again and then I just picked up these because as I told you many are repetitions and like you know trying to, you know, awaken us so that it says again and again and again some verses come back. So, I just picked up some verses which were giving me in different kind of images, like this water as I said so water is so many like picked up two verses about the water. So like that, I just did them random I mean it's again a blessing that I, I felt whatever is giving me different visual image, I do that. And, and also looking for the verses which are different, like you know giving us different lesson different wisdom different advice. So Anissa how are we going to handle the questions beyond what was in the chat. I also have a very loud thing happening on the street so if there's any more questions please bring them in. I was curious about the piece with the water bottles summer. That definitely looks like a mixed media pieces they're like is it a collage. Yeah it's a collage. Your others don't seem to have that same element. No, no, I don't do colleges already you know but as I told you in this one this one required that I didn't want to paint them somehow. And so I just did the cuttings from different magazines and put it together. And the next one also has a collage this one the food items. These I had cut from some magazines. I didn't paint them. Those are gorgeous those are really gorgeous I love those elements. It brings out it makes them so powerful and a little bit like edgier compared to the others that are more nature the color palette is so different I love it. Yeah, well thank you yeah I think it happened very naturally I do collage in my some paintings but as I said it's not pre-planned so I felt I don't want to sit and paint the food you know like you know. So I had to do this you know it's just a need as I'm working whatever it's called for you know. Here's a question for you. What are your hopes for the book. Hotema is asking what are your hopes for the book. Hopes for the book. Again I leave you up to God because I have done my project and I have done my best. I've been I'm still doing my best to let people know about it. And I'm donating this book to libraries because I want them to have it you know at least in their collections of some people will see it. And of course I'm so grateful because I printed this is self published. So I printed hundred copies to begin with and I'm so grateful to Allah. All those hundred copies were sold within three months you know. And of course these were purchased by my buyers and the Facebook friends and all those people. But now now requests are coming from different people also friends of friends you know like that way. So I did the second printing. So it's a blessing. So you have another question how long have you studied calligraphy. But before that question let me tell you the comment that came before it. I love the peaceful feeling your work implants in the heart. I wonder if you have paintings about peace and human relations. And then we'll take the question after that. So do you have paintings about peace and human relations. Yes I have several. Yeah because human you know first I was painting only humanity. People connected together. You know that was my work for many years you know connected people figures with my single line you know groups of women groups of people on the street sharing together praying together grieving together. I have several pieces like that. And but slowly slowly and then became the spiritual part of me. So I was doing a lot of calligraphy or Arabic calligraphy paintings to the same line and then slowly I have taken the soil you know this earth. And so I'm connecting everything now humanity soil and soul as I say so yeah I have many paintings. Have you studied calligraphy. Pardon me. How long have you studied calligraphy. Oh calligraphy I've studied not study actually not frankly speaking I did not go for any formal training for calligraphy. The best thing that happened in my life that I have been to Iran and Kuwait. I went after marriage I became Muslim after marriage and then I went to Iran and Kuwait and I was exposed to this beautiful calligraphy on the mosque and everywhere and I love that line because I as an artist I was trained artists when I went to this places. So I had already developed a way of working with my line. So this line was so beautiful that because it was moving from right to left and it had a meaning it was forming words. So somehow before I knew Quran. I love the calligraphy actually and I used to just copy those calligraphic verses and I continued like that until I really felt in love I wanted to learn Arabic I wanted to learn Quran that what it says and then of course in 20 years I'm deep into this. So it's a blessing. Do you have a comment I like how the images of destruction and imbalance are in a different medium and color pattern than the paintings that show harmony with the earth. I guess that's a comment but if you have something to say about that. No, I think as I told you just happened naturally like you know each verse was telling me what to do. I wasn't planning each verse was telling how to do this painting. So it went like that. And are some of the paintings available for purchase. That's another question. Yes, sure. I sold about five I think but so I have many. So where would people go to your SalamatRastu.com? Okay, that's in the chat. Yeah, yeah. Or if they, if they really like something they should reach out to me through my website. And I can. Anisa. Yes, I was putting all those chats, those links in the chat. Thelma also has an Instagram so you can follow her there. And her art is gorgeous. It's so beautiful. I love this presentation and being able to see it and so I know we've been trying to get you in for a long time. And I can't say how perfect it was to bring you during Climate Action Month because this has been just such a beautiful addition. And your art is gorgeous. Let me come on camera. There we go. And I apologize for all that outside noise. But I want to thank all of our library community for being here as well and I want to thank Dr. Basma at the Zafar for joining us from Canada. Thanks. The joy of Zoom. There are silver linings. We get to have amazing humans from all over the planet. Thank you so much and library community. We'll see you again. I hope to see you tomorrow Sunday streets in our beautiful Tenderloin. All right. Thank you. Thank you so much for inviting us. Thanks. Thank you. Bye friends. Have a good one.