Mohamed Benaissa Honoured With 2008 Sheikh Zayed Book Award for Cultural
Personality of the Year
Awards Recognise Contributions to Scholarship and Creative Development in
Arabic Literature at Ceremony in Abu Dhabi
ABU DHABI, UAE, March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Former Moroccan Minister and
Ambassador to the United States, Mohamed Benaissa has been named Cultural
Personality of the Year in the 2008 Sheikh Zayed Book Award, walking away
with a prize of one million UAE dirham.
Benaissa was recognised for his unique contribution to Arabic culture
and the pioneering role he played in founding the Asilah Festival for arts,
culture and thought at an award ceremony attended by Deputy Crown Prince
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
The Sheikh Zayed Book Award, an independent award conferred by the Abu
Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, recognises significant
contributions to Arabic culture in nine diverse categories and is designed
to help foster scholarship and creative development in Arabic culture.
Winners in six other categories were also celebrated for their
achievements in fostering cultural development in the Arab World at the
event in the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi on March 12.
Established in 1978, the Asilah Arts Festival is renowned the world
over as a platform for artists to showcase their works and share ideas. The
festival, held annually in Morocco, is an annual cultural extravaganza
which attracts both studio and performing artists from all over the world,
transforming Morocco into a cultural forum.
Other winners honoured at the ceremony this year were:
- Ibrahim Al Kouni of Libya - Literature
- Huda Al Shawa of Kuwait - Children's Literature
- Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research - Best Publisher-
Distributor
- Dr. Faiz Assayagh of Jordan - Translation
- Rifat Chadirji of Iraq - Architecture
- Dr Mohamed Saadi of Morocco - Young Author
Rashed Al Ureimi, Secretary General of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award
Committee said: 'I would like to congratulate all of the winners for their
contributions to culture in the region and beyond. The quality of the work
we have looked at this year was extremely high.'
Benaissa was awarded one million UAE dirham (around GBP140,000) by the
Sheikh Zayed Book Award Committee in recognition of his individual
achievement with the other winners each receiving 750,000 dirham (around
GBP105,000) for their contributions to culture.
The 2008 Sheikh Zayed Book Awards attracted participation from many
well-known personalities in the Arab cultural arena. The Award Committee
evaluated a total of 512 works from more than 1,200 nominated across the
nine award categories, which represented submissions from more than 30
countries.
Notes to Editors:
About the Sheikh Zayed Book Award for Cultural Personality of the Year
The award is given to a prominent culture figure, Arab or
international, who has made a clear contribution to the enrichment of Arab
culture, creatively or intellectually, and that his/her work or activities
embody the values of originality, tolerance and peaceful co-existence.
About the Sheikh Zayed Book Award Supreme Advisory and Advisory
Committees
The Award Supreme Committee is presided by Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al
Nahyan, president of the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, and
includes Zaki Nassiba, Advisor for the Presidency Office and vice-president
of the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage; Mohammed Khalaf Al
Mazrouei, General Manager of the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and
Heritage; Jumaa Al-Qubeissi, Director of National Books Unit of the
Authority; Mr. Juergen Boos, Director of the Frankfurt International Book
Fair; and Turky Al Dakhail , media personality and author.
In its 2007-2008 session, the Award Advisory Committee includes an
elite of local and Arabic cultural figures. In addition to Mr. Rashed Al
Ureimi, a member and the Secretary General, the committee comprises Dr. Ali
Rashed Al Noaimi of the United Arab Emirates, United Arab Emirates author
Mohammed Al Mor, Dr. Abdallah Al Gadami of Saudi Arabia, Dr. Radwan Al
Sayed of Lebanon, Dr. Salah Fadl of Egypt, Sheikha Mai Khalifa of Bahrain,
Algerian novelist Waciny Laredj and Dr. Said Ben Said Alaoui of Morocco.
