Bye dear!

Michael!
This is too early! I really wanted to see you living to be very old..

But then, now you'll be in that golden list of prodigies, geniuses who died young, when they were full of that exhilarating, inspiring energy, fully remembered, talked about, instead of being old, weak and forgotten..

I shall try to console myself thus ...

Why Men Don't Have a Clue & Women Always Need More Shoes

Book title: Why Men Don't Have a Clue & Women Always Need More Shoes

Authors: Allan & Barbara Pease

ISBN: 978-0-7528-7940-6 (Orion Books-2006)


Just finished reading Why Men Don't Have a Clue & Women Always Need More Shoes. This is the book big-boobed Maisa (no, she won't be offended as having read this book, she now knows that "a man may not be able to talk about a girl without picturing her naked" :) and "a woman must try to understand and put up with this 'weird' male biology"! ) was seen poring over for days. I borrowed it from her when she was done.

The book was exhilarating right from the Introduction. Funny language interspersed with hilarious jokes and tidbits of handy information makes it an interesting read. The book is largely about traits and characteristics of the sexes and relationships and relating between them. It helps the reader to get a pretty deep insight into the complexities of the opposite sex and how to handle them for the best results. Explanations of facts are done mostly based on theories drawing heavily from fields such as Evolutionary Anthropology, and in spite of assumptions that look a bit far-fetched in places and devoid of citation of immediate references that make them appear no better than ground level hypotheses, the reader can gain a lot from this book for sure.

A funny realisation about myself that dawned on me while reading the book was that I prefer titles starting with Why to those starting with How. For instance, I may not be interested in the title How to be rich, but change the title to Why you are not rich, and I may read it :)

The authors seem to have shared chapters in the book. Eventhough they don't explicitly say which portions are handled by whom, I could sort of detect the thing from the transition in style. While the jokes and funny observations that appeared in pages I believe to have been handled by Allan were awesomely hilarious, those that appeared on pages I believe to be from Barbara failed to excite me in the least degree. But then, the book itself says that the jokes that men find delightful and love to tell are entirely different from those that elicit laughter in women, and vice versa.

If not for anything else, the book can be read just for the fun of it!


Book courtesy: Maisa

Sahih Bukhari- vol. 1

Book title: Sahih Bukhari- vol. 1
Author: Bukhari


The strongest thought that comes to mind after reading this volume is how a religion can be changed from bad to worse by lopsided interpretations based on obscurantist obstinacy and lack of common sense. What I feel after reading this is that there is enough possibility for Islam to be a better religion than what it is now. If only it could be handled a bit more sensibly. If only someone could knock some sense into the heads of the leaders who preach it.

