[1.]
Sang arif, Saadi dari Shiraz, sedang berjalan-jalan sepanjang lorong dengan muridnya. Saat itu dia melihat seseorang yang sedang berusaha menggerakkan kudanya. Karena kudanya menolak, orang itu memanggilnya dengan nama-nama buruk yang terlintas dipikirannya.

“Jangan bodoh,” kata Saadi. “Kudamu tidak akan pernah mengenal bahasamu. Kau sebaiknya lebih tenang dan belajar bahasanya dulu.”

Dan di kala dia berjalan melewati orang itu, dia berkata pada muridnya:
“Sebelum kau berargumen dengan seekor kuda, ingatlah peristiwa yang kau saksikan barusan.”

[2.]
Seorang guru sufi dan muridnya sedang berjalan melintasi padang pasir di Afrika. Ketika malam hari, mereka mendirikan tenda dan beristirahat.

“Betapa sunyi malam ini!” kata sang murid.

“Jangan pernah bilang ‘betapa sunyi malam ini!’,” kata sang guru. “Tapi bilanglah: ‘Aku tidak bisa mendengar alam’.”

[3.]
Saadi dari Shiraz pernah cerita kisah berikut:

Ketika saya masih kecil, saya pernah sembahyang dengan bapak, paman dan misan-misan saya. Tiap malam kami bersama-sama mendengar bacaan sebagian Al-Qur’an.

Suatu malam, ketika paman saya membaca satu bagian dengan suara keras, saya memperhatikan bahwa kebanyakan orang sedang mengantuk. Saya bilang pada bapak saya, “Tidak ada satupun dari orang-orang ngantuk ini mendengarkan kata-kata kitab suci. Mereka tidak pernah mencapai Tuhan.”

Dan bapak saya bilang, “Anakku sayang, lihatlah jalanmu sendiri dengan mata iman dan biarkan orang lain menjaga diri mereka sendiri. siapa tahu, mungkin mereka sedang berbicara dengan Tuhan dalam mimpi. Percayalah, aku lebih suka kau mengantuk seperti mereka daripada mendengar penilaian kasar dan kutukanmu.”

# Paulo Coelho,
Stories for Parents, Children and Grandchildren, Vol 1.

Persian Poems is now available from the App Store. This is a perfect app for all Persian-speaking literature lovers.

Persian Poems app is a complete collection of works of the greatest heroes of the Persian literature Ferdowsi, Hafez and Saadi. These great poets kept the Persian (Farsi) language alive and left us their wisdom and this app is homage to them.

Persian Poems lets you browse four complete poetry books, save favorites and even search through the collection.

The Persian poems app is completely in Persian, and was developed by talented Iranian developers Soroush, Sohrab and Ali. Keep an eye out for our other upcoming versions!

L’âme de la Perse est tout entière contenue dans la poésie des mystiques soufis des XIIè et XIIIè siècles. Alors que l’Europe s’enfonce dans la barbarie du Moyen-Âge, le Moyen-Orient connaît son apogée esthétique et spirituelle .

Après l’Hégire (en 622 du calendrier chrétien), l’Islam se répand et se ramifie . Le courant soufi est une approche mystique de l’Islam, qui marie les préceptes du Prophète à une philosophie plus platonicienne de la vie, touchant à la nécessité de l’élévation personnelle de son âme. Le résultat est un ésotérisme philosophe, prônant une exaltation face à la beauté de la vie et de l’amour.

Les poètes mystiques persans furent nombreux (la sphère d’influence perse s’étalait d’Égypte en Inde, en passant par la Turquie, la Syrie, l’Irak, l’Ouzbékistan, l’Iran …), et extrêmement prolifiques. Leurs poèmes reflètent presque systématiquement une extase simple et colorée face à la vie, et gravitent essentiellement autour des thèmes de l’Amour et de la Nature. À défaut de pouvoir vous offrir la grâce des poèmes originaux en langue persane, je me permets de vous offrir ci-dessous quelques pistes intéressantes pour mieux cerner la philosophie soufie .

Pour un (r)éveil du sublime qui sommeille en vous, lisez donc les poèmes sur l’amour de Rûmi, les considérations mystiques exaltées de Hafez, les quatrains (rubayiat) de Omar Khayyam, ou encore les petits contes moraux de Attar ou de Saâdi .

Leurs textes comptent de nombreuses traductions ; on recense également une infinité de lectures mises en musique des textes de poètes mystiques ; enfin, la calligraphie accompagnant les poèmes dans de nombreux recueils relève souvent d’un art du sublime incontestable . La calligraphie qui illustre cet article est la mise en image de la phrase de Rûmi “Si vous venez vers moi en marchant, c’est en courant que je viendrai vers vous” .

Je vous invite également à vous pencher sur l’histoire et les préceptes du soufisme, qui ravira certainement les occidentaux les plus hype, déjà lassés par la mode du bouddhisme et le yoga ….. Ou les personnes cherchant une nouvelle illustration de la capacité humaine -trop rarement exploitée- à tendre vers le sublime.

Pour cela, vous pouvez consulter le site de la revue Soufisme ou celui de Saveurs Soufies, qui travaillent aujourd’hui à la publicisation de la mystique soufie. Ceux qui souhaitent davantage se pencher sur l’histoire du soufisme et sur des analyses du phénomène trouveront leur bonheur dans n’importe quelle bibliothèque ou librairie de qualité . Les ouvrages sur le sujet ne manquent pas, et je préfère vous laisser vous faire votre propre opinion sur la question.