About the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage
The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) is a
government institution in charge of safeguarding, conserving and promoting
the heritage and culture of Abu Dhabi. The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture
and Heritage is administered by a Board of Directors chaired by H. E.
Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoun Al Nahyan.
SOURCE Sheikh Zayed Book Award
Friday, March 21, 2008
Major Cultural Award in Arab World Announces Winners
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Ex-Moroccan minister Bin Eisa wins Zayed book award
WAM
Published: March 01, 2008, 21:23
Abu Dhabi: Former Moroccan foreign minister Mohammad Bin Eisa has won the Shaikh Zayed Book Award for 2008 in the category of the Cultural Personality of the Year.
In a press release, Secretary-General of the Shaikh Zayed Book Award Rashid Al Uraimi said Bin Eisa has been awarded in recognition of his contributions to the cultural movement as well as for his role as a co-founder of Morocco's Aseelah Culture Season which was launched in 1978 as a forum for Arab, African and western cultural achievers and creative individuals and thinkers.
Bin Eisa will be presented a cash award of Dh1 million along with a certificate of appreciation.
Bin Eisa was born in Aseelah city, Morocco in 1937. He was Morocco's minister of culture between 1985-1992. He then became Morocco's minister of state for foreign affairs and culture between 1999-2007.
A prestigious ceremony will be held at the iconic Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi to honour winners of the second edition of the Shaikh Zayed Book Award (2007-8). The ceremony will be held on the sidelines of the upcoming Abu Dhabi International Book Fair from March 11 to 16.
Another Moroccan researcher and PhD holder won the Shaikh Zayed Book Award in the category of Young Authors for his book Future of international relations in the light of civilizations clash, which was described by the secretary-general as a remarkable contribution to Arab politics and philosophy.
The translation award went to Jordanian Fayez Al Sayagh, while the Arts Award went to Iraqi architect, Rafa Al Jaderji, and Publication and Distribution Award went to the Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research.
The Libyan novelist Ebrahim Al Kowni won the Literature Award, while Huda Al Shawwa, a Kuwaiti, won the Child Literature Award.
In all, 512 candidates from 30 Arab countries contended for the second edition of the Shaikh Zayed Book Awards.
http://archive.gulfnews.com/nation/Heritage_and_Culture/10194100.html
Sunday, October 28, 2007
THE OTHER COLUMN: Confessions of a boor — Ejaz Haider
I am told that magical realism is a big thing nowadays, courtesy Latin America (primarily), a continent which produces rebels, juntas, anti-Americanism, civil wars, drug cartels and fantasists, not necessarily in the same order
Pure coincidence it is but shows how uneducated I am.
In Islamabad, on an impulse, I pick up a book by Italo Calvino called “Why Read the Classics?” even though this is not the stuff I read — at least not anymore. A compilation of 36 essays translated for the first time in English, I start reading randomly and come across the one on Jorge Luis Borges, the Latin American writer who is supposed to be the doyen of magical realists — including Marquez’ — but who I have never read.
I am told that not having read Borges only shows that I have not had the need to strike a good conversation for quite some time. I agree. By the way, not that I knew about Calvino, just in case, dear reader, you get the wrong idea.
I read Calvino on Borges and he talks about Borges’ familiarity with, among other classical texts, The Arabian Nights.
The scene changes.
I walk into office and Khaled Ahmed shows me a book he is reading. “The Arabian Nights and Orientalism” is a compilation of papers read at a 2002 conference on Arabian Nights in Osaka, Japan. Arabian Nights? Japan?
While it is for K to inform the readers on this matter, which he shall whenever he reviews the book for these pages, I have my own confessions to make. Apparently, the tales came to Japan in 1875, eight years after the Meiji Revolution. Never knew that. Also, UNESCO sponsored Arabian Nights year in 2004. Had no idea.
I definitely need to change present company; or at least move away from the din of politics. But this is not all.
