The Pain of History: Reflections on Charles Hirschkind’s “The Feeling of History. Islam, Romanticism and Andalusia”

Abstract

In his eloquent and subtle ethnography, The Feelings of History , Charles Hirschkind carries us in a di ff erent temporal and sensorial horizon. One where Andalusia doesn ’ t appear as a bygone past but continues to inform and structure the experiences of contemporary Europe. One where Spain is not solely de fi ned through the Reconquista and its Catholic identity, but where the moorings of the Muslims and the Jews continue to animate the curved landscapes of Granada. Reading Hirschkind ’ s ethnography reminded me of an encounter with a tour guide a few years ago at the majestuous Alhambra palace in Granada. The tour was presented as an alternative, decolonial, experience of Alhambra and took place in the framework of the yearly Critical Muslim Studies Summer School organized by Hatem Bazian, Ramon Grosfoguel and Salman Sayyid. I believe the tour guide ’ s name was Abubakr, and he was of Moroccan origin but had been living in Spain for several years. As he welcomed us at the entrance gate of the palace, he started by highlighting how the architectural grandeur of the building that we were about to discover was a testament to the majesty of the emirate of Granada. His exposé started by situating the construction of the Alhambra in the history of the Nasrid Emirate, its strategic importance as a fi nal stronghold of Muslim rule in Spain, and the cultural, intellectual, and technological advancements brought by Andalusia. Then the tone of this voice changed as he arrived at the events preceding the surrender of Abu Abdallah Muhammed XII, the last Emir of Granada, to the military forces of Fer-dinand of Aragon and Isabella de Castile on the 2nd of January 1492. At that moment, he halted his words for a few seconds, clearly a ff ected, and continued with tears on his eyes: “ I am sorry, but recalling this moment is very sensitive for all Muslims in the world. ” The memory of Andalus continues to live. It lives in the tears of Abubakr, it lives in the memory of