Was Sexuality really suppressed by Islamic Caliphates?
Was Sexuality really suppressed by Islamic Caliphates?
“What about Qasr al-Mshatta and Khirbat al-Mafjar?”, asked one reader, following my recent essay on Egypt. “Don’t these show that the Umayyad Caliphate celebrated sexuality?”.
Actually, this exception proves the rule.
Qasr al-Mshatta is an unfinished palace at Mshatta near Amman (Jordan). Dating to the 8th century, it is both grand and sexual.
The audience hall of the qasr (palace) is colourfully decorated by a wall of barely draped nudes. An admiring crowd behind a balustrade looks on, eyeing her physique.
N.B. Several people have contacted me saying they can’t download full posts. There may be a technical glitch. Please try logging in and out of Substack. If that fails, contact me or Substack.
A female dancer (seemingly nude) also appears in the audience hall.
Statues of female dancers have also been found, with fabric falling to the floor.
Yet more evidence can be marshalled from Khirbat al-Mafjar, built between 724-743 CE? She is anything but modest.
Surely this evidence shows that Islamic caliphates did NOT repress sexuality?
Well, the art is certainly sexual, but the background story is even more revealing.
Image-making is prohibited
The Hadith expressly forbid ‘image-making’.
‘Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Those who will be most severely punished by Allah on the Day of Resurrection will be the image-makers”. (Reported by al-Bukhari, see al-Fath, 10/382).
Yet Qusayr Amra’s wall painting clearly shows six kings! They are even named. Greek and Arabic inscriptions designate Caesar (the Byzantine emperor), Khosrow (the Sassanian king), Roderic (the last visigothic king) and the Negus (king of Abyssinia). The other two kings are thought to be the emperor of China and the khaqan (ruling prince) of the Turks.
Whoever commissioned this art was not very devout.
Both buildings were short-lived
Qasr al-Mshatta was left unfinished, Khirbat al-Mafjar was destroyed in an earthquake in 749. It was not restored. This indicates low demand.
Umayyad caliph al-Walid II
Both palaces - Qasr al-Mshatta and Khirbat al-Mafjar - are thought to have been decorated by Umayyad caliph al-Walid II.
Given the caliph’s power to commission whatever he wished, sexualised art does not reveal wider culture, it merely reflects his individual preferences. What really matters is how he was perceived by the wider community. So was al-Walid II championed as a great hero of the arts and culture?
No!
al-Walid was widely vilified!
Arab sources condemn him as depraved, immoral and licentious. Al-Tabari begins his account of al-Walid's murder by describing his vices of women and wine. Al-Baladhuri says that al-Walid's first priority upon becoming caliph was to marry his beloved. He lacked proper commitment to public office. Yazid b ‘Anbasa (speaking for a mob) scorned his drinking, debauchery, and contempt for God’s commands.
Historian Stephen Judd suggests that al-Walid’s behaviour was fairly typical for the Umayyads, but he was singled out for criticism because he indulged in public. So even if others did the same in privacy, al-Walid was despised because
“He displayed his sins boldly, even proudly, for all to see”
This was too much. al-Walid ruled for one year ( 743–44) and was assassinated.
Every society has private dissidents, there is always great heterogeneity, but under religious authoritarianism, they are heavily repressed.