Robert Irwin, the Middle East editor of Times Literary Supplement, in the preface to the book, refers to the chapter in his 1994 “The Arabian Nights: A Companion” and says he (Irwin) discussed therein “the influence of the Nights on European and American literature and suggested at the risk of hyperbole, that that influence was so all-pervasive that ‘it might have been an easier, shorter chapter if I had discussed those writers who were not influenced by the Nights’”. No kidding!
Irwin then goes on to say: “A discussion of the lack of influence on, say, William Blake, Evelyn Waugh and Vladimir Nabokov might have been just as rewarding.” Only, when Irwin went to St Petersburg in 2001 and went to the Nabokov family home which they had abandoned before fleeing to Germany, what does he find in the now-Nabokov Museum among the few volumes of the original family library: “...there in a glass case I spotted a copy of the fin de siècle translation by Mardus of the Nights.”
Surprising as this was for me, a few lines further down Irwin mentions the essay Borges wrote on the “Translators of the Thousand and One Nights” which reaffirms Calvino’s discussion in the essay of a Borges poem that refers to the Nights. So Borges knew about the Nights. And if I didn’t know until a few days ago that he did, that only shows, again, that I need a break from hackwork and must acquire some education.
In any case, I am told that magical realism is a big thing, courtesy Latin America (primarily), a continent which regularly produces rebels, juntas, anti-Americanism, civil wars, drug cartels and fantastic fantasists, not necessarily in the same order. It seems to me that most of these magical realists were and are familiar with the Nights, the ultimate narration and reading in fantasy, but one that may be described in terms of the Borgesian conception of the interactive dynamic between fantasy and reality, art and life.
But the worst confession on my part, one that certifies my philistinism, is that I have not read Nabokov’s Ada. Because if I had, I wouldn’t need Irwin’s preface to find out that Nabokov knew about the Nights. This is how Irwin describes it:
“The sight of the Nabokovs’ copy of Mardus’s version of the Nights made me think again. I returned to England and my library and found my copy of Ada (1969), which is Nabokov’s most luxuriant novel... Its eroticism and its fantasy parallel that of the Nights and the contribution of the Arab story collection to the manner in which Nabokov chose to relate his love story is perhaps covertly acknowledged in the novel when Ada goes questing in the family library for erotica and finds a copy of the Arabian Nights.”
Irwin caps the passage by saying: “So perhaps it is now time to reconsider the possible influence of the Arabian Nights on the poetry of William Blake and the fiction of Evelyn Waugh...”. Apparently, the influence is traceable to writers placed as far and wide in time and space as Dickens, Andre Brink and Mishima Yukio — of course, I haven’t read the last two.
(There is another great Islamic sage too who plagiarised from the Nights but that is for K to narrate!)
From these recent discoveries I have learnt two things: one, that I urgently need to get an education; two, that we may do well — and I speak here not of boors like myself but those who I have heard discuss literature rather passionately — to perhaps read Alif layla wa layla, apply our critical faculties to it and trace its influence, which now seems to me to be immense, on non-Arab literatures and, more specifically, on magical realism, the sexy in-thing.
And while these educated souls are at it, could someone pass me that glass of lassi, please.
