MALAY LITERATURE VOLUME 26 NUMBER 1 2003

WOMEN AND BEAUTY IN

NOORDIN HASSAN’S PLAYS
Rohani Md. Yousoff
rohaniyousoff@gmail.com

School of Arts
Universiti Malaysia Sabah

Abstract

Sasterawan Negara Dato (Dr.) Noordin Hassan has often been accused of
being “women-struck” by critics who do not understand the meaning of beauty
other than the physical aspect. The objective e of this paper is to clarify this
misconception using the Islamic framework of analysis of the meanings of
“women” and “beauty”. Noordin understands the need for balance in the
life of mankind and the meaning of Divine Feminine to be an attribute of
God. Women are neither chattels nor objects of admiration to be displayed
by men, rather to be partners in life, mothers of future generations. Through
his plays, Noordin has raised the level of women characters as leaders to
demonstrate that the capability of mankind is not determined by gender but
by the knowledge within. Raised by his mother, surrounded by other women
in his growing years, it is no wonder that Noordin finds women of better
quality than men, but only women of hasanah.

Keywords: women, beauty, divine feminine, Islamic

INTRODUCTION

Women have long been the inspiration for poets, lyricists, dramatists and
novelists alike and the use of women in creative works have often symbolized
a deeper and universal meaning. Unfortunately, society in the past has limited
the role of women to wife and bearer of children, merely tools to expand
the family. The status of women has not been favourable and women have
faced greater challenges for them to overcome this and to attain equal status

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in most communities. With a few exceptions, Noordin has portrayed women

as intellectual, equal to men in terms of their qualities of leadership and most
importantly, closer to God. This is most likely due to the fact that women
are less open to temptation and are less inclined to attain wealth and power.
The weaknesses of men who look at the physical attributes and the beauty
of women are often their downfall. As Siti Zu mentioned “I am told that I
am very beautiful. Many that had claimed to be pious also come to witness
this beautiful Creation of God” (Saya dikatakan tersangat indah. Banyak
orang yang mendakwa diri alim pun datang menonton keindahan Ciptaan
Tuhan ini) (Noordin, 2000:57). Noordin has demonstrated this weakness
in his plays such as Peran and Cindai through characters that are tempted
by the physical beauty of women that have ended in disgrace. Malaysian
National Poet Laureate (Sasterawan Negara) Dato’ Dr. Noordin Hassan has
been accused of being “woman-struck” by theatre critics. This conclusion
has arisen from the strong female characters that were featured in plays.
Noordin reiterates this in his autobiography, stating that “I have often put
women up on pedestals” (kaum wanita sering saya letakkan di kemuncak)
(1996b:55). To Noordin woman is the most beautiful creation of God; he
specifically written, “To me, the most beautiful creation of God are certain
types of women” (Bagi saya makhluk Allah yang paling indah ialah wanita-
wanita yang tertentu) (1996b:56).

CONCEPT OF WOMEN

Women as the Eternal Feminine or the Divine Feminine is “...what attracts

man to transcendency” (Chevalier & Gheerbrant, 1996:374). The Holy
Qur’an states that women are “...made for you of your own kind” (Surah
An-Nahl 16:72). Hence, the laws on the treatment and the equality of women
are affirmed, for “... they (women) have rights similar (to those of their
husbands) over them to what is reasonable” (Surah Al-Baqarah 1:228). In
his final sermon, Muhammad SAW reminded his ummah, “You have your
rights over wives and they have rights over you” (Yusuf Islam, 1995:36).
In guarding the chastity of women, “... there must be four witnesses from
amongst you against them” (Surah An-Nisa’ 4:16). The Qur’an also states
that women should be closely guarded and treated gently, “As if they were
eggs preserved” (Surah As-Saffat 37:49). Muhammad SAW affirms this as
he said, “Do treat you women well and be kind to them, for they are your
partners and committed helpers” (Yusuf Islam, 1995:36). In Christianity, “…
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the Virgin Mary, is at its most perfect embodiment…” as she is above all,
“…chaste and bright Energy” (Chevalier & Gheerbrant, 1996:374). Woman
being the symbol of a mother is associated with the earth and the sea where
both of these elements are “... symbols of the mother’s body” (Chevalier &
Gheerbrant, 1996:677).