Enfin, je ne peux que vous conseiller l’excellent film de Nacer Khemir “Bab Aziz”, qui offrira un peu de rêve chaleureux à votre âme en ce début d’hiver … Sur ce, que votre coeur vous mène vers le sublime . Allez en paix . Ou en Iran .

A while ago we posted that Persian Poems iPhone app was under development by Ali, Sohrab and Soroush. We are pleased to say that the app is all finished and submitted to the Apple App Store.

Persian Poems is completely in Persian (Farsi) covering some of the best loved Persian Poetry. Ferdowsi, Hafez and Saadi all covered. As a huge Persian literature fan I think this is a must have app…

emmm yes we do need to have an English version too. Well if the demand is there, we promise that we would do an English version too. So do let us know what you think.

Catamarca, María Soledad, Saadi, Luque

Marta Pelloni

Sería bueno apoyar, ser testigos, estar cerca de luchadores como  Marta Pelloni, desaparecida en acción, revoleada por la Iglesia Católica  a algún lugar lejos de Catamarca, pero que sigue luchando.

Averigüen quién fue Dorothy Stang

Imagen word.world-citizenship.org

Inicio

Brooklyn bands Lights and Saadi make their way to Garfield artworks this Saturday which comes in the middle of an already  busy November for the Pittsburgh music scene.  But even as the Steel City continues to thrive, the music world’s attention is once again fixated on the Scene of scenes: Brooklyn.

The indie music blogosphere is currently buzzing with New York Magazine’s recent piece that all but canonizes Brooklyn as the indie rock Mecca we already knew it was (we just don’t want to admit it). Even as we resist to buy into all that hyperbolic bull shit, these two, damn fine Brooklyn bands come to Garfield Artworks this Saturday ready represent the borough by kicking the outsider cynics (myself included) in the nuts.

Saadi (with Greensburg born lead singer Boshra AlSaadi pictured above) concocts a quietly subtle mash-up of ethereal, lullaby vocals and lyrics, tape loops and spaced out electronic percussion.  You can dance AND be soothed to sleep with their track “Pollen Seeking Bees” from the Bad City EP, which evokes a fragile, ghost-like persona that AlSaadi easily embodies.  After the break from the first chorus, she coos “am I just in…pixels?/songs you know would ke-eep/fading into ether…fading into ether.”

Lights take their cue from several big name staples of 70’s prog (Pink Floyd, Genesis),  rock (Fleetwood Mac, Harry Nilsson) and disco (Chic), infusing their own subtle mash-up with a vaseline-on lens haze destined for wood-paneled basements and shag carpet. “Heavy Drops,” lead track from their 2009 release Rites, boils down these influences into a slow burning, noodly, post-rock jewel of the highest order.  It’s the kind of song you wouldn’t mind taking up an entire side one, not that it’s particularly long, but it feels Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon-sessions BIG.

Garfield Artworks has had quite the hot streak as of late with national tours including Rural Alberta Advantage, Japandroids and UUWWVVZ over the past few weeks and now Lights and Surfer Blood (11/15) coming in consecutive days.  Keep it up Manny, even if you don’t let me in off the guest list.

And big ups to Songs in the Key of Touche for being all over this show before I was.

Saadi – Pollen Seeking Bees

Lights – Heavy Drops

We have been very busy recently polishing some of our half finished app. So I’m very pleased to announce that Persian Poems app and our ‘I’m a Movie Buff’ app are ready to be release.

Persian Poems is a great app with a collection of wonderful works of Ferdowsi, Hafez and Saadi. The app is in Persian but if there is a take up and demand we will prepare an English version too. So do let us know if you are interested.

‘I’m a Movie Buff’ was originally a simple movie quiz but it has ended up being quite a quiz! We have become addicted to this app ourselves and with almost 2000 questions, the quiz is always fresh. The fun thing is that not only you can enjoy a challenging game on your own but you can also play with a friend. We are very excited to share this app with you. Do let us know what you think.

Both of these awesome apps were created by our guys Ali, Sohrab and Soroush and will be available from the app store very soon.

Şi judecata aceasta stă în faptul că, odată venită Lumina în lume, oamenii au iubit mai mult întunericul decât lumina, pentru că faptele lor erau rele.

[Ioan 3.19]

Cârtița nu duce dorul răsăritului de soare.

