Introduction
The material approach to religion implies the consideration of sensory experience as its central part. From this perspective, the perception of reality is based on the senses, which affect the aesthetics of one or another religious practice. This process is not incidental since the interpretation of human destiny and divine plan is possible primarily through the use of hearing and sight (Hanash, 2017). The reflection of their connection to the Sacred can be explicitly seen in the world religions, and their views on aesthetics present the patterns of cognition conditioned by senses. Hence, the paper aims to examine the sonic aesthetics in Byzantine chant and the Islamic approach to this notion in order to reveal the interrelation of sensory perception and religious arts.
The Sonic Aesthetics in Byzantine Chant
The first example of the use of senses is the sound of chanting, which was widely used by Byzantine churches. In this case, this aspect of worshiping could serve as an “icon” and attract people to them. One of the most known religious sites incorporating this element in its activity was Emperor Justinian’s sixth-century church of Hagia Sophia. It had a hypnotic impact on its visitors due to a specific organization of space that creates inimitable acoustic sounds (Pentcheva & Abel, 2017). Since this aesthetical side of its services was a unique phenomenon, it can be viewed as a symbol of this cathedral.
This circumstance also adds to the emotional aesthetics of Orthodox worship, which is an essential part of the process. Thus, it is reflected in the liturgy, which appeals not only to the people’s intellect but also to their emotions and beauty perception (Pentcheva & Abel, 2017). This ceremony incorporates music as one of the central elements, and such an orientation of religious practices on it is confirmed by the history of Christianity (Pentcheva & Abel, 2017). In this way, it can be concluded that the emotional response of people is reflected in the accompaniment in the form of chanting focused on hearing as the principal sense in the matter.
The Islamic Aesthetics and Quranic “Music”
Another example of the appeal to the human senses is Islamic aesthetics. It is different from the Christian perspective and includes elements that can be described as both plain and ornate. These characteristics attributed to the religious sites are conditional upon the rich decoration contrasting the simplicity of walls and the structures as a whole (Hanash, 2017). Together with such visual aesthetics, acoustics plays a significant role in services. However, this part of the procedure has its specificities distinguishing Islam from other religions. They use Quranic recitation that can hardly be called music due to the lack of a proper melody. It is explained by the fact that people’s perception of this aesthetical aspect is negative (Hanash, 2017). Thus, visual and acoustic components have their specificities but are both vital for religion.
Conclusion
To summarize, world religions tend to incorporate sensual perceptions in their services, thereby attracting more people. As can be seen from the history of Christianity and the church of Hagia Sophia and the traditional Islamic views on beauty, combining simple and luxurious elements, aesthetics is the central part of services. In the former’s case, they are oriented on people’s hearing as the primary sense, whereas the latter includes both visual and acoustic components. Thus, the material perspective on religions can accurately present the instruments used by them.
References
Hanash, I. M. (2017). The theory of Islamic art: Aesthetic concept and epistemic structure. The International Institute of Islamic Thought.
Pentcheva, B. V., & Abel, J. S. (2017). Icons of sound: Auralizing the lost voice of Hagia Sophia. Speculum, 92(S1), S336–S360. Web.