CONCEPT OF BEAUTY

The concept and definition of Beauty have been laboured in different times,
from Ancient Greek to Muslim philosophers with not one similar conclusion.
In modern times, beauty is limited to the physical aspects. In Islam Majesty
(Jalal) is the exemplar of masculinity, while Beauty (Jamal) is the illustration
of femininity. In Islamic poetry the physical attributes of woman that attracts
man is Divine Beauty. Aymard and Laude expresses Schuon’s statement that,
“Beauty (Jamal) is the complementary pole of Majesty (Jalal), as Mercy is
that of Rigor” (2004:108). They added:

It expresses itself in a more particular way – in relation to the extrinsic Mercy

of Ar-Rahȋm – through the quality of Ikram, the “welcoming of benevolent
Generosity” that “confers unexpected ascensional graces”. Thus Beauty
participates in the deepest dimension of the Divine and reveals itself as at
one dilating and unifying.

According to al-Ghazali, beauty is divided into the external as perceived

by the five senses and internal beauty that can be perceived by the heart
(qalb), intellect (‘aql) and insight (nūr al-basīrah) (Ihya’, Vol. 6). Divine
Beauty is based on the ninety-nine names and attributes of Allah SWT or
asmāullah al-husnā and these attributes are manifested when reflected in
human beings (Burrell & Nazeh, 2007:149). In fact, all these attributes are
already reflected in man when God created him. As stated in the Qur’an,
“Verily, We created man in the best stature” (Surah At-Tin 95:4). God is
beautiful and He loves beauty and beautiful people are people of good
character and “Allah loves Al-Muhsinun (good-doers)” (Surah Al-Baqarah
1:195). With beauty comes love and al-Ghazali insists that love comes from
a heart that has knowledge and perfection (ibid). He propounds that love
is the fruit of knowledge (ma‘rifa) and love amplifies with the increase of
idra’ (understanding and knowledge) (al-Ghazali, 2000: Vol 12). Hence, to
know God is to know love, for the highest level of love is mahabbah which
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is stronger than the pleasures of life, the external pleasures based on the
five senses. On the understanding of beauty by Frithjof Schuon, Aymard
and Laude propound:

Beauty is the meeting place–in Perfection–of Absoluteness and Infinitude,

the second being reflected in the mysterious character of beauty and the first
in its formal regularity”
(2004:108-09).

The Holy Prophet Muhammad was reported to have said, “The whole
world is a provision, and the best object of benefit of the world is the pious
woman” (Saddiqi, 2000: 907). Schuon reminds us that, “… it would be wrong
to conceive of the importance of beauty only as a concession to the world,
namely to human weakness” (Aymard & Laude, 2004:123).

NOORDIN’S WOMEN OF BEAUTY

According to Noordin, beauty is not only in the physical sense but also in the
character of woman as well as her intellect. He had repeatedly mentioned,1
that a woman has inner strength, which is not aggressive and obvious as in
the physical strength of a man. The personality and convictions of a truly
good woman can turn her into a motivator: the kind of motivation that would
change circumstances; the kind of motivation which is exemplary not only to
women but the community. To numerous other people who need to classify
and categorise, it would be feminism. In giving his women characters this
kind of strength, Noordin has brought the level of beauty of woman to that
of “morally beautiful” and “intelligently beautiful”. In his review of Sabri
Yunus’ telemovie entitled “Sanggul Beracun” Noordin discusses the main
character, Siti Aminah, who was born disfigured, but is beautiful to God.2 As
Siti Zu in Disentuh Bulan Pun said, “It is said that God is Beautiful and loves
Beauty”3 (Noordin, 2000:57). All goodness comes with grace. In discussing
women and beauty in Noordin’s plays, “The feminine theophany must be
comprised in the most general framework of the theomorphic character of
humanity” (Aymard and Laude, 1996:123). The play of gender role is not
an issue.
Apart from four special women (mother, great-grandmother, sisters)
strong impressions were made by the women Noordin knew during his
childhood, women that supported his imagination through their antics and

