The following photos, depicting the Hajj, are supposed to have been published in the National Geographic Magazine during 1953.
There's quite a few of them, so I've seperated them into various different topics and will post over the next week or so. This post deals with transportation:
Lesley Hazleton is a British-American writer whose work focuses on the politics, religion, and history of the Middle East.
Here are her thoughts on the Quran or Koran:
Hazleton was born in England, and became a United States citizen in 1994. She was based in Jerusalem from 1966 to 1979 and in New York City from 1979 to 1992, when she moved to her current home in Seattle WA.
She has described herself as, "a Jew who once seriously considered becoming a rabbi, a former convent schoolgirl who daydreamed about being a nun, an agnostic with a deep sense of religious mystery though no affinity for organized religion".
She blogst at: THE ACCIDENTAL THELOLOGIST and is currently working on a new biography of Muhammad, to be published by Riverhead/Viking in 2012.
For many years I had heard the Prophet Muhamed had several wives, but I was never sure how many and was very unaware of the details surrounding this fact.
Having recently posted: MASS WEDDINGS in which the speaker (see 1:05) suggests the Prophet Mohammed married Aisha when she was 6 and consumated the marriage when she was aged 9, I thought I would check this out further (it appears to be true).
However discussing his marriage to Aisha is not the purpose of this posting - the aim is to simply list the names of the Prophet's wives - for those of us who are unsure about whom he married and in which order:
11 - Raihana bint Umru bin Hanafa (no details given)
12 - Maimuna bint Harith (aged 36, widow)
Here are some relevant Koranic quotes regarding marriage:
4:3
"And if you be apprehensive that you will not be able to do justice to the orphans, you may marry two or three or four women whom you choose. But if you apprehend that you might not be able to do justice to them, then marry only one wife, or marry those who have fallen in your possession."
33:52
"It is not lawful for thee (to marry more) women after this, nor to change them for (other) wives, even though their beauty attract thee, except any thy right hand should possess (as hand maidens) and Allah doth watch over all things."
33:53
"Nor is it right for you that ye should annoy God's Apostle, or that ye should marry his widows after him at any time. Truly such a thing is in God's sight an enormity."
Syrian poet, Adonis explains from his point of view the key differences between Arab and European thinking. Posted because it's an interesting viewpoint and there appear to be very few Arab public thoughts on this subject.
Basboosa [bas-boo-sa] or semolina cake is a classic sweet found across the Arab world. This particular recipe is based upon one taken from the recently published, 'Sweets of Arabia', by Egyptian sweet maker Osama El Sayed and which is published by E L Sage Associates, in VL, USA (ISBN: 9780615384184).
I've changed the recipe given by Osama into my own version of this classic Middle-Eastern sweet (indicated by the words, 'suggest' or 'rather than'). I've also changed the quantities for the ingredients into metric as the American cup system didn't seem to make any sense (I had no idea what a cup was/is, in quantity terms).
Ingredients
butter for greasing cake pan
168g [6oz, or 3/4 cup] milk (suggest substituting milk for coconut milk, according to taste)
61 g [2.15 oz, or 1/4 cup] plain yogurt
350g [12.25 oz, or 1 3/4 cups] sugar (suggest substituting some for vanilla sugar)
400g semolina [15 oz, or 2 1/2 cups] semolina flour (suggest using semolina grains for texture)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon vanilla essence (rather than the 1/2 teaspoon suggested)
100g [11 oz, or 1/3 cup] melted, clarfied butter/ghee (rather than the 1/2 cup suggested)
1 1/2 cups candided fruit (suggest adding orange zest too if making the orange flavoured version)
31g [1.1 oz, or 1/3 cup] shredded coconut (suggest using desiccated coconut for texture)
As an Alternative
1 - suggest slivered almonds and apricots for topping
2 - suggest using orange flavouring, instead of vanilla
3 - suggest adding a tiny ammount of turmeric or saffron to colour the cake
4 - a savory Indian version can be made of the cake using grated carrots, peas, green beans, grated ginger, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and sesame seeds
Methodology
Preheat the oven to 180 deg C or 350 deg F. Grease a cake pan of choice (8"x12" or individual mini-muffin cups. Warm the ghee in a saucepan so it melts, but doesn't boil.
