Exploring Technological Mediation in Sufi Spiritual Practices
Image is modified from the margin of a page of Rumi's Masnavi. The original image is hosted by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Exploring Technological Mediation in Sufi Spiritual Practice
Co-authoring with Sandjar Kozubaev
Design research and HCI increasingly explore the intersection of technology and spirituality. We investigated Sufi spiritual practices of group zikr, a ritual practice of remembrance of God. We focus on zikr groups that offer online or hybrid participation. We conducted a qualitative study using interviews with practitioners and collaborative autoethnography as researchers/practitioners. Our findings surface themes of (i) shared spiritual energy, (ii) sensory experiences’ role in spiritual energy, (iii) impact of technological mediation on sensory and spiritual experiences, and the (iv) importance of community. Our discussion contributes design considerations for techno-spirituality around (1) attunement, (2) practical audiovisual suggestions, and (3) ‘sensational forms’. Overall, we offer detailed experiential accounts of entanglements of sensory perception, spirituality, and attunement, and present generative design reflections suggesting avenues of further design research in supporting religious, faith-based, and/or spiritual practices in HCI.
Papers
"Tuning in and Listening to the Current": Understanding Remote Ritual Practice in Sufi Communities. 2024. Sandjar Kozubaev, Noura Howell. Designing Interactive Systems Conference. pdf
Sandjar and I also have a workshop paper entitled "Reflecting on the Role of Embodiment in Sufi Zikr" in the NordiCHI workshop Navigating Intersections of Religion/Spirituality and Human-Computer Interaction .
2023 - ongoing