aẓ-Ẓāhir

The Manifest, above all, evident in His signs

Begin the series ↓

Recited as it sounds in the Qur'an, 57:3.

Heard together with: al-Awwal / al-Ākhir / aẓ-Ẓāhir / al-Bāṭin

Start with what we know

Then take away everything it needs. What is left is not a bigger version of us. It is the Name.

Episode 1

In us

We see a thin band of the spectrum.

But: Most of reality is invisible to us.

Episode 2

In nature

Mantis shrimp UV/polarised vision; bee nectar guides.

Episode 3

At our best

Webb infrared deep field.

But: Every instrument reveals one layer and hides others.

Episode 4

The Break

Take away a viewer, a wavelength, a medium.

He is not hidden by distance, but by being everywhere evident.

Read: 57:3. Muslim 2713a: 'Thou art Evident and there is nothing above Thee'.

From the tradition: Ghazālī (al-Maqṣad): 'He is hidden, though manifest, because of the intensity of His manifestness'; His light is the veil of His light.

On screen

The Sphere is still a shape. aẓ-Ẓāhir is not a bigger shape in a higher world.

Where it shows up

In scripture: Q 57:3; 41:53; Ps 19.
The same thread in Jewish and Christian scripture: Romans 1:20; Ps 19:2. Moderate.
In the universe: Webb deep field.
In nature: Bee UV vision.
In people: Overview effect.
In science: Electromagnetic spectrum.

Living it

Look for signs.

Its kind

Capacity: a quality we know a little of: hearing, knowing, seeing.

In the Qur'an: 57:3