Illuminated Margins

|| Of the Project ||

“People are like birds. Each individual has their own song, and God understands them all. Yet each of us apprehends only a single fragment of God… Still, it is vital for each person to know their own song, and to strive to discern, if only a little, the songs of others.”

– Jacqueline Kahanoff.

The book Illuminated Margins offers an illustrated interpretation of a tale from ancient Arabic wisdom literature, translated from Arabic into Hebrew. The story, penned by the early Iraqi scholar al-Jahiz (776–868/9), presents the deathbed testament of a roguish beggar-miser to his son, and the unexpected encounter between a classical, ornate style of writing and a “world from below” creates a rich system of contrasts that is both enlightening and funny.

The book aims to invite Hebrew readers to become acquainted with a fragment of the beauty, richness, and sophistication of classical Arabic literature, in the shadow of a racist climate that deliberately seeks to flatten and diminish Arabic culture.

Arabic-Hebrew translation and research: Shahar Livne
Art, paper-cut illustrations and graphic design: Shahar Livne