Heaven & Hell

' Narrated Abu Huraira:
The people said, "O Allah's Apostle! Shall we see our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?" He replied, "Do you have any doubt in seeing the full moon on a clear (not cloudy) night?" They replied, "No, O Allah's Apostle!" He said, "Do you have any doubt in seeing the sun when there are no clouds?" They replied in the negative. He said, "You will see Allah (your Lord) in the same way. On the Day of Resurrection, people will be gathered and He will order the people to follow what they used to worship. So some of them will follow the sun, some will follow the moon, and some will follow other deities; and only this nation (Muslims) will be left with its hypocrites. Allah will come to them and say, 'I am Your Lord.' They will say, 'We shall stay in this place till our Lord comes to us and when our Lord will come, we will recognize Him. Then Allah will come to them again and say, 'I am your Lord.' They will say, 'You are our Lord.' Allah will call them, and As−Sirat (a bridge) will be laid across Hell and I (Muhammad) shall be the first amongst the Apostles to cross it with my followers. Nobody except the Apostles will then be able to speak and they will be saying then, 'O Allah! Save us. O Allah Save us.' There will be hooks like the thorns of Sa'dan [??] in Hell. Have you seen the thorns of Sa'dan [??]?" The people said, "Yes." He said, "These hooks will be like the thorns of Sa'dan [??] but nobody except Allah knows their greatness in size and these will entangle the people according to their deeds; some of them will fall and stay in Hell forever; others will receive punishment (torn into small pieces) and will get out of Hell, till when Allah intends mercy on whomever He likes amongst the people of Hell, He will order the angels to take out of Hell those who worshipped none but Him alone. The angels will take them out by recognizing them from the traces of prostrations, for Allah has forbidden the (Hell) fire to eat away those traces. So they will come out of the Fire, it will eat away from the whole of the human body except the marks of the prostrations. At that time they will come out of the Fire as mere skeletons. The Water of Life will be poured on them and as a result they will grow like the seeds growing on the bank of flowing water. Then when Allah had finished from the Judgments amongst his creations, one man will be left between Hell and Paradise and he will be the last man from the people of Hell to enter paradise. He will be facing Hell, and will say, 'O Allah! Turn my face from the fire as its wind has dried me and its steam has burnt me.' Allah will ask him, "Will you ask for anything more in case this favor is granted to you?' He will say, "No by Your (Honor) Power!" And he will give to his Lord (Allah) what he will of the pledges and the covenants. Allah will then turn his face from the Fire. When he will face Paradise and will see its charm, he will remain quiet as long as Allah will. He then will say, 'O my Lord! Let me go to the gate of Paradise.' Allah will ask him, 'Didn't you give pledges and make covenants (to the effect) that you would not ask for anything more than what you requested at first?' He will say, 'O my Lord! Do not make me the most wretched amongst Your creatures.' Allah will say, 'If this request is granted, will you then ask for anything else?' He will say, 'No! By Your Power! I shall not ask for anything else.' Then he will give to his Lord what He will of the pledges and the covenants. Allah will then let him go to the gate of Paradise. On reaching then and seeing its life, charm, and pleasure, he will remain quiet as long as Allah wills and then will say, 'O my Lord ! Let me enter Paradise.' Allah will say, May Allah be merciful unto you, O son of Adam! How treacherous you are! Haven't you made covenants and given pledges that you will not ask for anything more that what you have been given?' He will say, 'O my Lord! Do not make me the most wretched amongst Your creatures.' So Allah will laugh and allow him to enter Paradise and will ask him to request as much as he likes. He will do so till all his desires have been fulfilled . Then Allah will say, 'Request more of such and such things.' Allah will remind him and when all his desires and wishes have been fulfilled, Allah will say "All this is granted to you and a similar amount besides." '

-(Sahih Bukhari- Vol. 1, No:770)

(pic. by Carmen Lomas Garza)

SAW May/Jun '09

Received May/Jun issue of Saudi Aramco World . Thanks SAW!

തരൂരും തൃശൂരും

ഞാൻ വളരെ ബഹുമാനിക്കുന്ന ശശി തരൂറിന്റെ മുകളിൽ കാണുന്ന tweets ആണ്‌ ഈ പോസ്റ്റിനാധാരം.



പഠാണികൾ ധാരാളമുള്ളിടത്താണ്‌ എന്റെ വീട്‌. ചെറുപ്പം മുതലേ അവിടെ വളർന്നു. അവിടെ ഒരു റോഡിന്‌ പഠാൺ റോഡ്‌ എന്ന്‌ പേരുമുണ്ട്‌. മലയാളി-പഠാണികളെയാണ്‌ ഉദ്ദേശിച്ചത്‌, UAEയിലെ ടാക്സിയോടിക്കുന്ന ഒറിജിനൽ പഠാണിയല്ല. പക്ഷെ, 'പഠാൺ' എന്ന വാക്ക്‌ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിലെഴുതുമ്പോൾ Pathan എന്നാണ്‌ സാധാരണ എഴുതുന്നത്‌. അതുകൊണ്ട്‌ മലയാളികളിൽ പലരും അതിനെ 'പത്താൻ' എന്നുച്ചരിക്കുന്നു. കാരണം, മലയാളികൾ transliterate ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ 'th' എന്നതിനെ 'ഠ' എന്നല്ല ,'ത' എന്നാണുച്ചരിക്കുന്നത്‌. അതായത്‌, 'tha' as in 'thanks'. അതുകൊണ്ടാവണം 'തരൂർ' എന്നത്‌ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിൽ Tharoor ആയത്‌. പക്ഷെ 'th' എന്നത്‌ എല്ലാവർക്കും 'ത' അല്ല. വടക്കുള്ളവർക്ക്‌ 't' ആണ്‌ 'ത'. അതേ 't' തന്നെ 'ട' യുമാണ്‌. അപ്പോൾ അവരെ സംബന്ധിച്ചിടത്തോളം

th = t + h = ത + ഹ = ഥ

അല്ലെങ്കിൽ

th = t + h = ട + ഹ = ഠ

ആണ്‌.