Saadi

Cuvîntul Meu, care iese din gura Mea, nu se întoarce la Mine fara rod

Nella prima parte del volume autobiografico Bigeard ripercorre le principali tappe della battaglia di Algeri che lo vide protagonista al pari di Massu,Godard e Salan.Se il taglio interpretativo e’ certamente realistico e nazionalistico insieme ,l’autore non puo’ fare a meno di ricordare come la lotta contro l’FNL fosse letta come una lotta per l’integrita’ nazionale francese e nel contempo come una lotta per il conseguimento della liberta’ di fronte alla avanzata minacciosa del comunismo.Proprio partendo da questi assunti politici,fu svolta una accurata formazione ideologica dei militari del 3°RPC trasformadoli in breve tempo in una formazione di elite. Sotto il profilo strategico certamente preziose risultano le riflessioni dell’A.sia in relazione all’uso innovativo dell’elicottero-trasformato da Bigeard da semplice strumento logistico a strumento formidabile di ricognizione e repressione-sia in relazione alle profonde trasformazioni strategiche che la guerra sovversiva implica a cominciare dalla necessita’ di attuare un approccio anche politico e psicologico oltre che strettamente militare. L’analisi della struttura bicefala dell’FNL-politica e militare-consentira’ a Bigeard di comprendere lucidamente come la struttura verticale e orizzontale dell’FNL avesse permesso una capillare infiltrazione dei sovversivi all’interno della societa’ algerina garantendo ad essa ampio sostegno finanziario. Un altro aspetto di rilievo indicato dall’autore e’ certamente il ruolo decisivo di Saadi -sul piano militare-con l’introduzione delle bombe artigianali che contribuirono ad aumentare la pressione psicologica presso i pied noir e quello altrettanto decisivo di Ben M’Hidi sul piano politico nei cui confronti Bigeard non nascose mai il suo rispetto che fu d’altronde esplicitamente contraccambiato.Nella seconda parte -non senza una punta di autocompiacimento-l’ A. dopo aver fatto cenno ai suoi successi militari(che lo porteranno a diventare nel 1971 Generale di Divisione delle Forze francesi nell’Oceano indiano e presidente della Commissione difesa sotto Giscard d’Estaing di cui divenne amico) lamenta la progressiva caduta del prestigio internazionale della Francia determinato da una politica incerta e incoerente,da stanziamenti risibili rispetto al passato,da forze professionali che non comprendono che la scelta di indossare la divisa costituisce una vocazione e non dunque una ordinaria professione.Certo la progressiva politicizzazione delle forze di polizia rischia di intaccare l’integrita’ delle forze armate francesi che -nonostante siano prive di missili da crociera e non ricevono la dovuta attenzione da parte della classe politica- contribuiscono-grazie alla intelligence della DST e del DRM-a dare un contributo di rilievo nella lotta al terrorismo sia in Medioeriente che in Africa.
GAGLIANO GIUSEPPE

Nella prima parte del volume autobiografico Bigeard ripercorre le principali tappe della battaglia di Algeri che lo vide protagonista al pari di Massu,Godard e Salan.Se il taglio interpretativo e’ certamente realistico e nazionalistico insieme ,l’autore non puo’ fare a meno di ricordare come la lotta contro l’FNL fosse letta come una lotta per l’integrita’ nazionale francese e nel contempo come una lotta per il conseguimento della liberta’ di fronte alla avanzata minacciosa del comunismo.Proprio partendo da questi assunti politici,fu svolta una accurata formazione ideologica dei militari del 3°RPC trasformadoli in breve tempo in una formazione di elite. Sotto il profilo strategico certamente preziose risultano le riflessioni dell’A.sia in relazione all’uso innovativo dell’elicottero-trasformato da Bigeard da semplice strumento logistico a strumento formidabile di ricognizione e repressione-sia in relazione alle profonde trasformazioni strategiche che la guerra sovversiva implica a cominciare dalla necessita’ di attuare un approccio anche politico e psicologico oltre che strettamente militare. L’analisi della struttura bicefala dell’FNL-politica e militare-consentira’ a Bigeard di comprendere lucidamente come la struttura verticale e orizzontale dell’FNL avesse permesso una capillare infiltrazione dei sovversivi all’interno della societa’ algerina garantendo ad essa ampio sostegno finanziario. Un altro aspetto di rilievo indicato dall’autore e’ certamente il ruolo decisivo di Saadi -sul piano militare-con l’introduzione delle bombe artigianali che contribuirono ad aumentare la pressione psicologica presso i pied noir e quello altrettanto decisivo di Ben M’Hidi sul piano politico nei cui confronti Bigeard non nascose mai il suo rispetto che fu d’altronde esplicitamente contraccambiato.Nella seconda parte -non senza una punta di autocompiacimento-l’ A. dopo aver fatto cenno ai suoi successi militari(che lo porteranno a diventare nel 1971 Generale di Divisione delle Forze francesi nell’Oceano indiano e presidente della Commissione difesa sotto Giscard d’Estaing di cui divenne amico) lamenta la progressiva caduta del prestigio internazionale della Francia determinato da una politica incerta e incoerente,da stanziamenti risibili rispetto al passato,da forze professionali che non comprendono che la scelta di indossare la divisa costituisce una vocazione e non dunque una ordinaria professione.Certo la progressiva politicizzazione delle forze di polizia rischia di intaccare l’integrita’ delle forze armate francesi che -nonostante siano prive di missili da crociera e non ricevono la dovuta attenzione da parte della classe politica- contribuiscono-grazie alla intelligence della DST e del DRM-a dare un contributo di rilievo nella lotta al terrorismo sia in Medioeriente che in Africa.
GAGLIANO GIUSEPPE

Legend has it that a friend of Saadi Shirazi had a dream. In his dream, Saadi was walking back and forth in his room and the angels were showering him with flowers. When he woke up, he got so excited that he had to tell Saadi of this dream right away. He put on his robe, and ran to Saadi’s house. As he approached the house, he noticed that Saadi’s window is open and a candle light is on. He got closer and saw Saadi, as in his dream, walking back and forth in his room reciting this poem:

Laudation to the God of majesty and glory! Obedience to him is a cause of approach and gratitude in increase of benefits.

Every inhalation of the breath prolongs life and every expiration of it gladdens our nature; wherefore every breath confers two benefits and for every benefit gratitude is due.

• • Whose hand and tongue is capable

    To fulfil the obligations of thanks to him?

Words of the most high: Be thankful, O family of David, and but few of my servants are thankful.

• • It is best to a worshipper for his transgressions

    To offer apologies at the throne of God,

    Although what is worthy of his dignity

    No one is able to accomplish.