Ejaz Haider is Consulting Editor of The Friday Times and Op-Ed Editor of Daily Times. He can be reached at sapper@dailytimes.com.pk
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C10%5C28%5Cstory_28-10-2007_pg3_6
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Modern Arabic Literature and Culture
Students who opt to concentrate on Modern Arabic should read the general requirements of "Arabic and Islamic Studies" and note the following (course) requirements: (1) Modern Arabic Literature: Four semesters of seminars and/or reading and research courses (Arabic 300/320r); (2) Classical Arabic Language/Literature: Arabic 240 (Classical Arabic philology; full-year course), and two semesters of classical literature/literary history (such as Arabic 150r/245r); (3) Literary Theory: Two semesters of literary theory in consultation with supervisory committee; (4) Second ME language: Four semesters of Modern Hebrew, Turkish, or Persian; (5) Electives in contemporary Arab studies: Two semesters of area studies that deal with contemporary Arab culture (history, anthropology, or religious studies)
from
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~nelc/arab_islam.html
Islamic intellectual history (especially philosophy and theology)
In addition to Islamic Civilizations 145 ("Islamic Philosophy and Theology") as well as a full year of Arabic 240 ("Classical Arabic Philology"), certain specified courses are required of all students who plan to write a dissertation on some aspect of Arabic/Islamic Philosophy (falsafa) or Islamic Theology (kalâm). The aim of these requirements is to give students the ability to locate a particular text more precisely within Islamic intellectual history: both diachronically (i.e., in terms of that text's relationship to previous and later texts within the text's own specific intellectual tradition, be it falsafa or kalâm) and synchronically (i.e., in terms of that text's relationship to contemporaneous texts within other textual traditions, be they Islamic Law, Qur'an Commentary; Sufism, etc.). Students planning to write on some aspect of Arabic/Islamic Philosophy (falsafa) will be required to complete at least two semesters of Arabic 249r ("Arabic Philosophical Texts: Seminar"); one semester of Arabic 250r ("Arabic Theological Texts: Seminar"); one undergraduate-level course on Ancient Philosophy (e.g., Classics 100, Philosophy 101; Philosophy 102, Philosophy 105); and one graduate-level course on Ancient Philosophy (e.g. Classics 268r; Greek 110r, Philosophy 202). By the time they take their General Examinations, students planning to write about some aspect of Arabic/Islamic philosophy will also be required to demonstrate - through examination or through completion of coursework with a grade of "B" or better - at least a third-year level of proficiency in Greek OR Latin OR Hebrew, depending on their specific interests. (NB: Students planning to write on some aspect of the Greco-Arabic translation movement will also be required to demonstrate at least a second-year level of proficiency in Syriac.) Students planning to write on some aspect of Islamic Theology (kalâm) will be required to complete at least two semesters of Arabic 250r ("Arabic Theological Texts: Seminar"); one semester of Arabic 249r ("Arabic Philosophical Texts: Seminar"); four courses in the following areas: Qur'an; Islamic Law; Institutional History; Hadith; Arabic Grammar; Sufism; or Late-Antique or Medieval Christian or Jewish Thought.
from
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~nelc/arab_islam.html
Islamic religion and culture
Electing this as an examination field involves developing (1) a general, synoptic grasp of the broad history of Islamic religion and culture with (2) a focus on two or three selected topical foci within that history, e.g., Qur'an and exegesis, Hadith studies, Sufism, law, reform, ritual and practice, theological developments, education, religion and politics, or religious institutions and ideas in a particular period and region. It is expected that anyone focusing on Islamic religion will at a minimum do one field in Arabic language and literature (above) and complete course work through the advanced level as specified there. In addition, two or more years of work in a second Islamic language and a minimum of five further courses in Islamic religion, history, literature, culture, art history, etc. is normally expected. These will come primarily from NELC, History, and History of Art and Architecture and Study of Religion, but there are often courses in other departments (e.g., Anthropology, Sanskrit and Indian Studies) or other faculties (e.g., Divinity or Law) that may be counted. Every student's precise curriculum in Islamic religion and culture is to be worked out with his or her adviser.
