The aim and final end of all music should be none other
than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul. If heed
is not paid to this, it is not true music but a diabolical
bawling and twanging.
... J. S. Bach (1685-1750)
"The proposed styles are inspired by Iranians' complexion, culture and religion, and Islamic law," said Jaleh Khodayar, who is in charge of a Modesty and Veil Festival later this month at which the guide will be promoted.
It's been another long stretch of time since I posted to the blog. Kinda feeling the "itch" to restart. Of course long layoffs are not good for building faithful readership :) Oh well.
Just saw this today. Pretty funny stuff.
"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.
Very interesting video today on the women of Saudi Arabia. The women of Dubai/UAE have many more freedoms and yet the video is instructive about some of the basic aspects of the lives of women in the Gulf.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Now here's something very interesting. I'll have to catch this somewhere. Combines my interests in Islam and culture.
Cultural Practices to be Assisted by U.N.
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- The United Nations launched an initiative in the United Arab Emirates to prevent the death of age-old cultural practices, a press release reported.
Thursday, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage listed 76 traditions from around the world on the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Included were the tango, religious processions and fertility dances.
...The practices in need of urgent safeguarding are eligible for funding to ensure their survival.
Among these are Latvian female drone singing, a collective fishing rite in Mali, three Mongolian practices and a Belarus Christmas ritual.
This article in the GulfNews paper highlights the importance of the last 10 days of Ramadhan for all Muslims. I suggest you read the whole (short) article but here are a few interesting quotes:
Article Link
"...The last 10 days of Ramadan have been chosen by Allah to be the peak of self-control, worship and abstinence...Muslims should spend the last 10 days at the mosque if they can possibly do so. This should not come at the cost of slacking on household, marital or work duties. They should spend time reading the Quran, praying with fellow Muslims and refraining from saying any bad or hurtful words to anyone."
"The purpose is to emerge from Ramadan with a cleansed spirit."
"Ramadan is the month that people will be closer to Allah and the rewards are doubled."
"Laylat Al Qadr is a celebration of when Allah bestowed the Quran to the people during that period in Ramadan. This makes devotion in Ramadan equivalent to a thousand months of worship."
Entire article below:
When Ramadan rolls around every year I always endeavor to not be an insensitive expat here in Dubai. I want to not cause offense to my Muslim hosts and friends by not eating in front of them if at all possible. Most restaurants are closed during the day but you can still find some open in the "free zones". Nevertheless, you can be arrested for eating in public during the Holy month.
So as my wife and I got into the car yesterday I thought to remind her about eating or drinking in the car since she had a small package of salted pumpkin seeds in her hand. I didn't say anything and, more than that, began to pop them into my mouth and chew as we drove down the road.
About 10 minutes into the drive I pulled up to a stop light, reached down to grab a few seeds, then began to chew them. I casually glanced to my left and promptly saw a man dressed in dishdasha glaring at me. He raised his hand and wagged his finger at me in disapproval. I was embarrassed and immediately wished to apologize in some way. I stopped chewing and swallowed. As I looked back at him he thrust his hand up in exasperation as if to say, "what are you doing eating during Ramadan?... you're obviously another insensitive non-Muslim unwilling to consider your host culture".
I wish I could apologize to the man. I have no desire to cause offense.
But later I began to think more about it. What is the good of fasting if all the "temptations" to eat are prevented by law or social convention? Why is it considered an offense if I don't participate in the practice of another religion; one in which I don't believe?
Again, I don't wish to offend and yet it seems inevitable that offense will be taken if we believe different things and live by them.
Your thoughts?
Here a few more shots from Global Village in Dubai. And to cap it off you'll see below some photos of Obama and family. That huge poster and t-shirt were in the Kenya pavilion. They are tremendously proud of the Kenyan ancestry of Obama!
And regardless of your political "stripes", the inauguration of the first minority President of the USA is an amazing event. I'm praying for him and I hope you do too.
We enjoyed visiting Global Village in early January. It's like a "world's fair" of sorts. Hope you enjoy the pictures as well.
Lots of Landcruisers in the parking lot as we arrived.
The Yemen pavilion is one of our favorites. Lots of silver jewelry...
... and khanjars...
And Yemeni honey (about 15 different booths for that including some honey labeled "for married only". I think it's supposed to have "viagra-like" qualities. :)
I love the Indian shoe shops.
More pictures in the next few days!
There is a fascinating article in The National, a newspaper published out of Abu Dhabi. The article describes ancient ruins of a Nestorian church and monastery discovered on an island off the coast of Abu Dhabi. The ruins could date to the 4th century which is pre-Islamic (7th century).