The showers of his boundless mercy have penetrated to every spot, and the banquet of his unstinted liberality is spread out everywhere. He tears not the veil of reputation of his worshippers even for grievous sins, and does not withhold their daily allowance of bread for great crimes.

• • O bountiful One, who from thy invisible treasury

    Suppliest the Guebre and the Christian with food,

    How could’st thou disappoint thy friends,

    Whilst having regard for thy enemies?

He told the chamberlain of the morning breeze to spread out the emerald carpet and, having commanded the nurse of vernal clouds to cherish the daughters of plants in the cradle of the earth, the trees donned the new year’s robe and clothed their breast with the garment of green foliage, whilst their offspring, the branches, adorned their heads with blossoms at the approach of the season of the roses. Also the juice of the cane became delicious honey by his power, and the date a lofty tree by his care.

• • Cloud and wind, moon and sun move in the sky

    That thou mayest gain bread, and not eat it unconcerned.

    For thee all are revolving and obedient.

    It is against the requirements of justice if thou obeyest not.

There is a tradition of the prince of created beings, the paragon of existing things, the mercy to the inhabitants of the world, the purest of mankind and the completion of the revolving ages, Muhammad the elect, upon whom be blessing and peace:

• • Intercessor, obeyed, prophet, gracious,

    Bountiful, majestic, affable, marked with the seal of God.

What danger is there to the wall of the faithful with thee for a buttress?

What fear of the waves of the sea has he whose pilot is Noah?

• • He attained exaltation by his perfection.

    He disspelled darkness by his beauty.

    Beauteous are all his qualities,

    Benediction be on him and on his family.

Reactions to “Why the Arab World is not free?” (July 10, 2009)

I decided to post a reply to my book review “Why the Arab World is not free?” by Moustapha Safouan

            “I am the son of two civilizations that have formed a happy marriage. The first civilization is seven thousand years old of Pharaonic Egypt; the second is Islamic of one thousand four hundred years old.  One day the great Pyramids will disappear but Truth and Justice will remain for as long as Mankind has a reflective mind and a living conscience.

            A Moslim Caliph returned prisoners of war to the Byzantium Empire in exchange of ancient Greek manuscripts in philosophy, medicine and mathematics. This is a testimony of value for the human spirit in its demand for knowledge; the believer in One God demanded the fruits of a pagan civilization.

            It was my fate to be born in the lap of these two civilizations and to feed on their literature and art. The truth of the matter is that Evil is a loud and boisterous debaucherer, and that Man remembers what hurts more than what gives pleasure. Our great poet Abul-’Alaa’ Ma’ari was right when he said: “A grief at the hour of death is more than a hundred-fold Joy at the hour of birth.”

            When the Moslem’s Armies extended their territories from Spain to Persia, they took possession of the works of Plato, Aristotle, Pythagoras, Archimedes, and other Greek thinkers. One of the prime reasons attributed to Moslims’ intellectual enhancement in the Middle Ages is the considerable influence of Greek philosophy to a rational new religion. Up to the nineth century Muslim intellectuals valued reason in their interpretation of the Koran and Hadith.  Our present day Moslem heroes associate with the rational past.

            In early Islam there was a philosophical debate that started with al-Ghazali and resumed by Ibn Rushd and led the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II (1451-1481), the conqueror of the Capital Byzantium, to order two of the Empire’ scholars to compile books to summarize the debate between Ghazali and Ibn Rushd.  The philosophy of al-Ghazali was attacking the ideas of Avicenna or Ibn Sina (980-1037) and Farabi who were inspired by Aristotle, Plato, and Plotinus.  Avicenna is known as al-Sheikh Rais (Leader among the wise men); in the west, he is also known as the “Prince of Physicians” for his famous medical text Qanun “Canon”. In Latin translations, his works influenced many Christian philosophers, most notably Thomas Aquinas. The spread of Hellenistic philosophy in the Moslim world was expounded by the first Arabic philosopher Kindi (800-865) who wrote many works on Greek science and philosophy. As a mathematician Kindi realized the importance of Aristotelian logic. Farabi’s ideal rulers would be chosen for their intelligence and educated in science, philosophy, and religion. According to Farabi, the best ruler for this Muslim state would be a “philosopher-king”, a concept described in Plato’s Republic. One of the most important contributions of Farabi, beyond his political views and scientific philosophies, was to make the study of logic easier by dividing it into two categories – Takhayyul (idea) and Thubut (proof). He wrote several sociological books, including his famous work – Al-Madina al-Fadila (The Model City).  In Andalusia (Spain) Ibn Rushd commented on Al Ghazali argument by argument defending the power of rational and investigative thinking; his work became the foundation for Europe Renaissance in understanding Aristotle.

            This part of history needs to be written; there are no takers yet. Orthodoxy in Islam rarely allows the treatise of Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980-1037), Kindi (800-865) and Ibn Rushd (Averroes) to become the syllabus of mainstream thought process.  A Moslem student might revere Avicenna and Averroes but he is not offered the opportunity to read their works. If Avicenna and Averroes’s thinking were part of the dialogue within Islam then the sun of the golden era would have never set. We cannot cite Khayyam as an example of a great poet and completely forget the message he gave. We may disagree with Khayyam but introducing his thinking will help us to determine what pluralism is all about. The works of our thinkers need to be revisited and their books should form an integral part of our academia. Khayyam is described as an atheist, philosopher, and naturalist.

