A Saudi woman and a French-born jewellery designer who converted to Islam are creating one-of-a-kind prayer beads made from rare stones. Customers believe the beautiful handiwork can add a new spirit and dimension to the act of worship.
The beads are black coral and amber and too big for everyday use. But then everything about this handmade misbah is larger than life, including the price - Dh22,000.
Somewhere between a prayer aid and a fashion accessory, the designer misbah - also called a subha - has found a growing market, with collectors prepared to pay tens of thousands of dirhams for the most sought-after examples.
"When I come to chose a misbah, I feel it chooses me as well," explains Saied Layla Azia Al Marzougi, who describes herself as a fashion-conscious wife and mother from Al Ain.
"It's not a typical misbah you can get from anywhere," she says. "It's the start of a relationship."
Mrs Al Marzougi is referring to the strings of prayer beads produced by a unique collaboration between a Saudi woman and a French jewellery designer who has converted to Islam.
The Zahrat Al Madina collection is the work of Mariam Fatima Gouzon, who last month brought her latest designs to Abu Dhabi for her growing client base in the UAE.
Originally from a village in south-east France, Ms Gouzon already had a reputation as a high-end jewellery designer when her architect husband was posted to Jeddah in the late 1980s.
She continued her work, and after two years moved again, this time to Medina, the burial place of the Prophet Mohammed.
By then she had converted to Islam - "by the grace of Allah" - and changed her name from Danielle to Miriam. "Long before I became a Muslim - since childhood - I was interested in antique jewellery and stones," she says.
In Medina she saw a misbah made from beads of kahraman, a rare and precious type of amber. "So I started to make one, putting it together from old necklaces." While at prayers she showed the beads to friends, who "loved it."
After making more sets for her friends, a new business idea began to evolve. Eventually she set up Zahrat Al Madina with a close Saudi friend, Zainab Abdullah.
The success of the venture means she has spent much of the past three and a half years on the road visiting Austria, India, Pakistan, South Africa and Yemen.
Her clients number several members of the Saudi royal family, including Princess Maha Bint Prince Turki Bin Abdul Mohsen and her mother. The most popular sets have 100 beads, although male customers prefer a single string with 33.
What makes the beads unique is the way the stones are chosen. "We buy the stones from very different places around the world," says Zainab Abdullah.
The gemstone known as "Ageeg Al Yemani" is imported from Yemen "and is rare because it is the one element and stone that brings together the traits of all the stones. Even the Prophet Mohammed had a ring made from it."
"There are certain stones that are the creation of God, with certain traits that balance out what your body needs, " she says. "When you use it in prayer, you just make that experience deeper."
Other stones come from Brazil and India, with turquoise imported through Iran. One stone, found in the south-western United States, is so valuable that it is used by on special request.
A set made for a sheikha in the UAE cost Dh45,000. "It was the most expensive we ever sold," says Ms Abdullah.
The most expensive misbah in the current collection is made from black coral inlaid with silver, while at the other end of the scale, a subha made from freshwater pearls sells for a more modest Dh900.
Black coral, Ms Abdullah says,is known in Arabic as "Yusur", meaning ease.
"One subha takes so much time to do," she says."It's like music, a rhythm. If we did two alike, it would be more of a business, but we don't see it like that. To us it is our feeling."
The months Shaban and Ramadan are the business partners' busiest time, along with Haj.
The two women visit customers in their homes, with each misbah marked with a 21-carat gold-plated silver tag bearing the name of the Prophet on one side and the company's initials on the other.
Asked if it is appropriate to spend so much money on a simple tool for praying, Ms Gouzon answers: "We are always buying expensive stuff for everything, whether bags or even shoes. Isn't it more important, if we have the means, to spend on the act of worshipping?"
All her customers so far have been Muslims.
If a non-Muslim asked to buy one of her sets, she says, "I would ask them first; why do you want to buy a Muslim subha? It's precious and it should be in the hands that would treat them well and for what it is valued."
