Some Axioms on the Art of Reading/Writing

Reading and writing are two sides of the same cognitive coin.

In the Qur'an and ahadith, God both reads and writes. For the human being, then, to read and write is imitatio Dei.

Likewise, in the Qur'an and ahadith, God is Creater. For the human being, then, to create is imitatio Dei.

The human reader/writer is, likewise, a creator (an artist).

Written Torah inspires oral Torah; by the same token, Qur'an inspires ahadith. Literacy and orality are not mutually exclusive modes; yet, they do not always occur in tandem. At their best, reading and writing provoke conversation. At their worst, they stifle it.

Humanitas is cultivated by reading, writing, and conversation.

A person who exhibits humanitas is a cultivated "soul."