            The constant themes of Khayyam’s poetry are the certainty of death, the pointlessness of asking unanswerable questions, the mysteriousness of the universe, and the necessity of living joyfully the present. This is clearly reflected in the verses taken from Rubaiyat: “…How much more of the mosque, of prayer and fasting? Better go drunk and begging round the taverns. Khayyam, drinks wine, for soon this clay of yours will make a cup, bowl, one day a jar….”

            The Iranian Shirin Ebadi is another Nobel laureate suffering at the hands of the radicals. Shirin Abadi, Islam’s most famous civil rights activists and a Nobel Prize winner, said in her acceptance speech: “Allow me to say a little about my country, region, culture and faith. I am an Iranian. A descendent of Cyrus The Great. The Charter of Cyrus the Great is one of the most important documents that should be studied in the history of human rights. I am a Muslim. In the Koran the Prophet of Islam has been cited as saying: “Thou shalt believe in thine faith and I in my religion”. That same divine book sees the mission of all prophets as that of inviting all human beings to uphold justice. Since the advent of Islam, Iran’s civilization and culture has become imbued and infused with humanitarianism, respect for the life, belief and faith of others, propagation of tolerance and compromise and avoidance of violence, bloodshed and war. The luminaries of Iranian literature, in particular our Gnostic literature, from Hafiz, Mowlavi [better known in the West as Rumi] and Attar to Saadi, Sanaei, Naser Khosrow and Nezami, are emissaries of this humanitarian culture.”

            The dark ages within any civilization is characterized with dogmatic extremism that denies civil liberties, including freedom of religion and justice or the right to a fair trial. ‘Golden age’ on the other hand should be about the freedom of expression and availability of justice for the downtrodden. A society is judged not by its standards of the richest but by the way the under privileged and the poorest live. A minor renaissance within the regions under the influence of Islam can be traced but the conditions that help ‘seeds of reason’ to take roots that are essential for freethinking were just not allowed to be nurtured.

            Unfortuntely, in the current Arab world, the true values are rarely ever discussed freely. During the ‘Golden Age’ periods there was particularly strong tradition of rationalism known as the Mu3tazalah. They stressed that man is inherently free and were skeptic on the predestination concept that everything was foreordained. The Mutazilites carefully cultivated an ‘enlightened moderation’ and allowed for the growth of knowledge and actively promulgated the Sciences as a part of the religion doctrine.

            Muslim countries supply 70 per cent of the world’s energy requirements and 40 per cent of its raw material exports. With all of their oil wealth, two-thirds of the world’s poorest people live in Muslim countries. This state of misery is unparalleled; Islam’s inability to translate its economic prowess into general good has baffled the intelligentsia of the world. In the last 20 years over one million people died in conflicts involving intra Muslim wars. Why are democracy and the rule of law nonexistent in most Moslim states? Why are most of the worst acts of terrorism carried out in the name of Islam? Whenever wicked fundamentalists have taken over reins of affairs they have gone for the jugular. Extremists have a single point agenda whereby ‘worldly decadence’ needs to be abolished for blessings and rewards in the after world. No devotion can gratify the extremists; every strain of deviancy over times has its own brand of virtuous approach; these anarchists at one point have inflicted devastation on embryonic societies of Islam.

            Renaissance cannot be tainted with colour of ideology, it cannot be ‘Islamic or Christian,’ it is collective effort of minds to seek freedom from dogma and seek answers to complex questions of purpose of existence on this planet. Free thinking, logic and rationalism have to be the corner stone of any serious attempt to induce renaissance in the Islamic world. Pluralism of ideas and the prosperity of any land are intertwined. Freedom of minds and skill to ‘think the unthinkable’ is how humanity has progressed; when minds are incarcerated nothing endures.

            Renaissance within all three monolithic religions was built around norms of free mind; Renaissance was about literature, architecture, arts and chiseling of marble to exquisite forms. The statue of David could only be created by the love of the free labor of Michelangelo: an enslaved mind could never be an artist or a creator. Physically enslaved men with free minds led revolutions and changed the world: they were ready to accept death instead of compromise with totalitarian or dogmatic despotism.

            The first and foremost challenge that Islam has to face is freedom of intellectual enquiry, ability to ask the unthinkable and still be able to live in peace within a society. Prof. Ahmad Zewail’s use of the fast laser technique can be likened to Galilei’s use of his telescope that he directed towards everything that lit up the vault of heaven. Zewail tried his femtosecond laser on literally everything that moved in the world of molecules. He turned his telescope towards the frontiers of science. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry because he was the first to conduct experiments that clearly show the decisive moments in the life of a molecule – the breaking and formation of chemical bonds. He has been able to see the reality behind Arrhenius’ theory.

            Prof. Ahmad Zewail acceptance speech like Ebadi’s referred to his richness of twin civilisations that of Islam and Egypt; he said: “Let me begin with a reflection on a personal story, that of a voyage through time. The medal I received from his Majesty this evening was designed by Erik Lindberg in 1902 to represent Nature in the form of the Goddess Isis – or eesis – the Egyptian Goddess of Motherhood. She emerges from the clouds, holding a cornucopia in her arms and the veil which covers her cold and austere face is held up by the Genius of Science. Indeed, it is the genius of science which pushed forward the race against time, from the beginning of astronomical calendars six millennia ago in the land of Isis to the femtosecond regime honoured tonight for the ultimate achievement in the microcosmos. I began life and education in the same Land of Isis, Egypt, made the scientific unveiling in America, and tonight, I receive this honor in Sweden, with a Nobel Medal which takes me right back to the beginning. This internationalization by the Genius of Science is precisely what Mr. Nobel wished for more than a century ago.”