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their experiences, women like Mak Gemuk, Mak Tum, Bibi, the beauty of
Maini and many others. These women have been the inspirations in creating
the characters in his plays. There are also women of minor characters in
his plays; minor only in their roles but strong, often stronger than the main
characters. As a literary device, there are women who are of not good character,
though very few, that are used to emphasise the effect of negative external
influences. However, by featuring women as strong characters do not mean
that men are not featured as strong characters in Noordin’s plays. Yet it would
seem that weaknesses of mankind in the abuse of power, greed, jealousy–the
antagonists - are mainly male characters. Perhaps it is because men are the
ones with power and the temptation is greater. Men were always given the
chances to be better educated in comparison to women during the Forties,
Fifties and to a lesser degree, as late as the Sixties. Back then, men were
expected to support the family and it was thought that the bread-winner must
then be given better opportunities. Women were expected to marry, bear and
raise children. The “good” male characters, too, have their own strengths,
convictions and beauty. It is this attitude that Noordin has successfully
challenged his audience in his plays, which some have misconstrued as being
“woman-struck”. Whether their developments are due to their own initiative,
or in more fortunate circumstances (as princesses), the female characters in
Noordin’s plays do motivate other women to improve themselves and change
their situations and positions. This paper will elaborate Noordin’s concept
of women and beauty through the female characters in their different roles
in separate plays. In developing and defining the female characters, Noordin
has been guided by the laws as defined in Islam. An Arab proverb says that
the intelligence of woman is in her beauty and the beauty of man is his
intelligence (Aymard & Laude, 1996:125), but Noordin refutes this in his
portrayal of the female characters in his plays. Not only are the characters
women of physical beauty, but al-Muhsinūn (good-doers) with hearts that
have the right kind of knowledge. Due to constraints of space, this paper
will briefly discuss the women characters in selected plays and delve deeper
into the beauty of two main female characters in two plays.
In Sirih Bertepuk Pinang Menari, Noordin reiterates the “similar rights”
of women, made “of your own kind” as mentioned above. When Tengku
Puteri Kamaliah questions Ihsan why Eve was Created from the left flank
of Adam, “...not the head, hand or any other part” (Noordin, 1997b:62).
Noordin affirms what is stated in the Holy Qur’an that women are, “From
a single person, Created, of like nature,” (Surah An-Nisa’: 1), an indication

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that women should be treated by men with as much care as other parts of
the male body. In another Surah, “That He did create/In pairs–male and
female” (Surah Najm 53:45) on which Abdullah Yusuf Ali explains that,
“...each sex performs its proper function, and yet its wonderful working is
part of the creative process of God...” (Abdullah Yusuf Ali, 1946: footnote
no. 5116, 1450). Puteri Kamaliah’s knowledge and understanding is that “...
women are joined to men. Not superior, not slave, but a friend. And there is
no difference in the eyes of God” (Noordin, 1997b: 63). Puteri Kamaliah’s
beauty is her intellect and courage in leaving her country to save it from the
greed of Zahiruddin Syah.
In selecting the name Cindai, Noordin reiterates his belief that women
have inner strength, like the cloth cindai, which is soft to the touch but
strongly woven. In the play Cindai, a performance is staged at the Corronation
(pertabalan) of Tengku Puteri Sharifah Salwa Salamiah as the crown princess
(pemangku pemerintah negara) (Noordin, 1997a:11). In the performance
Cindai, a court dancer, had been accused of being in an uncompromising
situation (bermukah) with Iskandar, and is said to have done this with eight
other men. This upsets Tengku Puteri and that night she dreams that Cindai
and Iskandar come to inform her that they have been wrongly accused
(fitnah). In Islam the offence of fitnah on chaste women is stated in the
Qur’an as follows:

And those who accuse chaste women, and produce not four witnesses, flog
them with eighty stripes, and reject their testimony forever. They indeed
are the fâsiqûn.

(Surah An-Nur 24:4).

Tengku Puteri’s strength lies in defying the Wazir who feels that the
people should be left ignorant, to preserve the name of the court. She takes
it in her stride to change the situation by clearing the good name of Cindai;
she goes out to the villages and re-enacts the actual cause of death of Cindai.
Despite being a court dancer, Cindai, is not without education, when Pak
Ku asks, “How have you learned to speak in that manner?” She replies, “I
learned from the imam at the palace.” Although of different backgrounds
and status, both of the female characters in this play are beautiful. Tengku
Puteri’s beauty lies in her strength and courage for righteousness, while
Cindai’s in her faith in God and the goodness of man.

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Likewise in Bukan Lalang Ditiup Angin, Kintan is strong enough to

