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Contributing Writer Philosophy & the Human Condition

Rashid Noor

Rashid Noor is a writer and essayist whose work spans photography, philosophy, and the study of human restlessness. He has contributed to Light & Composition since 2013. A photograph for Rashid is always a question in disguise — and his Reflections resist easy answers, sitting instead with the productive discomfort that a good question leaves behind.

517 Published Reflections

Reflections by Rashid Noor

Showing 12 of 517 essays
The Weight of the Void Photo of the Day
November 25, 2013

The Weight of the Void

Why do we feel the need to stand at the very brink of things? Perhaps it is because the edge is the only place where the world stops pretending to be solid. We spend our lives building fences and naming boundaries, convincing ourselves that we are masters of the ground beneath our feet. Yet, when […]
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The Architecture of a Flame Photo of the Day
November 18, 2013

The Architecture of a Flame

Why do we feel the need to light a fire when the world grows dark? Perhaps it is not the absence of sun that we fear, but the silence that follows the fading of the day. We gather around small, flickering points of heat, hoping to anchor ourselves against the vast, indifferent expanse of the […]
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The Echo of the Spark Photo of the Day
November 17, 2013

The Echo of the Spark

Why do we insist on marking the passage of time with fire? Perhaps it is because we are terrified of the dark, or perhaps it is because we recognize that our own lives are merely brief, brilliant flares against an infinite, silent backdrop. We build monuments of stone and steel, hoping they will anchor us […]
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The Mirror of Elsewhere Photo of the Day
November 15, 2013

The Mirror of Elsewhere

If we are merely the sum of our shadows, do we exist when the light fails to find us? We spend our lives walking upon solid ground, convinced of our own weight and permanence, yet we are constantly haunted by our own doubles. These reflections—flickering in glass, dancing upon water, or caught in the stillness […]
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The Architecture of Echoes Photo of the Day
November 10, 2013

The Architecture of Echoes

Can stone ever truly hold the weight of a prayer, or does it merely provide a vessel for the silence that follows? We build our monuments to endure, stacking heavy materials against the sky as if to anchor our fleeting presence to the earth. Yet, there is a paradox in our permanence; the more solid […]
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The Architecture of Joy Photo of the Day
November 9, 2013

The Architecture of Joy

Why do we assume that the weight of the world is the only truth worth carrying? We spend our lives building walls against the uncertainty of tomorrow, convinced that seriousness is the only appropriate response to the passage of time. Yet, there exists a profound, unlearned wisdom in the way a face can suddenly break […]
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The Weight of Perspective Photo of the Day
November 6, 2013

The Weight of Perspective

If we could see the world as the birds do, would our grievances still hold their shape? We spend our lives walking through the narrow corridors of our own making, convinced that the walls we touch are the boundaries of the universe. We measure our days by the height of the fences we build and […]
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The Promise of the Arch Photo of the Day
October 28, 2013

The Promise of the Arch

Why do we insist on chasing the point where the earth kisses the sky, knowing full well it will retreat the moment we draw near? We are a species defined by our hunger for the unreachable. We build our lives upon the ruins of what was lost, yet we remain perpetually captivated by the spectral […]
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The Weight of the Pause Photo of the Day
October 19, 2013

The Weight of the Pause

Why do we feel a phantom guilt when we see someone else resting? We are conditioned to believe that value is tethered to the rhythm of our hands, that to be still is to be absent from the narrative of our own lives. Yet, there is a profound honesty in the quiet moments that occur […]
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The Weight of the Journey Photo of the Day
October 18, 2013

The Weight of the Journey

Why do we measure the value of a life by the comfort of its seat? We are born into a world that demands movement, yet we are rarely prepared for the friction that accompanies the transit. Across every border and through every century, there have always been those who must cling to the exterior of […]
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The Architecture of Passing Through Photo of the Day
October 16, 2013

The Architecture of Passing Through

If we are merely the sum of the places we have lingered, what becomes of the spaces where we only pass through? We treat transit hubs as voids, liminal stretches of tile and glass that exist only to be erased by the speed of our departure. Yet, in these corridors, we are at our most […]
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The Weight of Golden Hours Photo of the Day
October 7, 2013

The Weight of Golden Hours

Why do we feel a sudden, sharp ache when the light begins to lean? It is as if the sun, in its final descent, is trying to tell us something we have spent the entire day forgetting. We live our lives in the rush of the midday glare, convinced that clarity is found in the […]
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