from
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~nelc/arab_islam.html
Arabic Language and Literature
This may count as one field in the General Examinations or as two separate fields. If students intend to write their thesis in either Arabic language or Arabic literature, they are required to take two separate examinations in these two fields. If they intend to write their thesis in fields (b) to (e) below, Arabic language and literature will count as one field for the General Examinations. Students with a focus on language are required to take Arabic 146r (History of the Arabic Languages) and Arabic 248r (Medieval Arabic Writings on Grammar [or Literary Theory]: Seminar). They are strongly encouraged to take introductory courses in Linguistics (such as Linguistics 110, 112a/b, 115, 120) and/or Semitic Philology (such as Sem. Philol. 140, 200r). Students focusing on literature are required to take Arabic 245r (Classical Arabic Literature: Seminar), ideally twice. If they feel they are still in need of a general overview, they are encouraged to take, or audit, Arabic 150r (History of Classical Arabic Literature [in translation]). It is also strongly recommended that they take a course or two in Comparative Literature (such as Comp. Lit. 112, 207, 211, 275). Students with a language focus should take, or audit, the literature courses (Arabic 150r and 245r) for their examination in Arabic literature; likewise, students with a literature focus should take, or audit, the courses on language (Arabic 146r and 248r) for their examination in Arabic language. Students who want to take the examination in Arabic language AND literature should take two and audit two of the Arabic courses mentioned (one course on language and one on literature, each). A fair knowledge of the foundational texts of Islam is required for all students in Arabic language and literature; those who do not come in with this kind of knowledge should take either Arabic 230a and 230b (The Hadith) or Arabic 231a and 231b (The Qur'an).
from
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~nelc/arab_islam.html
Arab Literature in English
Arabic TranslationArab Literature in EnglishThe late Edward Said used to complain of a tacit conspiracy against Arab literature in translation, a complaint supported by much anecdotal evidence. However it has to be considered in a wider context. The Anglo-Saxon world has not been hugely curious about the literatures of other cultures. nthusiasts for Dutch, Finnish, Korean or Chinese literature can make similar complaints about the neglect or marginalisation of those cultures.
Some writings of contemporary Arabic have been accepted as part of the canon of international literature. The Cairo trilogy of the Egyptian Naguib Mahfouz has sold more copies in English than the whole of Mahfouz’s work in Arabic. The Sudanese Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North, first translated by Denys Johnson-Davies 40 years ago, has recently been republished as one of the Penguin Library of Modern Classics. Two other writers – the Lebanese Hanan al-Shaykh and the late Saudi Abdel-Rahman Munif – have been regularly published by mainstream western publishers.
But the great majority of contemporary Arab literature in the last 50 years has been published by niche publishers. Such publishers – Quartet Books and Saqi in the United Kingdom, Interlink, the University of Texas at Austin and Three Continents Press in the United States – have produced outstanding work. But their productions have had small print-runs and the publishing houses have lacked the resources of promotion and distribution of the larger mainstream publishers.
Today the leading publisher of contemporary Arabic literature in English is the American University in Cairo Press. Their list is excellent. They have now published the whole works of Naguib Mahfouz, covering nearly 70 years of creativity. Although there is an emphasis on Egyptian literature, the AUC Press has not neglected the rest of the Arab world. In the last 15 years, the quality of their productions has vastly improved. The Press distribute 80% of their publications from Cairo, 15% in the United States and only 5% in the United Kingdom and Europe. There are great possibilities for expansion there.
If we look at the increase of publications in the last 50 years we note that there was only a trickle of publications in the 50s, 60s and 70s. The award of the Nobel Prize for Literature to Naguib Mahfouz in 1988 transformed that. The global literary world became aware that Mahfouz was not the only writer. Each year from the 90s onwards, 20 or more works of contemporary Arab literature are published in English – in the United States, the United Kingdom and Egypt.
In the 1970s, a Palestinian poet and critic, Salma Khadra Jayyusi, set up the Project for the Translation of Arabic (PROTA). She cajoled money from various sources and has sponsored 20 or more volumes of Arabic in translation. She has persuaded several publishers to publish and, under PROTA, work has been published by the Palestinians Liana Badr and Yahya Yakhlif, the Libyan Ibrahim al-Koni, the Yemeni Zaid Mutee. Dr Jayyusi has also published several huge anthologies of contemporary literature, the most recent being Modern Arabic Fiction, over 1,000 pages long, published by Columbia University Press in 2005.