lead her people from the suppression of Culan. She meets with the men to
discuss the rights of the villagers (mainly farmers) who wanted to get out
of their positions through violence, but Kintan tells them not to spill blood
and not to hate (Noordin, 1996a: 29 & 38). The beauty in Kintan is her
sensibility (perasaannya halus) and Kintan does not act without knowledge
for she has studied with Hadi, “Kintan juga bertindak dengan ilmu. Dia
belajar dengan Hadi” (Noordin, 1996a: 36 & 37) also a woman of faith as
she replies to Culan who tells her to ask her God (Tanyalah Tuhan kau…).
She replies that she does not need to question (God) as she has faith in Him
(Aku tak payah menyoal. Aku beriman kepada-Nya) (Noordin 1996a:46).
Kintan is a symbolism for a mother or the land and in this play, specifically
the country. The play was first staged in 1970, one year after the race riots
of 13 May 1969 that left a dark spot in the Malaysian history. She strives
for peace and does not believe violence is the solution to the differences
between Culan and the farmers. Nevertheless, Kintan is sacrificed, killed
by the very bullets she fights against.
Sapura in Anak Tanjung (Noordin, 2006) is another character that
symbolizes the country. Her role as the fisherman’s wife reflects the state of
the Malays before and during the British Occupation of Penang. When she
rejects the marriage proposal from her employer, Brown, Noordin is saying
that the country rejects the “marriage” of Malaya and England (2006:157).
Sapura progresses in confidence as she educates herself and matures, depicting
the growth of the nation. Her faith in the power of Allah SWT gives her
the confidence to go out to work despite the Japanese soldiers patrolling
everywhere. She truly believes that she will be safe as she is protected by
Allah SWT and does not need Hamid to accompany her. Noordin expresses
that Sapura’s strength is in her belief that Allah SWT protects her, a clear
assertion of her faith. Sapura’s beauty lies in her desire to improve herself
and her faith in God.
“Rahimah” is derived from “ar-Rahim,” one of the names of Allah
(SWT), which means “Merciful” or compassionate. As her name suggests,
Intan Siti Rahimah is a compassionate being who cares about the welfare of
the villagers. The second wife of Dolah in 1400 (Noordin, 1997a) she is the
“jewel” (Intan) of goodness and is used as a vehicle by Noordin to contrast
Dolah’s wrong-doings. Intan Siti Rahimah sees the truth from her observation,
as it corresponds with the reality of the situation in the village. Intan Siti
Rahimah spends her time helping the villages and going to the musollah

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(mosque), establishing her search for revealed truth (Al-Ḥạ qq). An ousted
Siti Rahimah depicts this piety and righteousness when she earns a living
making mats, using her knowledge of Islamic motifs as designs of the mats.
The epitomes of beauty of female characters are Nur Atma in Jangan
Bunuh Rama-rama (Don’t Kill the Butterflies) and Unku Anis in Intan Yang
Tercanai (A Polished Jewel). These two are the most enlightened characters
in Noordin’s plays. Nur Atma begins by offering peace before explaining
she is old. However, in his stage directions Noordin explicitly describes the
character as around twenty-five years old, basically translated as “Although
she is physically old, her eyesight is weak, her ears hard of hearing and her
steps not so steady, it is only the sangkar (cage) which is old.” The water in
the bowl is reduced (Noordin, 2002: 202). In an interview Noordin said “When
you rear a bird, you put water in the geluk (bowl) in the bird’s cage. When
the water finishes, what do you do?”4 The water in the bowl symbolizes the
knowledge which is absorbed and has to be replaced with more knowledge
as the search for knowledge is endless.
When Nur Atma says she sees the colours changing, it means that
through time she has been changed; she is “…charged with a religious
quality” (Chevalier & Cheerbrant, 1996:216). With the additional knowledge
that she gains, Nur Atma is being regenerated by being created anew. She
has been showered with rain, symbolizing that she has been blessed as rain
is a blessing and she is also blown by the wind. According to Chevalier &
Cheerbrant, “...both the Book of Psalms and the Koran equate winds with
angels as God’s messengers” (111). Nur Atma also has been touched by
the moon, and the moon (qamar) is often mentioned in the Holy Qur’an as
one of the signs of Allah’s SWT powers.5 The moon, which does not have
its own light, reflects the light of the sun and Nur Atma has been touched
and blessed with the power of God’s Light. The moon also symbolizes the
passing of “...living time, which it measures by its successive and regular
phases” (Chevalier & Gheerbrant, 1996:669).
As Nur Atma II says, “If Atma is not seen here or there, it is all right”
(Sekiranya Atma tidak kelihatan di sana sini, tak mengapa) (Noordin, 2002:
202). Even if the moon cannot be seen one knows it is there and if the “soul”
is not seen, perhaps it is travelling to another state. Nur Atma has also heard
the talkin (last prayers). It seems she has “died” and been reborn, as she
repeats, her physical form is old while her soul is not; being “reborn” in the
sense of the purification of the soul. As Burckhardt says:

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The mirror of the heart is compared with the moon, which…reflects the
light of the sun. The moon is the soul (nafs), which is illumined by the
pure Spirit (Ruh), but, being still bound to time, its receptivity has to suffer
change (talwin) (119).

