The Significance of Signs through Some Selected Qu’ranic Texts: A Unifying Means or a Dividing Line?

Abstract

Along the history of mankind, Islamic religious signs have been used by man. They have allowed Muslims to establish an individual relationship with some metaphysical powers. At the same time, they have helped him express a sense of belonging to particular religious community, Islamic religious symbols and their representations constitute no exception. They are endowed with some unifying and dividing aspects which are seemingly the product of that traditional confrontation between hard-line believers and their moderate or more liberal coreligionists. In the current world situation, these signs seem to be under the effects of a variety of internal and external dynamics, making them a vital means in a globally-waged culture war between East and West, currently termed North and South