            Professor Ahmed H. Zewail, the only Arab to ever win a Nobel Prize for science and, since the death of the Pakistani physicist Abdus Salam, the only one among the 1.2 billion Muslims with that honor.  Dr. Taha Hussein in his Nobel acceptance speech said: “The end will begin when seekers of knowledge become satisfied with their own achievements.” Unfortunately the embryonic renaissance in the late 700’s to 1300 of Islam was not extinguished by the satisfaction of its scientist’s queries; rather it was killed on the altar of dogma.

            Abdus Salam once wrote: “The Holy Koran enjoins us to reflect on the verities of Allah’s created laws of nature; however, that our generation has been privileged to glimpse a part of His design is a bounty and a grace for which I render thanks with a humble heart.” Sad and tragic is the reality that this scion of Pakistan was not allowed to be buried in his homeland; an orphaned son of a nation thanked the luminaries on behalf of a nation who had disowned him. In his acceptance speech Abdus Salam said: “… I thank the Nobel Foundation and the Royal Academy of Sciences for the great honor and the courtesies extended to us, including the courtesy to me of being addressed in my language Urdu. Pakistan is deeply indebted to you for this. The creation of Physics is the shared heritage of all mankind. East and West, North and South have equally participated in it. In the Holy Book of Islam, Allah says: ‘Thou seest not, in the creation of the All-merciful any imperfection, Return thy gaze, seest thou any fissure. Then Return thy gaze, again and again. Thy gaze, Comes back to thee dazzled and aweary.”

            On the global stage, it is these “heretical” scientists who are disowned by the Moslem orthodox clergy who have earned the greatest respect for Islam. Historically, we have distorted our real heroes into heretics, and the witch-hunt still continues. Dr. Abdus Salam is not the only one treated as heretic; we have the modern rationalist, Naguib Mahfouz – Nobel laureate in literature. Citation of his work, ‘Awlad Haratina,’ in the Swedish Academy’s declaration of award of the Nobel Prize to Mahfouz in 1988 greatly angered the Islamicists. His novel appeared in English under the title, “The Children of Gebelawi.” Shortly after the eruption of the Rushdie affair, the leading fundamentalist, Omar Abd al-Rahman currently imprisoned in the US for his role in the attack on the World Trade Centre—declared that if they had killed Mahfouz in 1959 for writing ‘The Children of Our Alley,’ Rushdie would never have dared write his novel. This was taken as a fresh fatwa to kill Mahfouz.

            In 1994 a failed attempt on his life leaft Mahfouz paralysed in his right arm. The crime of association of present day heroes of Islam with their past intellectual ancestors has marginalised them. It was the same Mahfouz who presented the case of his twin civilisations so adequately in the forum of ‘Swedish academy of sciences’ and quoted the great Muslim rationalist poet Abul-’Alaa’ Ma’ari who asserted everywhere “the rights of reason against the claims of custom, tradition and authority.”

            The world cannot remain hostage to medieval concepts; this modern fight has to be seen in its intellectual, historical and geographical context.  The Islamic world today is trying to re-ignite its lost “renaissance” but is led by demented people with medieval minds; they are supposed to cure our ills but are out in the open to slaughter and maim thousands. Respect of life is the first sign of an educated mind.

            The Arabic language was synonymous with learning and science for 500 hundred years; a golden age that can count among its credits the precursors to modern universities, algebra, and the names of the stars and even the notion of science as an empirical inquiry. Science flourished in the Golden Age of Islam because there was within Islam a strong rational tradition of inquiry. This tradition stressed human free will.  Under the Mut3azalah (enlightened moderation) knowledge grew. Moslim conventional Puritanism, led by Ghazali, reawakened in the twelfth century.  The Moslem puritans championed revelation over reason, predestination over free will. The Imam Ghazali described mathematics and medicine as (Fard-E-Kefaya) placing these knowledge secondary to religious knowledge.

            A few Islamic clergies are trying to introduce elements of bigotry and fanaticism in mainstream Islamic thought. Our modern day laureates depict equally a sense of great connectivity to the rich past and that has to become a standard. Most likely the Islamic Renaissance that was about to be born 1000 years ago did not. We shall never know the extent of the harm that some celebrated religious zealots caused to mankind and civilization. We are once again at the crossroads; the only ways forward is to connect with the world and help make ours a true charitable society, the only way prosperity of mind can be ensured is through pluralism of ideas.

The world is not a courtroom,
There is no judge, no jury, no plaintiff.
This is a caravan, filled with eccentric beings 
telling wondrous stories about God.                    ~Saadi

Could it be that the cacophony of our communication pouring into the air space, cyperspace, and onto pages and pages of paper is nothing more, or less, than eccentric beings telling stories about God?  One and all, we scrawl out as best we can our truth, our passion, our experience as creatures on this planet. We tell our stories through the choices we make, the friends we keep, and our mistakes and failures. We weave wondrous tales as we frame and express the meaning we give to our unique and precious lives.

We tweet and friend and facebook and link up and plaxo as we stake out our truth and territory like the birds in the woods calling back and forth.
“Are you there?”
“Yes, I am over here.”
“Well I am here. This is my territory. This is what I see. What do you see?”
“I don’t see what you see. I see this.”

 And yes, we are indeed, eccentric – wildly, delightfully, and horrifyingly so at times.