According to Corbin (1998), the hermeneutics of symbols (ta’wil or

ta‘bir) is the meeting “between God’s descent towards the creature and the
creature’s ascent toward the Creator,” as when one meets halfway when
crossing a bridge, which “transmutes sensory data and rational concepts into
symbols (maẓāhir)” which is to say, “to perceive through the figures they
manifest and which are the external hexeites” (189). This is what al-‘Arabi
refers to as “…spirits that take flight beyond matter” (Austin, 2). Yet this
encounter cannot happen without Nur Atma’s own effort; when God gives,
the receiver must have an understanding of his Creator. It is the reciprocity
of Allah’s love, as ‘A’isha r.a reported that the Holy Prophet SAW said, “He
who loves to meet Allah, Allah also loves to meet him” (‘Abdul Hamid,
2000: Chap. MCXX, 1702).
In accordance with Eliade, “The atman is identified with the entity
that is to be found at the heart of man, in the form of “a light in the heart”
of Nur Atma (Beane & Coty, 1975:329). In choosing to name his character
Nur Atma, Noordin said he added “Nur” to “Atma” which is a combination
of Nur as in “light” and Atma as in “soul”.6 Guénon explains that Atma is
the Universal Spirit (1981:43). As he clarifies, “The “Self” in relation to a
being, is properly speaking the Personality.” Thus:

The Personality is an immediate determination, primordial and not

particularized, of the principle which in Sanskrit is called Ātmā or Paramātmā,
and which, in default of a better term, we may call the “Universal Spirit”

(1981:30).

It is reminded that “Spirit” here is not to be taken in the Western understanding

of the word. By creating two characters, Nur Atma I and Nur Atma II, Noordin
is presenting the two forms, the spiritual and the physical or the Spirit and
the Intellect. The use of Nur Atma is best described by Guénon as:
The “Self” as such, is never individualized and cannot become so,
for since it must always be considered under the aspect of eternity and
immutability which are necessary attributes of pure Being (not susceptible
of any particularization) which could cause it to be “other than itself” (1981:
29). Nur Atma has experienced the light which signifies a meeting with the
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ultimate reality when she is conscious of her “self”; she tells Tuk Mah that
she is re-born (lahir kembali), which means she has begun life again with
her “reserve of vital forces intact, as it was at the moment of birth” (Beane
& Doty, 1975:44). The state of being re-born is symbolic of being cleansed.
Eliade explains this process as the beginning of “...life over again with his
reserve of vital forces intact, as it was at the moment of birth (ibid). When
Nur Atma speaks of being physically young and yet old, Noordin is saying
that she has reached another level of existence, a transcendence of the human
condition. This puts her in what Guénon describes as the “...two faces of
a single reality” (1988:121). The first is the state of “being” and the other
in the state of “knowing” which means “the realization of the total being
(which) implies total and absolute knowledge” (ibid). Eliade elaborates it
as “...not only a metaphysical knowledge translated into terms of rupture
and death (it) also implies a consequence of a mystical nature: rebirth to
a non-conditional mode of being (which is) absolute freedom” (Beane &
Coty, 1975:312). The light that is with Nur Atma symbolizes ascension of
the soul to another plane. As stated in the Qur‘an:

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of His Light is
as a niche and within it a lamp: the lamp is in a glass, the glass as it were a
brilliant star, lit from a blessed tree, an olive, neither of the east nor of the
west, whose oil would almost glow forth, though no fire touched it. Light
upon Light! Allah guides to His Light whom He wills.

(Surah An-Nur 24:35).

Nur Atma is beautiful as “Beauty determines or crystallizes the essential

Goodness of the Divine” (Aymard and Laude, 1996:109).
In the play Intan Yang Tercanai, Ungku Anis is referred to as a polished
jewel (intan tercanai) by her friend, Danial Mubarak. Ungku Anis’ willingness
to follow Daniel when he carried the kavadi is a relationship which is full
of humanism. Ungku Anis understands Daniel’s responsibility to fulfil his
mother’s obligation. But this understanding and sensitivity is not achieved by
an ordinary human being unless he or she is “polished” with the knowledge
of the Truth (al-Ḥaqq).
It is obvious that Ungku Anis has been educated well in religion as
well as Islamic mysticism, to the level of kashf,7 perhaps, says Noordin.
Hujwiri explains kashf as the unveiling or “...destruction of the veiled
object” (Nicholson, 4). This means that she has been raised in her level of

