A desert is a vast expanse of sandy or pebbly terrain characterized by a scarcity or absence of vegetation due to minimal rainfall. It is an uninhabited and undeveloped region. The term ‘desert’ holds significant meaning across various realms, encompassing the most arid ecosystems on Earth as well as invoking historical, literary, philosophical, and religious concepts.
The notion of a desert is intricately intertwined with the destiny of humankind. The process of desertification transformed once dense tropical rainforests into African savannas, creating favorable conditions for early hominids to traverse the land and eventually giving rise to the ‘Homo’ genus in ancient Africa.
To a certain extent, human beings are a product of both primordial desertification and climate changes that occurred millions of years ago. Since the beginning, humans have adapted to living in desert environments, and this is not a mere coincidence. Besides the oceans, deserts constitute the largest ecosystems on our planet, covering over 50 million square kilometers of land, accounting for almost one-third of the terrestrial surface across all continents.
The emergence of early civilizations can be traced back to river oases within deserts. The fertile crescent, spanning across Mesopotamia and Egypt, witnessed the birth of stable communities founded on agriculture and animal domestication, which eventually formed pastoral societies. This prosperity led to the development of writing, governmental structures, and organized religions—the pillars of contemporary society.
The desert holds deep connections to the three major monotheistic religions, serving as a backdrop for concepts of purification and retreat. Hermitism originated there as a means to seek inner contemplation and devotion to God. Prophetic revelations and divine manifestations have occurred in these desert landscapes. It was in the desert that Yahweh revealed the Mosaic Law, where Christ introduced the New Law, and where Muhammad experienced his own revelation.