Mrs Al Marzougi says she had worried that spending so much money on a misbah "might seem like showing off."
She recently "fell in love with a pearl misbah" which became her most expensive purchase, but that the designer explained that "pearls are from the strong stones that can bear the heavy meaning of the name of Allah. She told me, 'With time you will understand'."
"I have bought many misbah in my life from many different places. With this collection it's different. You know for a fact that these were made with good intention and purpose.
Mrs Al Marzougi says the French-born designer has added "a new spirit and dimension to the world of misbah. You feel you have a relation with it, as if it is alive and talking to you."
balhashemi@thenational.ae
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
UAE v Zimbabwe A, 50 over series
Fixtures
Thursday, Nov 9 - 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 11 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Monday, Nov 13 – 2pm, Dubai International Stadium
Thursday, Nov 16 – 2pm, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 18 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
The Kingfisher Secret
Anonymous, Penguin Books
Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
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RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Top financial tips for graduates
Araminta Robertson, of the Financially Mint blog, shares her financial advice for university leavers:
1. Build digital or technical skills: After graduation, people can find it extremely hard to find jobs. From programming to digital marketing, your early twenties are for building skills. Future employers will want people with tech skills.
2. Side hustle: At 16, I lived in a village and started teaching online, as well as doing work as a virtual assistant and marketer. There are six skills you can use online: translation; teaching; programming; digital marketing; design and writing. If you master two, you’ll always be able to make money.
3. Networking: Knowing how to make connections is extremely useful. Use LinkedIn to find people who have the job you want, connect and ask to meet for coffee. Ask how they did it and if they know anyone who can help you. I secured quite a few clients this way.
4. Pay yourself first: The minute you receive any income, put about 15 per cent aside into a savings account you won’t touch, to go towards your emergency fund or to start investing. I do 20 per cent. It helped me start saving immediately.
Results
5pm: Al Maha Stables – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Reem Baynounah, Fernando Jara (jockey), Mohamed Daggash (trainer)
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: AF Afham, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Emirates Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ghallieah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout
6.30pm: Emirates Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Yas Xmnsor, Saif Al Balushi, Khalifa Al Neyadi
7pm: The President’s Cup – Group 1 (PA) Dh2,500,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Somoud, Adrie de Vries, Jean de Roualle
7.30pm: The President’s Cup – Listed (TB) Dh380,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Haqeeqy, Dane O’Neill, John Hyde.
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
Match info
Liverpool 4
Salah (19'), Mane (45 2', 53'), Sturridge (87')
West Ham United 0
WWE TLC results
Asuka won the SmackDown Women's title in a TLC triple threat with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair
Dean Ambrose won the Intercontinental title against Seth Rollins
Daniel Bryan retained the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against AJ Styles
Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women's Championship against Nia Jax
Rey Mysterio beat Randy Orton in a chairs match
Finn Balor defeated Drew McIntyre
Natalya beat Ruby Riott in a tables match
Braun Strowman beat Baron Corbin in a TLC match
Sheamus and Cesaro retained the SmackDown Tag Titles against The Usos and New Day
R-Truth and Carmella won the Mixed Match Challenge by beating Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox
Profile
Company name: Jaib
Started: January 2018
Co-founders: Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour
Based: Jordan
Sector: FinTech
Total transactions: over $800,000 since January, 2018
Investors in Jaib's mother company Alpha Apps: Aramex and 500 Startups
Manchester City 4
Otamendi (52) Sterling (59) Stones (67) Brahim Diaz (81)
Real Madrid 1
Oscar (90)
WITHIN%20SAND
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The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
The biog
Name: Greg Heinricks
From: Alberta, western Canada
Record fish: 56kg sailfish
Member of: International Game Fish Association
Company: Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters
MATCH INFO
Delhi Daredevils 174-4 (20 ovs)
Mumbai Indians 163 (19.3 ovs)
Delhi won the match by 11 runs