The other significant development has been the magazine, Banipal, which has appeared three times a year since 1998. Nearly 300 contemporary Arab authors have seen their work in English. The magazine has not been academic, but has included news stories, reviews, photographs, profiles as well as translations. Margaret Obank and Samuel Shimon have built up a unique network of writers and translators in all parts of the world. It has broken out of the restricted niche of Middle Eastern specialists and arranged successful tours around Britain of Arab writers such as Mourid Barghouti and Saadi Youssef. More recently it has been publishing collections of work that has appeared in the magazine. And most recently it has launched the Banipal Prize for Translation, with support from the poet from the United Arab Emirates, Muhammad al-Suwaidi. Last month it won an award for being the seventh (out of over 100) best literary magazine. from http://www.literarytranslation.com/workshops/arabictranslation/arabliteratureinenglish/ |
Classical Arabic prose
The birth of Arabic prose as a literary form is attributed to the Persian secretarial class who served under the Abbasid caliphs (750-1256) in Baghdad. Ibn al-Muqaffa' (died 757) was a convert to Islam who translated classical Persian works into Arabic. He became famous as the author of Kalila and Dimna, a series of didactic fables in which two jackals offer moral and practical advice.
al-JAHIZ (776-869) developed Arabic prose into a literary vehicle of precision and elegance. Born in Basrah, he was noted for his wit and became one of Baghdad's leading intellectuals during the early Abbasid period. The most famous of his 200 works were:
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Kitab al-Hayawan ("The Book of Animals"), an anthology of animal anecdotes.
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Kitab al-Bayan wa al-Tabyin ("The Book of Elucidation and Exposition"), ostensibly about rhetoric but also covering history and science.
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Kitab al-Bukhala’ ("The Book of Misers"), amusing but perceptive observations on psychology.
ABU AL-FARAJ al-Isfahani (c 897-967), from Aleppo, wrote Kitab al-Aghani ("The Book of Songs"), in 24 volumes. A model of simplicity and clarity in its writing, the book gives a comprehensive picture of Arab culture and society, including songs and poems which were popular in Baghdad under the Caliph Harun al-Rashid. A vizir (government minister) of the time is said to have taken 30 camel-loads of books whenever he travelled - until he received a copy of the Book of Songs. He then felt able to dispense with all the other books.
al-HAMADHANI (died 1008) is credited with inventing the genre known as maqamat ("assemblies") - dramatic anecdotes narrated by a witty but unscrupulous rogue which poke fun at all levels of society. Elaborately written in rhyming prose, they exploit the unique capabilities of the Arabic language to the full. Out of 400 original maqamat, 52 survive.
The trend towards linguistic virtuosity led, ultimately, to a triumph of form over content. al-HARIRI (c 1054-1122) took the maqamah to new heights (or extremes) in order to demonstrate his prowess with word-play and his seemingly inexhaustible vocabulary. In one work, he used only those letters of the alphabet which have no dots or do not join to the following letter in a word. Even so, for more than seven centuries, al-Hariri's maqamat were regarded as the greatest literary treasure of Arabic, after the Qur'an. According to some readers, wholesome moral values and subtle criticisms of the existing social order underlie al-Hariri's decorative language.
from
http://www.al-bab.com/arab/literature/lit.htm
Pre-Islamic literature
The structure of the Arabic language is well-suited to harmonious word-patterns, with elaborate rhymes and rhythms. The earliest known literature emerged in northern Arabia around 500 AD and took the form of poetry which was recited aloud, memorised and handed down from one generation to another. It began to be written down towards the end of the seventh century. The most celebrated poems of the pre-Islamic period were known as the mu'allaqat ("the suspended"), reputedly because they were considered sufficiently outstanding to be hung on the walls of the ka'ba in Makkah.
