Ibn Fatouma's Journey

“Which is worse, my lord: one who claims divinity out of ignorance, or one who manipulates the Qur’an to serve his own personal purposes?”

The Journey of Qandil Muhammad al-Annabi, or the Arab traveler "Ibn Fatouma," whose name is derived from his mother's, is a story of a man who emigrated after failing to marry his beloved, seeking the justice that was lost in his homeland. The novel "Ibn Fatouma's Journey," first published in 1983, takes the reader on a journey around the world in search of utopia, through a captivating exploration of the most prominent social, economic, religious, and political systems, where people are caught between a harsh reality and an unattainable dream.

Throughout the novel, Ibn Fatouma moves between systems of tyranny and those driven by base instincts, but the underlying principle remains unchanged: "Every relationship is fleeting, stranger." The human journey can be summarized in two words: blood and ululations. We traverse the world, and the question haunts the wandering narrator, echoing throughout the narrative.

"If Islam is as you say, then why are the streets crowded with poor and ignorant people?"