In a large bowl combine the milk and sugar, stir together to disolve the sugar completely (suggest using an electric mixer). In another bowl, mix the yogurt and baking soda together and leave until the yogurt has doubled in size.
Add the semolina flour and vanilla to the milk and sugar mix and stir until well combined (again, suggest using an electric mixer). Stir in the melted clarified butter/ghee and mix until smooth.
Add the yogurt and baking soda mix to the semolina, milk and sugar mix and combine. Then add the candied fruits and cocount and mix well.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, ensuring the top surface is smooth. (suggest the depth of the batter is no more than 1" thick - the traditional way).
If using the 8x12 pan bake for 35 mins, if making mini muffins bake for 20 mins or until golden brown.
remove cake pans from oven and cool. Do not remove cake from tin until cool. If using the 8"x12" tin, cut in to diamond shapes. Remove from pan, place on plate and place slivered almonds and or apricots on top. If making the orange version, suggest placing slivered candided oranges on top.
This particular recipe tastes far better on day 2 or 3, rather than being eaten hot straight from the oven.
Following last week's Ramadan trifle recipe which wasn't a wonderful success {see wgaw archive: TRIFLE WITH ARABIC INFLUENCES}, I decided to make a different version of the trifle, 2.0.
This week it's with lemon jelly, so a sweet and a not-so-sweet combination. I'm still not completely happy with this version, but it was definately edible and come back for more. Will update later with version 2.1.
I used lemon jelly and dream whip
I soaked the vermicilli in rose syrup and made the pieces of vermicilli smaller with a potato masher,
then I mixed crushed lychees with lemon peel and layered them on top of the lemon jelly,
Then I added the dream whip and covered the trifle with pistach and saffron,
Here's a picture of the sun setting, as we're going to the family house for iftar [if-tar] {see wgaw archive: IFTAR}. Iftar is the meal which is eaten to break the day-long fast during Ramadan {see wgaw archives: RAMADAN}.
Not from the GCC, but the Arab world. Mass weddings in Gaza with adult men and child brides,
Somehow the video somehow didn't ring true ... this is what HOAX SLAYER says about the video:
Claims that 450 pre-pubescent girls were married in a mass wedding sponsored by Hamas are untrue
Messages like the example included above are currently circulating via email and have also been posted to a great many blogs, online forums and social networks around the world, where they have generated a flood of often vitriolic anti-Islamic sentiment and very heated debate.
The messages claim that hundreds of pre-pubescent girls were forced to marry adult grooms in a recent mass wedding ceremony in Gaza organized by Palestinian Islamic organization, Hamas. According to the messages, 450 brides, most of whom were under ten years old, were married to 450 grooms most of whom were in their mid to late twenties. The messages accuse Hamas of actively and willfully promoting pedophilia and condemn the act as "bizarre & shameful".
Support for these claims is centered around several photographs supposedly showing tiny "brides" dressed all in white and holding the hands of their much taller, grown-up "grooms". However, while a mass wedding did indeed take place in Gaza in July 2009, the claim that the photographed children were actually the brides in the ceremony is untrue.
These photographs represent virtually the entire "body of evidence" that supports the claims in these indignant protest messages. However, this supposed photographic "evidence" is in fact meaningless because they do not actually depict child brides at all. Instead, they show young family members of either the bride or the groom. At such Muslim wedding ceremonies, it is a tradition for young girls to dress up and play a role in the celebrations in a way similar to how flower girls are used in Western wedding ceremonies. Although these young girls do look like little brides, they are certainly not the ones getting married.
Hamas has vehemently denied that any children were married at the event. In fact, a Hamas official told WorldNetDaily that the youngest girl married at the ceremony was 16 years old while most were over 18 years of age.