ഓരോ പ്രദേശത്തും ഓരോ coding ഉപയോഗിക്കുന്നു. അല്ലെങ്കിൽ പിന്നെ മലയാളത്തിലെ 'ഴ' എന്ന ശബ്‌ദം എന്തുകണ്ടിട്ടാണ്‌ നമ്മൾ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിൽ 'zha' എന്നാക്കിയിരിക്കുന്നത്‌?



'ശശി തരൂരി'ലെ 'ശശി' എന്ന വാക്കിന്റെ കാര്യത്തിലും ഒരു ഭാഷയെ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിലേക്ക്‌ transliterate ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ രംഗപ്രവേശം ചെയ്യുന്ന ഇത്തരം പ്രാദേശികനിയമങ്ങളുടെ പ്രഭാവമുണ്ട്‌. മലയാളികൾ 'ശ' എന്നതിനെ ഇംഗ്ലീഷിലാക്കുമ്പോൾ 'sh' എന്നെഴുതുന്നു. അതുകൊണ്ട്‌ 'ശശി' എന്നത്‌ 'Shashi'യായി. പക്ഷെ ഒരു വടക്കേ ഇന്ത്യക്കാരന്‌ അത്‌ 'Sasi'യാണ്‌. 'Sakuntala', 'Asoka' തുടങ്ങിയ വാക്കുകളിൽ അവർ 'Sh'-നു പകരം 'S' മാത്രമുപയോഗിക്കുന്നു.



തൃശൂരിനെ 'Trichur എന്ന് എഴുതുന്നത്‌ 'accurate' ആണെന്ന്‌ ശശി തരൂർ പറയുന്നു. 'Thrissur' എന്നത്‌ sub-literate ആണെന്നും. പക്ഷെ അദ്ദേഹത്തിന്റെ പേരിൽ 'ത' എന്നതിന്‌ 'th' ഉപയോഗിച്ച സ്ഥിതിക്ക്‌ 'തൃശൂരി'ലും 'Th' ഉള്ളതല്ലേ കൂടുതൽ 'accurate'? മാത്രമല്ല, 'Trichur' എന്നതിലെ 'ch' എങ്ങനെയാണുച്ചരിക്കുക? 'ch'-നു ഇംഗ്ലീഷിൽ ശ/ഷ, ക, ച എന്നീ ശബ്‌ദങ്ങളുണ്ട്‌. chance-ൽ 'ച' യാണ്‌, character-ൽ 'ക'യാണ്‌. പിന്നെ അപൂർവ്വം വാക്കുകളിൽ മാത്രമാണ്‌ 'ശ/ഷ' ശബ്‌ദം വരുന്നത്‌. ഉദാ: Chevalier, Chivalry etc.

അപ്പോൾ എങ്ങനെയാണ്‌ 'Trichur' accurate ആകുന്നത്‌?

Three Wise Men..

" The story of the Three Wise Men and the birth of Christ is one of the world's most told tales. It's also one, which, for women, illustrates all of the male species' traits that frustrate them. First of all, they simply assumed the heavens revolved around them -- the star shining in the East had been put there expressly for them to follow. Secondly, they didn't arrive at the stable where Jesus was born until more than two months after the event, most probably because they refused to stop on the way and ask for directions. Thirdly, what possible use would a newborn baby and his exhausted new mother want with gifts of gold, frankincense (a resin used for fumigation) and myrrh (a strong-smelling plant oil used for embalming the dead)? And, finally, Three Wise Men? Who's ever seen such an unlikely sight?
Imagine if the story had started Three Wise Women. They would have asked directions, arrived in time to help deliver the baby and brought practical gifts, like nappies, bottles, toys and a bouquet of flowers. They would then have put the animals outside, cleaned the stables, made a casserole, stayed in touch by mail, and there would be peace on Earth for ever more.

Moses wandered in the desert for 40 years.
He wouldn't ask for directions either.

Why does it take 4 million male sperm
to find and fertilize an egg?
Not one wants to ask for directions."

- (Why Men Don't Have a Clue & Women Always Need More Shoes)

Kamala

Kamala.
Someone whom I could relate to.

Love you.

