Islamic art and architecture, as one of the world’s richest cultural heritages, emerged in the first century AH with the advent of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula. The decorative repertoire of Islamic architecture and textiles commonly includes geometric patterns, such as stars and polygons, Qur’anic calligraphy, and vegetal motifs. One of these motifs is the lotus. This study examines the use of the lotus as a visual manifestation of symbolism in the architectural ornament and textile design of the Middle East, where it played a central role in the development and dissemination of symbolic visual forms. Beginning with the symbolic representations of the lotus in ancient Egyptian art, the study traces the motif’s development through subsequent historical periods in North Africa and the Middle East and then considers its incorporation into Islamic art and the emergence of islimi, or arabesque, ornament. The study aims to explain the relationship between the historical continuity of the lotus motif and the transformation of its meanings within the Islamic context, while also comparing the ways in which it was organized in the two media of architecture and textiles. In terms of purpose, this is fundamental research employing a descriptive–analytical methodology. Data were collected through documentary and library-based research from books, scholarly articles, museum catalogues, and specialized databases and were examined using comparative and semiotic analysis. The findings indicate that although the lotus retained a significant place within the visual structure of symbolic ornament, its inherited meanings were transformed, and the motif was reinterpreted as a spiritual and aesthetic device during the Islamic period. Symbolism thus became integrated into the visual language of Islamic art, transcending geographical boundaries between East and West through its expression of the concept of divine unity and extending into both religious and secular contexts. It may therefore be concluded that symbolism contributed to the richness of Islamic art and provided a foundation for human creativity and innovation. The continuity of the lotus between tradition and modernity also offers a productive conceptual and visual resource for the development of contemporary artistic movements.