I listen a lot to people’s stories about God or the apparent absence of God in their lives. Together we lift their experiences to the light, turn them to and fro, and notice something spiritual directors like to call “movements of the Spirit” (a piece of spiritual formation jargon that makes me want to giggle). This spiritual practice involves learning to pay attention to and recognize God’s way with you and what God might be saying to you in the context of your being and daily life experience. Sometimes we work like a GSI (God Scene Investigation) team. We pick up bits of evidence. We look carefully and reverently at what we find. We piece together scraps of your life story in God. We hold it all up to the wisdom and guidance of the Spirit. We weigh it against the texts of scripture, the tradition of faith communities, and your own common sense, reason, and intuition. Then we wait for confirmation and/or redirection from the Spirit, as it speaks through your community, relationships, scriptures, and own heart.

Of course, it is rarely this tidy. Like babies babbling and toddlers scribbling, our stories are stumbling incomplete attempts to capture the unnamable ineffable Reality in which we live and move and find our being.  “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge,” sings the psalmist uttering his own story. (Psalm 19)  In ways both, crude and blasphemous, and sublime and exalted, we join our voices with all the people on earth and all the company of heaven in every time and place who forever to sing to the glory of God.

One of the eccentrics on this caravan is poet, Gerald Manley Hopkins. With a grace and beauty that stun me, he captures the notion of all the creatures in creation telling at once their stories of holiness.               

As kingfishers catch fire,
Dragonflies draw flame;
As tumbled over rim in roundy wells
Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell’s
Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name;
Each mortal thing does one thing and the same:
Deals out that being indoors each one dwells;
Selves – goes its self; myself  it speaks and spells,
Crying What I do is me; for that I came.
I say more: the just man justices;
Keeps grace: that keeps all his goings graces;
Acts in God’s eye what in God’s eye he is -
Christ. For Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the Father through the features of men’s faces.
                                                          Gerald Manley Hopkins

So I say Tweet your hearts out: Scenes by the wayside, tales of the sea, stories of Jesus, tell them  to me!

Read more about spiritual direction and stories about God at
www.fromholyground.org, www.sdiworld.org, www.theprayinglife.wordpress.com

Contact Loretta at
lross@fromholyground.org, www.fbook.me/sanctuary

 Follow at http://twitter.com/lfross

The Barking Unicorn awoke from siesta with a thought that is carved on a New England tombstone:

“It is a fearsome thing to Love
that which is touched by Death.”

“That’s an odd thing for a Life-living Unicorn to wake up with,” he smiled wryly. “It must be a remnant of the Zen Cueist’s grief at the death of David Carradine, his hero and mentor.” Spillage between the Being’s aspects is not uncommon. The Unicorn put the alien thought away and went about his Exploring.

A quotation had drifted across the information ocean to wash up at the Unicorn’s Twitter profile:

“If you have no sympathy for human pain,
the name of human you cannot retain.” #Saadi

The Unicorn once said something similar:  “It’s called ‘compassion’. If you don’t have it then you are not human, you’re a soulless beast. Get the fuck out of my club and don’t come back.” He became curious to know more about this Saadi, so he Learned.

“What a remarkable Being!” the Unicorn marveled. “Perhaps Saadi was an incarnation of the Scrivener,” another of the Being’s aspects.

The Unicorn was delighted to Learn that Saadi’s words which so closely echoed his own are displayed in the entrance of the United Nations’ headquarters. Even nearer to the Unicorn’s thoughts on compassion is the translation of Dr. Iraj Bashiri of the University of Minnesota:

The Unconcern’d with Others’ Plight,
Are but Brutes with Human Face.

He bookmarked and downloaded all of Saadi’s writings that he could find for later Exploration. But one poem he pondered immediately, for it bore directly upon his awakening thought and the Zen Cueist’s pocketknife:

Saadi at the Grave of His Child

by: Saadi (c. 1213-1291)
translated by Samuel Robinson

From the Boostan (or Bustan)

Whilst I was at Sanaa I lost a child–why talk of the blow which then fell upon my head?

In this garden (the world) no cypress ever reached its full stature that the blast of Destiny did not tear its trunk from the root.

It is not wonderful that roses should spring out of the earth when so many rose-like forms sleep within its clay.

In my melancholy and distraction, whilst dwelling on his image, I erected a stone over the spot where he reposeth.

In terror of that place, so dark and narrow, my color paled, and my senses failed me:

When from that disturbance my understanding came back to me, a voice from my darling child struck mine ear:

“If that dark spot make thee feel thy desolation, recall thy reason, and come out into the light.

“Wouldst thou make the night of the tomb as bright as day, light it up with the lamp of good works.”

“Huh! This Saadi was also an Explorer as adventurous as Marco Polo!” exclaimed the Barking Unicorn. “We may have met in the 11th Century. I shall Explore that possibility during my next siesta.”

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Shiraz

On the 1^st of May, we left Tehran on board Aseman Airlines flight for Shiraz. Taxi was there to collect and take us to our hotel. We checked in, freshened up and took off on a tour with our young guide by the name of Zahra, Our first stop was the beautiful Erum Gardens, next the Afifabad Gardens and Weapons Museum. Then the tombs of Rumi and Saadi and finally back to the hotel via the Quran Gate. The city of Shiraz, is more than 4000 years old and is the central area for Persian civilisation.