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understanding of Islam and through her dhikr is closer to Allah SWT as

she has been “unveiled”. Burckhardt says that “…there is ‘for every thing
a means of polishing it and freeing it from rust. One thing alone polishes
the heart, namely the remembrance of God (whir Allah)’…” (Burckhardt,
118) quoting a saying of the Holy Prophet. As Ungku Anis says on what
Daniel thinks of her, “...my personality, my thinking, also my knowledge,
truly makes me unusual” (Noordin: Dewan Sastera, 83). As Daniel tells
his sister, Sandha, “Her Sheikh8 is a descendent of Imam Bukhari. When
she was in Singapore, she was close to a descendent of Master Syed Noh.”
(Noordin, Dewan Sastera, 85). The polished jewel is the symbolism Noordin
uses for Ungku Anis whose full name is Ungku Intan Anis. ‘Intan’ is the
Malay word for ‘jewel’. This name is also used in Noordin’s 1400; Intan Siti
Rahimah, the second wife of the rich Dolah, who discards the name ‘Intan’
after she had leprosy. “A gem, not glass,” (Noordin, 1997b:47) says Sultan
Idris Bistari about Tengku Puteri Kamaliah, meaning a person of quality.
When asked why his choice of the main character is of royal blood, Noordin
says he had read about the princess from Kelantan who had just become
a magistrate.9 The princess could also very well be the same princess that
he knew in London that inspired the character of Tengku Puteri Kamaliah
in Sirih Bertepuk Pinang Menari. As Yatim says in the closing scene, “Her
mind; her intellect; her feelings.
Ungku Anis who has been well educated in religion has also had the
opportunity to study abroad, just like Daniel (Nordin, 1997b). During
Noordin’s days as a student in England, only the rich, elite and the poor yet
excellent students (like himself) could afford to study abroad.
It is this understanding that has polished Ungku Anis and has brought
the awareness to Daniel until he embraces Islam and chooses the name
Danial Mubarak. As Ungku Anis says, “Daniel was searching for a religion
that truly convinces him.” Noordin voices the changes made to religious
traditions which he expresses as “...perhaps created with the right intention,
but most likely exaggerated to gallant the ego of that religion (Noordin,
Dewan Sastera, 84).
He also made the decision not only because he was awed by Ungku
Anis but also, as his sister, Sandha, says, “Danial, is educated. He can think”
(ibid). To Noordin, a person who can think, uses his ‘aql, who knows “the
true nature of this material world” as well as the other that has the “power
to understand the secrets of different learning,” (Fazlul-Karim, 5) who can

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see the Truth of Islam, as Danial has. Three months after carrying the kavadi
to pay penance for his mother, Danial embraced Islam.
Noordin Hassan understands the teachings of Islam and puts his respect
for women into practice and further expounds his understanding through
his plays, to reiterate the teachings, not to pursue an external feeling but an
internal understanding of the workings of God. He understands that beautiful
women are those that understand and follow the teachings of the Holy Qur’an,
a manifestation of the Goodness of God. This manifestation is not exclusive
to any gender as Beauty can be incorporated in man and the first step would
be to emulate at least one attribute of Allah SWT.

CONCLUSION

In analyzing Noordin’s dramas it is necessary to look at the strength of the

female characters and what they represent. The aspect of beauty in women
must be looked from various angles other than the physical beauty. With
the knowledge of Noordin’s understanding of Islam, the Islamic perspective
then applies and Beauty as an emulation of an attribute of Allah SWT brings
the level of the female characters to a higher level. The aspects of beauty in
the women in Noordin’s dramas are intelligence, knowledgeable (worldly
and religious knowledge), brave and honourable.

NOTES

1 Conversations and interviews with Noordin and the author began as early as the 1980s.
The author has worked with Noordin as actor, director and producer of his plays for
stage and television.
2 Material yet to be published.
3 Researcher’s translation. Original lines “Katanya Tuhan itu indah dan suka kepada
keindahan”.
4 Interview, 30th June, 2009.
5 See, among others, Surahs 10:15, 14: 37, 22: 18, 41: 37.
6 Interview: 21st February, 2008.
7 Kashf: a spiritual state of Islamic Mysticism.
8 Mystic master.
9 Interview: 5th February, 2008. In actual fact Her Highness the Raja Perempuan’s name
is Tengku Anis and her daughter is Tengku Amalin.

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MALAY LITERATURE VOLUME 26 NUMBER 1 2003

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