Little Manhattan

ഇതിനെക്കുറിച്ച്‌ ഒന്നും ഇവിടെ എഴുതണ്ട എന്നു കരുത്തിയതാണ്‌. എഴുതാൻ എന്തുകൊണ്ടോ തോന്നിയില്ല. സാധാരണ വായിക്കുന്ന പുസ്തകത്തെക്കുറിച്ചോ കാണുന്ന സിനിമയെക്കുറിച്ചോ എഴുതണമെന്ന് തീവ്രമായി തോന്നുമ്പോഴാണ്‌ എഴുതുന്നത്‌. പക്ഷെ ഈ പടം എന്റെ ഫേവറൈറ്റ്‌ ലിസ്റ്റിൽ സ്ഥാനം പിടിച്ചുകഴിഞ്ഞിട്ടുപോലും എന്തുകൊണ്ടോ ഇതിനെക്കുറിച്ച്‌ എഴുതണമെന്ന് തോന്നിയില്ല. പക്ഷെ രണ്ടുമൂന്നു ദിവസങ്ങൾ കഴിഞ്ഞിട്ടും എന്നെ വിടാതെ പിന്തുടരുന്നു ഇത്‌! മനസ്സിനെ വിടാതെ പിടികൂടിയിരിക്കുന്നു. എഴുതൂ എഴുതൂ! എന്ന് അലമുറകൂട്ടുന്നു! അതുകൊണ്ട്‌ എഴുതുന്നു.

രണ്ട്‌ കുട്ടികളുടെ അനുരാഗമാണിത്‌. Gabe & Rosemary. പത്തും പതിനൊന്നും വയസ്സുകൾ. Little Manhattan എന്ന സിനിമയെക്കുറിച്ചാണ്‌ പറഞ്ഞുവരുന്നത്‌. ഓർമ്മയുള്ള കാലം മുതലേ എല്ലാവരിലും പ്രണയചിന്തകളുണ്ടാകുന്നു എന്നാണ്‌ എനിക്ക്‌ മനസ്സിലായിട്ടുള്ളത്‌. (കുറഞ്ഞപക്ഷം എന്നെ സംബന്ധിച്ചിടത്തോളം അത്‌ ശരിയാണ്‌. ഒന്നാം ക്ലാസ്സിൽ മുൻപിലെ ബെഞ്ചിലിരിക്കാറുണ്ടായിരുന്ന ആ പെൺകുട്ടിയോടുള്ള എന്റെ secret obsession ഇപ്പോഴും നല്ല ഓർമ്മയുണ്ട്‌. ലക്ഷ്മി? രേഖ? പേര്‌ എന്തായിരുന്നു എന്നോർമ്മയില്ല. രണ്ടാം ക്ലാസ്‌ മുതൽ എനിക്ക്‌ മറ്റൊരു സ്കൂളിൽ പഠിക്കേണ്ടിവന്നതുകൊണ്ട്‌ പിന്നീടൊരിക്കലും ആളെ കണ്ടിട്ടില്ല. വർഷങ്ങൾക്കുശേഷം ഒരുപക്ഷെ എവിടെയെങ്കിലും വെച്ച്‌ കണ്ടുമുട്ടിയിരിക്കുമോ? അദ്ദേഹമാണ്‌ ഇദ്ദേഹം എന്ന് മനസ്സിലാകാതെ ഞാൻ കടന്നുപോയിരിക്കുമോ? ഏതായാലും എന്റെ obsessionനെക്കുറിച്ച്‌ ആ കുട്ടി ഒരിക്കലും അറിഞ്ഞിരുന്നില്ല.) എന്നിട്ടും ഇങ്ങനെയൊരു തീമുള്ള സിനിമ ഒരിക്കലും കാണാനിടയായില്ല. അതുതന്നെയാണ്‌ ഈ പടം പ്രസക്തമാണെന്ന് തോന്നാനുള്ള ഒരു കാരണമെന്നുതോന്നുന്നു. കുട്ടികൾ തമ്മിലുള്ള സ്നേഹബന്ധങ്ങൾ ഒക്കെ സിനിമകളിൽ അവതരിക്കപ്പെട്ടിട്ടുണ്ട്‌. എങ്കിലും മുതിർന്നവരുടേതുപോലെയുള്ള ഒരു ബന്ധം കാണിക്കുന്ന ഈ പടം വളരെ പുതുമയുള്ളതാണ്‌. ഒരു പടത്തിൽ അനുവദിക്കപ്പെട്ടിട്ടുള്ള സമയദൈർഘ്യത്തിൽ, ഈ തീം അനുവദിക്കുന്ന പരിധികളിൽനിന്നുകൊണ്ട്‌ ഇതിനെ ഇതിലും മനോഹരമാക്കാൻ കഴിയുമെന്നുതോന്നുന്നില്ല. എത്ര മുതിർന്നവരായാലും പ്രണയത്തിൽ കുടുങ്ങിയാൽപ്പിന്നെ കുട്ടികളുടേതുപോലെയുള്ള ചാപല്യങ്ങളാണല്ലോ എല്ലാവർക്കും. അതുകൊണ്ടുതന്നെ ഇവരുടെ പ്രണയവും മുതിർന്നവരുടെ പ്രണയവും തമ്മിൽ വലിയ വ്യത്യാസമില്ല. സ്നേഹകാലം അങ്ങുദൂരെ വർഷങ്ങൾക്കപ്പുറത്ത്‌ ഇട്ടെറിഞ്ഞോ നഷ്ടപ്പെട്ടോ കടന്നുവന്നവർക്ക്‌, സ്നേഹിക്കേണ്ടതെങ്ങിനെയെന്ന് മറന്നുപോയവർക്ക്‌, ഒന്നുകൂടി ഓർമ്മകൾ പുതുക്കുവാനും കൈമോശം വന്നുപോയ മനസ്സിന്റെ നിഷ്കളങ്കതയെ നിമിഷനേരത്തേക്കെങ്കിലും തിരിച്ചുവിളിച്ചുകൊണ്ടുവരുവാനും ഈ കുട്ടികളുടെ കഥ സഹായിക്കും.