These scurrilous and inflammatory reports began circulating soon after the Hamas sponsored mass-wedding took place. A 30 July 2009 AFP news article notes:
Nearly a thousand Palestinians celebrated marriage on Thursday night in a ceremony organized by Hamas in the north of the Gaza Strip.
Hamas dignitaries including Mahmud Zahar, one of the militant group's top leaders, were on hand to congratulate 450 grooms who took part in the carefully stage-managed event.
"We are saying to the world and to America that you cannot deny us joy and happiness," Zahar told the men, all of whom were dressed in identical black suits and hailed from the nearby Jabalia refugee camp.
Each groom received a present of $500 from Hamas, which said its workers had also contributed five per cent of their monthly salaries to add to the wedding gift.
Much has been made of the fact that no photographs of the real brides have made it into news reports about the event. This seeming omission has been seized upon by many commentators as more evidence that the children in the photographs really are the brides in spite of denials by Hamas and others.
However, the absence of the brides is in fact just a reflection of how Muslim public ceremonies are conducted. News reports indicate that "the 450 brides shared none of the glamour, taking seats among the audience" while their grooms actively participated in event ceremonies.
And a SkyNews video report about the mass wedding notes in reference to the brides that "The women are elsewhere". Tim Marshall, the journalist who presented the SkyNews video, was actually there at the mass wedding ceremony. In a blog post about his attendance, Marshall reiterates that the brides were elsewhere, noting that some of them were among the guests. He also writes:
The men and women are sitting, Most ignore the speeches, some even ignore the prayers. Then the fireworks explode, the cheering begins, and in march the Hamas scouts, bashing drums, looking every inch the future Hamas fighters many will be. Then the grooms, aged about 18 to about 28. They are holding hands with their young nieces and cousins, little girls aged from about 3 to 8, made up to the nines, wearing white wedding dresses.
Up they all go to the stage, the cheering and music grows ever louder. The girls were having the time of their lives, but, getting a little bored after a while, came down off the stage to dance with each other and play games.
Our report on this put it into context saying that it took place just a mile from the Israeli border and was a message from Hamas about its strength confidence and future fighters. Oh and that the brides were elsewhere. Pretty straightforward. It never struck me for a moment that the little girls might later be described in the bloggersphere as the brides! How naive I am.
Moreover, the 2009 mass-wedding is not at all unprecedented. An October 2008 New York Times article reporting on a Hamas sponsored mass wedding held in that year, notes that it was the tenth such event held in Gaza. The article also mirrors reports about the 2009 event, noting:
The 300 grooms were dressed in black pants, white shirts and colorful ties but no jackets, because of recent budget cuts. The brides, sitting separately among the women, wore head scarves and black robes over their evening dresses but were easily spotted by their heavy makeup. The couples had all signed marriage contracts before the event.
Ironically, reports about the 2008 event also featured photographs of young girls clad in white bride-like dresses. The New York Times article shows such youngsters dancing in front of the grooms. Apparently, the poison-pen denizens of the blogosphere saw no reason to conclude that the children in photographs of the 2008 mass wedding were actually the brides, so one wonders why they have so rabidly done so in 2009.
Perhaps the 2009 images are a little more compelling and it is, I suppose, at least possible that whoever first perpetrated these inflammatory falsehoods did so out of genuine misunderstanding. What is less forgivable - "bizarre & shameful" even - is that many hundreds of bloggers have gleefully perpetrated such errant nonsense in their publications without taking the few minutes required to check the veracity of its claims.
While free speech is (or should be) a fundamental human right, perhaps even home-based citizen journalists should take at least some responsibility in ensuring that the information they publish is factual and accurate
I had decided a while back I wanted to make a Trifle with an Arabic twist. This is a work in progress and having made Version 1.0 which wasn't fantastic, there are various other options in my head now waiting to be made (with custard, with fresh mangoes, with cardamons, etc., etc.).
The Bottom Layer
I cut lots of legimart {see wgaw archive: legimart} into small pieces, using scissors and soaked them in date syrup,
Once the legimart had soaked up the juices for half an hour or so, they were put in the trifle serving bowl and covered with strawberry jelly. This was put in the fridge to harden, and then covered with tinned fruit.
