Having a lifelong passion for arts and crafts, 28-year-old Somaiya Nabil began producing handmade bracelets and necklaces a few years ago to give as gifts to friends and relatives.
“I was in Dragon Mart in Dubai and I saw many shops selling crystal jewellery and thought of creating my own designs,” says the Syrian-American who is based in Abu Dhabi.
This Ramadan she is making prayer beads (or misbaha) in a range of shapes and styles, using Swarovski crystals.
“I wanted to create something with an Islamic theme to match the Holy Month’s atmosphere of spirituality and worship,” she says.
“Ramadan is a month of giving. People are always looking for gift items. Any good deed we do in this month gets doubled to many.”
Prayer beads first appeared in India during the second century of Islam and are used to keep track of the invocation of certain phrases such as Subhan Allah (Glory to God), Alhamdulillah (Praise God) and Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest).
Worshippers believe they will be rewarded for reciting these phrases following each prayer.
“When you grow a seed, it doesn’t give you one seed. Instead, it gives you big rewards,” she says.
“I want to encourage the culture of giving and make people happy. When I give away prayer beads as gifts, it might encourage the person to remember Allah,” says the multimedia and PR professional.
Prayer beads, which are usually given as gifts, often by those returning from a pilgrimage, are easy to use – you simply touch one bead while reciting each supplication and invocation, which helps you to keep track of your progress.
There is often a leader bead and a tassel at the other end to mark the starting and ending points of prayers.
Nowadays, it is common to see people using fancy, expensive prayer beads to keep track of their prayers. Nabil’s misbahas vary in size – usually between 33 and 100 round glass beads, depending on the person’s needs.
“Prayer beads are just one example of my initiative. I have many more ideas,” she says. “When I started working on handmade crystal jewellery on my own, I faced hurdles.
“Now I am acquainted with what materials to use. I sew beads while watching television or sitting somewhere. It is about passion.”
Making beads is not difficult, she says, so anyone can take it up as a hobby and the materials are widely available.
The main goal of her project, which she calls Little Things (slogan: “Tiny initiative, huge impact), is to make a difference in the community and promote the concept of entrepreneurship and creativity among youth. “The initiative aims to encourage people to do small acts of kindness and giving, and also act as a network for people who want to dedicate part of their home-businesses and talent for social welfare and charity support,” she says.
Beads range in price from Dh120 to Dh280. To order prayer beads, send a request to growaseed@hotmail.com. She can also be found at www.facebook.com/LittleThingsOrg
Asmaa Al Hameli is a features writer for The National.
[ aalhameli@thenational.ae ]