പക്ഷെ ഈ പടത്തിൽ ഈ കുട്ടികളുടെ സ്നേഹം മാത്രമല്ല, വേറെയും ചിന്തിപ്പിക്കുന്ന ഘടകങ്ങളുണ്ട്‌. ഈ കുട്ടികളുടെ കഥയോടൊപ്പം തന്നെ സമാന്തരാമായി, എന്നാൽ അവരുടെ കഥയുടെ ഇഴകളിൽ നിന്ന് പൂർണ്ണമായി വിട്ടുപോകാതെ പുരോഗമിക്കുന്ന Gabe-ന്റെ മാതാപിതാക്കളുടെ കഥ ബന്ധങ്ങളെക്കുറിച്ച്‌, ജീവിതത്തെക്കുറിച്ചുതന്നെ, വലിയ സത്യങ്ങൾ നമുക്ക്‌ പറഞ്ഞുതരുന്നു. ചോരതിളക്കുന്ന യൗവനത്തിൽ പ്രേമിച്ചു വിവാഹിതരായ അവർക്ക്‌ ക്രമേണ മനസ്സിലാകുന്നു അവർ അന്യോനം യോജിച്ചവരല്ല എന്ന്‌. വിവാഹമോചനത്തിനു തയ്യാറായി ദിവസങ്ങൾ അന്യരെപ്പോലെ ഒരേവീട്ടിൽ തള്ളിനീക്കുന്ന ദമ്പതികൾ! എവിടെയാണ്‌ പിഴച്ചത്‌ എന്ന ചിന്തയുമായി നടക്കുന്ന Gabe-ന്റെ അച്ഛന്‌ ഉത്തരം ലഭിക്കുന്നു. അത്‌ അദ്ദേഹം പത്തുവയസുകാരനായ സ്വന്തം മകനോട്‌ വിശദീകരിച്ചുകൊടുക്കുന്നു:
"Let me.. let me tell you something about me and your mom.. Once upon a time, we really loved each other. But as.. as time went by.. there just got to be all these.. these things- little things... stupid things that were left unsaid. And all these things that were left unsaid piled up like.. like the clutter in our storage room. And after a while... there was so much that was left unsaid...that we barely said anything at all.."
എത്ര വലിയ സത്യമാണത്‌! റാബിയയും ഓഷോയും പറഞ്ഞുതന്ന ആ സത്യം വീണ്ടുമിതാ ഈ സിനിമയും എന്നെ ഓർമ്മിപിച്ചിരിക്കുന്നു. റാബിയ:"Healthy relationships often have these little fightings. It's perfectly normal." ഏനിക്ക്‌ അതുകേട്ടപ്പോൾ ഈ പെണ്ണിനു വട്ടാണോ എന്നുതോന്നി. അടികൂടിക്കൊണ്ടിരിക്കുന്നവരുടെ ബന്ധം എങ്ങനെയാണ്‌ healthyയാവുക? എന്നാണ്‌ ഇവൾക്ക്‌ പക്വതയാകുക എന്നൊക്കെ അന്ന് വിചാരിച്ചു. പക്ഷെ ആ വാക്കുകളുടെ അർത്ഥം മനസ്സിലായത്‌ വളരെക്കഴിഞ്ഞാണ്‌. ഒന്നിച്ചുജീവിക്കുന്ന രണ്ടുപേർ തമ്മിൽ പല വ്യത്യസ്ഥതകളും, അരസികതകളും ഒക്കെയുണ്ടാകും. മനസ്സിൽ തോന്നുന്ന അനിഷ്ടങ്ങളും അഭിപ്രായവ്യത്യാസങ്ങളുമെല്ലാം സമയാസമയം പറഞ്ഞുതീർത്തോ അടിച്ചുതീർത്തോ തന്നെവേണം മുന്നോട്ടു പോകാൻ. കാരണം, അങ്ങനെയാവുമ്പോൾ, ചെറിയ ചെറിയ കശപിശകളിലൂടെ, പിണക്കങ്ങളിലൂടെ ബന്ധം മുന്നോട്ട്‌ പോകും. തീർക്കാനുള്ളതൊക്കെ അപ്പപ്പോൾ തീർക്കുമ്പോഴാണ്‌ ഒരു ബന്ധം healthyയാവുക! അല്ലാതെ എല്ലാം മനസ്സിൽ കൂട്ടിക്കൂട്ടിവെച്ചാൽ കുറെ കഴിയുമ്പോൾ എല്ലാം കുമിഞ്ഞുകൂടി കൂമ്പാരമായി ഒരു യുദ്ധംതന്നെ പൊട്ടിപ്പുറപ്പെടും. പിന്നെ അടുത്ത പടി ഡൈവോഴ്‌സ്‌ മാത്രമായിരിക്കും. ഓഷൊ പറഞ്ഞു: സുഹൃത്തുക്കൾ തമ്മിലുള്ള വൈരമാണ്‌ അപകടകരം. കാരണം ശത്രുക്കളുമായി നമ്മൾ തുറസ്സായി പോരാടും. പക്ഷെ സുഹൃത്തുക്കളോട്‌ അഭിപ്രായവ്യത്യാസങ്ങൾ തുറന്നുപറയാതെ മനസ്സിൽ അടച്ചുവെക്കും. അതുപിന്നീട്‌ പ്രശ്നങ്ങൾ നൽകും. Airtel-ന്റെ പരസ്യവും ഇതുതന്നെ പറയുന്നു: If only we talk...