The typical poem of this period is the qasidah (ode), which normally consists of 70-80 pairs of half-lines. Traditionally, they describe the nomadic life, opening with a lament at an abandoned camp for a lost love. The second part praises the poet's horse or camel and describes a journey, with the hardships it entails. The third section contains the main theme of the poem, often extolling the poet's tribe and villifying its enemies.
from
http://www.al-bab.com/arab/literature/lit.htm
Meet 14-year-old Maulima Fazil in quake-hit and remote Tangdhar
Khurdpara, (Tangdhar) Oct 6: Enter her house on the mountain base that can crumble in case of a shake like October 8, 2005 and the dingy rooms where she lives in perpetual darkness indicate the condition of the present of this bright 14-year-old girl who had splendid past and now fosters future of others through Islamic teachings as she has the rare honour of having a degree of Maulima Fazil at this young age.
Probably she is the only one who at the age of 13 has attained such a degree. Haseena finished the degree course in seven years in 2006.
14-year-old Haseena’s determination is as strong as the mountain where her mudstone house is situated and lies meters away from the danger zone or the flood way once rains turn incessant and God-forbid washes it away. But She has faith in Almighty whose relentless recitation she has been muttering ever since she spoke a word in the world and now after becoming Maulima Fazil continues to resonate through her tender voice. The entire area suffered extensive damage on October 8, 2005 and almost every house crumbled except Haseena’s, which only developed cracks.
Her story exemplifies how a tender soul in this remote border area struggles to attain such a feat with the help of mother, who has taken job of a sweeper for a paltry sum of Rs 200 at Govt School here. Even though she is not a permanent staffer yet manages her chores in this meager sum.
Haseena is the only daughter among the four children born to Zareena now 40 and widowed.
The abject poverty she is into at present has forced her to enroll two sons into orphanages in Srinagar.
Sajad, 12, has been enrolled in JK Yateem Khana at Batamaloo while Zubair, 8, is being taken care of at Baitul-Hilal Orphanage at Jawahar Nagar. The younger one Adil, 5, stays with Zareena here.
Life was not this way as the family struggles to sustain it.
Ghulam Mustafa Khan while following Prophet Muhammad (SAW’s) saying that ‘Go in quest of knowledge even into China’ in order to imbibe in his only daughter Haseena the Islamic education settled the entire family in Gujarat in 1993.
Khan owned a truck and used to ferry fruits to Gujarat with handsome earning. Since in the backdrop he had made up his mind to make Haseena an Aalim, he got his entire family settled in Gujarat.
Zareena reveals that Sajad was studying in an English medium school in Gujarat. “Look at our fate as he is now in a Yateem Khana,” moans she.
In 1999 Khan got Haseena admitted into Jamiat-u-Saulihaat, Bostaan Amina Munawara in Barauch district of Gujarat where she could learn from basics to attain the degree.
According to Zareena, Khan after driving trucks for years had the yearning to have his own TATA Sumo in Karnah for extra earning.
This, she says was the period when people started purchasing TATA Sumos in no other vehicle zone of Tangdhar and he in order to process the finance for the vehicle had to be here.
And Khan’s entry into his home here proved to be a turning point for the entire family as the ‘last shell’ fired from the artillery fell on Khan killing him instantly just in front of his house at Khurdpara, some 2 kms from Tangdhar.
Hardly did Pakistani and Indian leadership knew that their last artillery shell would rip apart this family’s bliss. Both countries announced ceasefire on the day the last shell smashed head of Khan.
“This shell fell on us and here we are as I am sweeper, my sons are in orphanages, my house is on verge of crumbling and at time we don’t have ration,” says Zareena. She further says that this year the school officials almost removed her from the temporary sweeper post but she fought to retain Rs 200 per month job.
It was after seven days of Khan’s burial that Zareena with children landed in Tangdhar from Gujarat. “We received the news of his death after days and couldn’t see his face before burial,” says Zareena with entire family in tears.
The burial of Khan saw the literal ‘burial’ of gladness of this family. However, Haseena’s Islamic education turned her into vanguard and she directed her family the way to survive amidst struggle.
Zareena took to sweeper’s job while Haseena went back to Gujarat to complete her father’s dream of becoming an Aalim.