The Top Layer
The strawberry jelly mixture was covered with saffron-flavoured creme caramel,
When the creme caramel was hardened, pistash and saffron were sprinkled on top. The finished trifle looked like this,
We are trying to ship used clothes (good condition only) from Bahrain to Pakistan for flood victims.
Gulf Air has graciously accepted to provide free cargo service from Bahrain to Islamabad. We have arranged the collection and distribution in the area worst affected by the recent floods.
In this regard we require the following:
· Ladies Shalwar Kameez
· Ladies Dupata and Chaddar
· Gents Shalwar Kameez
· Children clothes both girls and boys
· Shawls
· Bed Sheets (single and double)
· Utensils only plastic, melamine or aluminum
Due to limitation of time and to save time in sorting ,we will appreciate the following:
· Only above mentioned items are donated;
· The clothes are packed and folded in plastic bags clearly mentioning the clothes in above categories
· Please also provide hard board cartons if clothes are in large quantities
· The clothes can be dropped at the following address from Thursday 12 August 2010 to Sunday 15 August 2010 (Please note the items will be shipped by 17th August 2010):
· House Number 649,Road 1720, Sar 0517. Contact (Mansoora 39266286, Faiqa 17793898)
· Villa Number 5 & 8- Noor Garden Barbar Contact (Tehmina 39188094, Madiha 37774880)
· House Number 1161,Road 6025,Block 360, Zinj (Shaima 39669798)
For any information or clarification, please contact the following:
· Mohammed Haroon 39453561
· Hussain Lalani 39440314
· Rehan Ashraf -39935581
· Saad Asghar Ali - 39441626
Please spread the word and contribute generously for this humane effort.
I first had legimart [legg-ee-maart] several years ago whilst driving through a village, two weeks before RAMADAN [ram-a-dan].
It was Nasfat Shaaban [nass-fat sha'AH baan] (direct translation: middle of month eight) and villagers lined the middle of the road, all holding the most enormous oblong plates covered with what looked like doughnut holes. All drivers were being stopped and asked to wind down their windows so the occupants could be given one of these little round balls,
I put one in my mouth and was blown away by the taste. It was the first time I'd ever had date syrup and here it was hot, covering deep-fried, doughy bits. Divine. We drove along slowly through the village and by the time we'd gotten to the end of the village I was asking my husband to return to the village for more.
I've been buying date syrup ever since and now use it with all sorts of food: salad dressings, ice cream toppings, in cakes instead of black treacle, on pancakes, etc. etc.
The latest FATWA: women are not allowed to sit on sofa because they get relaxed and they may open their legs while relaxing and this will seduce the male in the room…..
28th July - update
this was written by a woman
اخر فتاوي :الجلوس على الكرسي حرام
الى اي مستوى قد ينزل التفكير ؟؟ والى اي مستوى نصل بالدين الى حد الأضحوكة
كان الرسول الاكرم وصحابته الكرام يجلسون على المنبر
فتوى (تحريم الجلوس على الكراسي) التي أصدرتها الدَّاعية أم أنس، على موقعها الإليكتروني، بعنوان (تنبيه إلى حرمة الكراسي وما أشبهها من مقاعد وأرائك، والله أكبر) وإليكم نص الفتوى:
"إن من أخطر المفاسد التي بُليت بها أمتنا العظيمة ما يُسمَّى بالكرسي، وما يشبهه من الكنبات وخلافها، ممَّا هو شرٌّ عظيم يخرج من الملة كما يخرج السَّهم من الرَّمية . و إن السَّلف الصالح وأوائل هذه الأمَّة، وهم خير خلق الله، كانوا يجلسون على الأرض، ولم يستخدموا الكراسي، ولم يجلسوا عليها، ولو فيها خير لفعله حبيبي، وقرة قلبي، وروح فؤادي، المصطفى عليه الصلاة والسَّلام ومن تبعه بإحسان. و إن هذه الكراسي وما شابهها صناعة غربيَّة، وفي استخدامها والإعجاب بها ما يوحي بالإعجاب بصانعها وهم الغرب، وهذا، والعياذ بالله، يهدم ركناً عظيماً من الإسلام وهو الولاء والبراء، نسأل اللــــه العافية . الأمر جلل يا أمَّة الإسلام، فكيف نرضى بالغرب ونعجب بهم وهم العدو . و ما يجلبه الكرسي أو الأريكة من راحة تجعل الجَّالس يسترخي، والمرأة تفتح رجليها، وفي هذا مدعاة للفتنة والتبرُّج، فالمرأة بهذا العمل، تمكن الرَّجل من نفسها لينكحها، وقد يكون الرَّجل من الجّنّ أو الإنس، والغالب أن الجّن ينكحون النساء وهنَّ على الكراسي. وكم من مرَّة شعرت المرأة بالهيجان والشَّبق الجّنسي المحرَّم، وذلك بعد جلوسها على الكرسي. ولكَمْ من مرَّة وجدت المرأة روائح قذرة في فرجها كما خبرت وكما حدثتني بذلك بعض الصَّالحات، التائبات من الجُّلوس على الكراسي، لذلك فالجُّلوس على الكرسي رذيلة وزنا لا شبهة فيه . و الجلوس على الأرض يُذكر المسلم بخالق الأرض وهذا يزيد في التعبُّد، والتهجُّد، والإقرار بعظمته سبحانه "
When I last visited America I was amazed at how slim everyone seemed to be. At the time I put it down to being in San Fransico and being surrounded by a city of people who were simply healthy. But then I got to Florida and it was the same.
I couldn't imagine, from everything I'd read and heard about America, the people I saw in the street were slimmer on average than the people I saw in the street in the Gulf. Basically I didn't believe what I was seeing.
Turns out I was right; many Americans are slimmer, on average, than Gulfies.
Each year the Economist publishes figures which include the percentage spending of GDP on health care, average figures for literacy and clean water supplies, as well as a list of the levels of obesity.
Scarily, of the top 9 places in this particular award, 4 members of the GCC make an appearance. Only Oman and the UAE are not mentioned. Thanks to LONDONGIRL for highlighting this idea.
The cartoon below highlights changes in dress sizes before and after marriage:
Places were given as follows:
10th Place: Cyprus
Joint 8th: Bahrain
About 1 million people live in Bahrain, of which it is said 23.3% of men are obese and 34.1% of women. Overall it is thought 28.7% of the adult population is obese.
Joint 8th: Kuwait
With a population of around 4 million, it is said 28.7% of Kuwaitis are obese. 29.9% of all women have a BMI of 30 or more, compared with 27.5% of men.
7th Place: Albania
6th Place: Mexico
5th Place: Panama
4th Place: USA
3rd Place: Saudi Arabia
Population is estimated to be around 25 million people. Of these, 35.2% of adults are obese; 26.4% men and 44% women.
2nd Place: Lebanon
1st Place: Qatar
Qatar's estimated 1.5 million citizens very large indeed; 39.95% of adults are obese. 34.6% of men have a BMI of over 30 and nearly half of all women; 45.3% are obese.
We're in the middle of nowhere in Thailand and ahead of us are two men shouting into a public phone.
Seriously, they would have given a vuvuzela a run for its money. I turned to my husband and said, "They must be Arabs" . As we came up close enough to the two gentlemen to work out where they were from, it turned out they were Arabs.
After 25 years of observation, the theory with shouting appears to be, 'the louder I shout the more likely it is I'm going to get my own way. If the person being shouted out does not give me what I want I will shout louder and louder, and louder and louder, in a cresending noise until the other person bows to my wishes'.
At times it's like being sprayed with verbal paint stripper. And hense the vuvuzela on the phone outside this rural 7-11 coldstore.
Sure enough, as we walked up to the two men ahead of us we could translate the almost visible wall of screams. The Bahraini wanted the bank to send him, immediately, now, not tomorrow, not yesterday, but NOW, "arr-baa-a wa kham-seen alf dollar".