The article is fascinating enough just when considering the finds but it's doubly interesting that the authorities are allowing the discoveries to be published and preserved. These kinds of finds are particularly sensitive in the Kingdom "next door" where freedom of worship is not allowed and the idea of a pre-Islamic "other" religion is not discussed much. The UAE is to be commended for their openness and honesty about the Christian church findings.
Here are some interesting findings related to ancient churches discovered in the countries around here...
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| From Desktop |
Late last week I was driving the kids to school and, in the neighborhood nearby, I passed a man holding a beautiful falcon on his arm. After dropping the kids off I raced back to find the man in a 4x4 with the falcon hooded and perched on the backseat. I inquired about the bird and found the man was a driver employed by his owner who had gone back into the house. He was not going come back out as he had gone to bed and the driver was taking the falcon to the vet for a checkup. I'm guessing that the man was a local Emirati who had his bird with him at a Ramadan tent overnight and he was going to sleep since he might have been up most of the night. This is a common practice for some Emiratis during Ramadan since they are fasting during the day but can eat during the night.
Falconry is, historically, a very popular sport on the Arabian Peninsula. Here is a video of falcon hunting from Sheikh Mohammad's website.
This bird was one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. Very impressive.
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| From 2008-9-11 Phone Pics - Falcon |
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| From 2008-9-11 Phone Pics - Falcon |
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| From Sheikh Mohammad & Falcon |
We returned to Dubai just 7 days ago. Whenever I return to the US I notice things in Dubai... first impressions all over again. Here's what has stood out to me despite the the mental haze that jet-lag creates.
1. It's really hot and extremely humid here. (Yes, worse than Memphis or Houston)
2. You need sunglasses here. The sun is blinding.
3. So many things are white or beige... buildings, sand, etc. (see point #2 above)
4. So many nationalities.
5. Traffic is so awful you avoid driving whenever possible.
6. Construction and cranes as far as the eye can see.
7. The newspaper is full of advertisements... almost as much ad space as newscopy.
8. You become more aware of world events - like the recent death of a famous Palestinian poet or the murder of a famous Lebanese singer in Dubai.
9. It's really hot and extremely humid. (Did I say that already? :)
I'm glad to be back though... Marhaba Dubai!
This is the scene in front of a Dubai mosque just yesterday, Friday, and I took it at a stop light on Jumeirah Beach Road. You'll notice how full the mosque is. This is atypical for the middle of the week but somewhat normal on Friday at the Jumuah prayer.
The Jumuah is the name for the Friday prayer time in Islam that happens just after noon and is preceeded by a sermon or Khutba by the Imam of the mosque. The friday prayer is perhaps the most important of all the prayer times for muslims. Prayer is required 5 times a day but this one is special in importance. Thus most of the mosques see large crowds gather particularly on Friday. The Khutba (or sermon) is typically broadcast over a loudspeaker to the surrounding neighborhood here in the UAE.
Here's a selection of things the Koran, the Hadith's (saying of the Prophet), and some Islamic scholars/teachers have said about the Jumuah and muslim prayer in general:
The Prophet said...
"If a person had a stream outside his door and he bathed in it five times a day, do you think he would have any filth left on him?" The people said, "No filth would remain on him whatsoever." The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said, "That is like the five daily prayers: Allah wipes away the sins by them." (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
In another hadith, the Prophet said,
"The five daily prayers and the Friday Prayer until the Friday prayer are expiation for what is between them." (Recorded by Muslim.)And...
"Of all the days, Friday is the most virtuous. It is on this day that the trumpet will be blown. Send abundant blessings upon me on Fridays because they are presented to me on that day."On this day it is commanded by the Prophet that you should take a full bath (ghusl), put on clean clothes and perfume/cologne if you have it. Also, it is not obligatory for females to offer this particular prayer.
The Koran says...
"O you who believe! When the call for Friday prayer is made, hasten towards the remembrance of Allah Most High and leave all transactions. This is best for you if only you know." (I'm unsure of this reference)The Christian View of Prayer - A Very Short Summary
"Verily, man was created impatient, irritable when evil touches him and niggardly when good touches him. Except for those devoted to prayer those who remain constant in their prayers…" (al-Maarij 19-23)
I've taken some time off work to be with the family during this Christmas season and that always means my blogging slows down. But there's much to post and discuss so it's time to jump back in!
Before I move on to other news and ideas I've given you a few pictures I took during the Christmas season here in Dubai. Dubai is a wonderful place in the Arabian peninsula in that they allow the celebration of Christmas. I'm thankful for that. But I think that much of the motivation for the demonstrably public nature of Christmas is for merchandising reasons. Dubai retailers have learned the "cash cow" that a commercialized Christmas can be. It's kind of a shame but again, I'm grateful for the allowances that are made for celebrating this Christian remembrance in an Islamic country.