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2^nd of May was a free day to look around and discover Shiraz on our own. We took a taxi to the center of the city and with the Lonely Planet guide under our arm, we set about seeing as many historical places as we could. Starting with the Citidal of Arg of Karim Khan, Pars museum, Vakil Bazzar, Sarai-e-musheer, said our Zohur prayers in the mosque Vakil, after which we walked to the Vakil hamam now a carpet museum. At this point it was lunch time and the shops had begun to close. Asking people for directions, we were able to find a restaurant where we had lunch and rested for a while before going on to The Shah Chirag Shrine. By now it was 5.30 and we were exhausted. Took a taxi to the hotel, freshened up and as we stepped outside the gate of the hotel, we saw a sign “Jehan numa gardens” and decided to see it….possibly the best decision….it was the most beautiful and peaceful enclosed garden we had visited so far.

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Shiraz is known not only as the city of poets, wine, flowers and gardens but also as the home of Knowledge because important Iranian poets, mystics and philosophers like Sa’di and Hafez the mystic Roozbehan and the philosopher Mulla Sadra, were all born in Shiraz.

Persepolis

On the morning of 3^rd May, we left with our guide and taxi for Persepolis, massive ruins of the Persian Empire’s grand palace thought to be about 2500 years old. On route we stopped at Naqsh-e Rustam a place which has the graves of Xersus and Darayus the Great and Ka’ba-ye Zartosht, which is thought to be the earliest Zoroastrian fire temple. We then made a brief stop at Naksh-e-Rajab and finally reached Persepolis. This huge complex of 6 palaces and a museum took the better part of the day. We got back by the late afternoon just in time to catch our flight from Shiraz to Mashad

Mashhad

We landed in Mashad and could immediately feel the difference. The city was buzzing with people of all nationalities, big hotels, banks, Iranian fast food places and souvenior shops. This was a city which never sleeps.

Mashad literally the place of martyrdom) is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia world. Mashhad is the resting place of the Imam Reza and is also known as the city of Ferdowsi the great Persian poet.

Our only reason for visiting Mashad was to visit the tomb of Imam Reza and offer fateh and to see the huge complex surrounding the tomb, housing the largest library in Iran, a madrassa, and 6 different museum, we only had time to see the Quran museum, the Khomani museum and the Carpet museum. It took us the better part of the day at the Imam Reza complex, after which we went to see the gardens surrounding the tomb of Nadir Shah and the bazzar-e-bozzugh. Back to the hotel to collect baggage and off to the airport to catch our flight to Tehran.

Esfahan

It is Iran’s third largest city (after Tehran and Mashhad) and was once one of the largest cities in the world. In the 16th century it became the capital of Persia for the second time in its history. It is famous for its Islamic architecture, with many beautiful boulevards, covered bridges, palaces, mosques, and minarets. This led to the Persian proverb Esfahān nesf-e jahān ast: "Esfahan is half of the world”

Naghsh-e Jahan Square officially known as Imam Square situated at the center of Isfahan. It is an important historical site and one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. The square is surrounded by buildings from the Safavid era. The Shah Mosque is situated on the south side of this square, its splendor is mainly due to the beauty of its seven-color mosaic tiles and calligraphic inscriptions . On the west side you can find Ali Qapu Palace. It was here that the great monarch used to entertain noble visitors, and foreign ambassadors. Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque is situated on the eastern side of this square is one of the architectural masterpieces of Safavid Iranian architecture, standing on the eastern side of Imam Square and the northern side opens into the Isfahan Grand Bazaar, which is one of the oldest and largest bazaars of the Middle East, dating back to the 17th century A.D. The bazaar is a vaulted two kilometer street linking the old city with the new. Today, Namaaz-e Jom’eh (the Muslim Friday prayer) is held in this square in front of the Shah Mosque.

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Berisi berbagai tafsir al-Quran seperti Tafsir Ibnu Katsir, al-Qurthubi, Jalalain, Saady, dan yang lainnya dalam bahasa arab.

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Saadi was one of the great Persian Poets, who lived nearly eight centuries ago.

He is the master of lyrics and utterance.

The Fire of Love, which is the name of this clip is one of his masterpieces

Saadi – “The Fire of Love”

This mortal tongue does not possess the power to speak of your love

The fire of love can not be put off

Your Tress is my life, let it be long…

More:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FMeWNIjOYw&feature=related

More:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zeyCh-RVI0&feature=related

Marrakech, es una de las más importantes ciudades de Marruecos, y su significado en árabe quiere decir tierra de Dios, en esta preciosa ciudad que fuera la capital del Imperio Islámico se encuentran las tumbas Saadíes que son uno de los más refinados ejemplos de la arquitectura islámica marroquí. Asesinatos y traiciones salpicaron la agitada historia de la dinastía Saadí. Sin embargo, el bello jardín que guarda esta necrópolis real, detrás de unos altos muros, es un verdadero remanso. De las tres salas que componen este mausoleo, sin duda la más atractiva es la llamada sala de las doce columnas. Que ocupa una posición central, y que consta de una gran sala cuadrada, en la cual se resguarda la tumba de Ahmed El Mansour y está coronada por una gran cúpula central, la cual está apoya en doce columnas de mármol de Carrara, y rodeada por galerías cubiertas por cúpulas más pequeñas del mismo material. Este es un gran viaje que se puede planear con Royal Holiday Vacation. www.club.royal-holiday.com.mx

Chiar și un prost ar trece de înțelept dacă ar tăcea, și de priceput dacă și-ar ține gura.

[Proverbe 17.28]

Omul prost ar trebui să tacă. Dar dacă ar ști asta, n-ar mai fi prost.

Saadi

Cuvîntul Meu, care iese din gura Mea, nu se întoarce la Mine fara rod