Gift giving can be a cross cultural nightmare; in the Arab world gifts are generous, large and given as often as possible.
Basic Overview
Gifts are always given when you go to someone's house, or visit someone in hospital. Sensible things to bring with you are flowers and/or chocolates and generiosity is the order of the day. Gifts are never given at weddings, but on return from honeymoon women will be expected to go around to the bride's house and present her with jewellery, gold preferably.
When a gift is given, the receiver will thank the giver but will never unwrap it in front of them.
Personal Recollection
My friend was at a loss as to how he could get visas for his holiday, the embassy was in a different country and getting them there with DHL was possible, but lots of hassle. I offered to take them with me as I was visiting the country three days later.
Having taken the passports with me and deposited them at the embassy, I arrived at work the next day to find the biggest gift I have ever seen on my desk.
When I mentioned how large it was my friend said,
“You saved me lots of time and trouble and money, it’s a small gift for your house to thank you for all your trouble.”
I asked if I could open the present there and then, and he said, “You must”. Before I could start removing the wrapping paper he was tearing at it himself, helping me to undo the parcel. Inside were 12 wine goblets, and this was from a man who doesn’t drink.
In this case all the rules were broken, but it was a very unusual situation.
Talaq [taa-laQ] is the Islamic term for divorce and can be used by a man to end a marriage, but not by a woman. All the man needs to do to end a marriage is to say the word, "TalaQ" three times to his wife, with either no witnesses present (Sunni), or with two witnesses present (Shi'ite, Shia).
The woman has no come back and can not use the triple TalaQ should she wish to divorce {see wgaw: THINGS TO THINK ABOUT BEFORE YOU MARRY and THINKING ABOUT DIVORCE} However I did read in the paper once of a woman who swore her husband said the triple TalaQ whilst he was asleep and they were forced to divorce.
Please note, if you marry with a Muttah there is no such thing as a divorce settlement, simply because it is not thought of as a 'real' marriage in the first place {see wgaw: MUTTA}
Getting Divorced
In the Islamic world there are two main formats when getting divorced; one for Shia's and another for Sunnis {see wgaw: DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SUNNI & SHIITE}
Shia
For Shia's the divorce is publically announced after which the couple can reconcile if they wish, (it's expected they attempt to reconcile within three months of the divorce annoucement). once the three month waiting period is completed the divorce is completed, as long as two witnesses agree.
Sunni
The couple divorces the moment the husband declares a triple Ta-laQ. Islamic tradition maintains a waiting period of three months, or three menstrual cycles to ensure the ex-wife is not pregnant.
Once the divorce is finalised the couple may remarry up to three times. After the third divorce the wife must marry and then divorce another man before the couple can marry for a fourth time.
This round robin is entitled,
'Now I know why they Mention on the Wedding Invitation, No Children Allowed'
In addition to it being a bit over the top with the photoshop, it's difficult to imagine anyone not being invited to an Arabic Wedding (esp. children).
It's the lip liner I find most strange.
ماسألتم أ نفسكم في يوم من الأيام لماذا يكتبون في بطاقات دعوات الزواج
ممنوع اصطحاب الاطفال؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟
انا بصراحه الآن عرفت السبب انزل تحت وبتعرف السبب
WGAW is one of Bahrain's Top 10 Blogs according to
White Girl, Arab World
For the past 25 years I've called Bahrain home; my life, work and Bahraini husband are all here. 'White Girl, Arab World' is written from a western perspective and aims to pass on, without emotions, cultural differences and explanations.
The local time in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia is GMT+3
If you do wish to feature my work in your blog, website or teaching materials, please go ahead, but 1. let me know and 2. reference the work to me and/or this blog.
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The BIG however: no part of the series, 'How to Read and Write Arabic' maybe used or reproduced in any manner what so ever, at any time and in any place for any reason what so ever.
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All writing and photography in this entire site, unless otherwise recognised as coming from another source, is copyrighted by the blog administrator; Shirley Dockerill.
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(c) 2008-2010
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