It was in the year 2006 that Haseena finished her degree of Maulima Fazil. It took Haseena seven years to complete this degree.
During seven years, She first passed course in Arifa (two years) in which basic about holy Quran and Arabic is imparted, after Arifa, she passed Aalima (2 years) in which stress is on Hadith and for three years she did Fazila course.
In these seven years, she read Fiqh, Hadith books (Bukhari Sharief, Tirmizi Sharief and Ibne Majah), (Abu Dawood), (Riyazatus Saulihaen), Arab literature, Grammar and Language and also mastered Quranic translation.
After this degree, now Haseena is hell bent on pursuing her education to become Hafiz-e-Quran. It will take another year for Haseen to attain another feat.
Her mother doesn’t want Haseena to leave for Gujarat as she argues that she (Haseena) is not well with the health. “Yes I have health problems but InshaAllah I will be okay as I do Dhikr of Allah and I am going to Gujarat for further studies,” affirms she.
Zareena even pleads that she doesn’t have money to buy Haseena tickets for Gujarat. To this Haseena says that she has saved some amount during her teaching stint at Darasgah in Kandi and also teaches Quran to young boys and girls at home here. She receives salary of Rs 1000 per month at Darasgah.
Her determination to become Hafiz-e-Quran is evident when she argues with her mother to allow her to pursue it in Jamait-u-Saulihaut and soon she will be on her way to achieve another milestone in this world and hereafter.
SCFA receiving nominations for Children’s Literature Prize
| SCFA receiving nominations for Children’s Literature Prize Web posted at: 9/30/2007 2:56:3 Source ::: The Peninsula DOHA • The Supreme Council for Family Affairs (SCFA) has started receiving nominations for its annual State's Prize for Children’s Literature, which was launched through an Emiri Decree in 2005. Literary works competing for the prize have been received on SCFA's website childlit-qa@scfa.gov.qa which contains full information about the prize as well as a copy of the nomination form. This award was launched with the aim of enriching child's literature in the Arab world, considering the scarcity of intellectual products concerned with childhood, a press release issued by SCFA said. It also aims to contribute towards building a generation aware of its Arabic and Islamic identity and its cultural heritage and societal values, according to an announcement posted on the SCFA website. The prize includes eight categories which are: short story, novel, poetry, acting, theatre, children's songs and illustrated books for children, in addition to innovated children's games, including those using electronic devices, the press release added. The rize's value is QR200,000 for each of these categories and in case there is more than one winner in the same category, the sum will be divided equally between the winners. Besides, the winners will be awarded with a gold medal and its patent, as well as a certificate of appreciation. The work submitted to win the prize should be in Arabic and should be original and has not previously won any local, Arab or international prize. It should also be inventive and consistent with Arabic and Islamic values in the Arab communities, and has not previously been submitted as a dissertation or a thesis to obtain an academic degree, the press release said.
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The French Mediterranean Art Center celebrates Algerian literature
on Thursday, October 04 @ 11:41:56 CDT The French Mediterranean Art Centre has selected Algeria as a main theme for studies in a seminar slated for October 11th at Perpignan (Southern France). The theme of the seminar is “Algeria … Inter-crossed opinions on the foot steps of Albert Camus and Kateb Yacine.”. The center started its activities 20 years in the south of France and succeeded in creating a festival in 2005. Within few years, it imposed itself on the French Literary scene. The festival “Read in the Mediterranean” celebrates artists who contributed in shaping the Mediterranean identity as well as its specificity. Algeria will be represented through the play “1962” to its stage director Mohammed Gacimi as well as through the screening of some Algerian movies for instance the French –Moroccan film “the brother enemy” in which the Algerian comic Mohammed Fellag played a part. The organizers of this year’s edition decided to celebrate the French academician Dominique Fernandez, whereas Assia Djebbar, the first African and Arab world woman to enter the French academy was not invited. Agencies http://www.echoroukonline.com/english/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=7846 |