അങ്ങനെ രണ്ട്‌ കഥകൾ കൊണ്ട്‌ നെയ്തിരിക്കുന്ന ഈ സിനിമയിൽ നിർഭാഗ്യവശാൽ കുട്ടികളുടെ പ്രേമത്തിന്റെ കാര്യം മാത്രമേ മിക്കവരും ശ്രദ്ധിച്ചുള്ളൂ. ഓൺലൈനിൽ ഒന്നു വെറുതി പരതിനോക്കിയപ്പോൾ ബോദ്ധ്യമായത്‌ അതാണ്‌. ഈ പടത്തിനെക്കുറിച്ച്‌ സംസാരിക്കുന്നവരൊക്കെ, യൂട്യൂബിൽ വീഡിയോ ഇട്ടിരിക്കുന്നവരൊക്കെ, കുട്ടികളുടെ രംഗങ്ങളെക്കുറിച്ചുമാത്രമേ ചിന്തിക്കുന്നുള്ളൂ!!

Moses and the running stone

Narrated Abu Huraira:
"The Prophet said, 'The (people of) Bani Israel used to take bath naked looking at each other. The Prophet Moses used to take a bath alone. They said, 'By Allah! Nothing prevents Moses from taking a bath with us except that he has a scrotal hernia.' So once Moses went out to take a bath and put his clothes over a stone and then that stone ran away with his clothes. Moses followed that stone saying, "My clothes, O stone! My clothes, O stone!" till the people of Bani Israel saw him and said, 'By Allah, Moses has got no defect in his body.' Moses took his clothes and began to beat the stone.' " Abu Huraira added, "By Allah! There are still six or seven marks present on the stone from that excessive beating."

(Sahih Bukhari .. Vol.1, No:277)

A Thousand Splendid Suns

Book title: A Thousand Splendid Suns
Author: Khaled Hosseini

ISBN: 978-0-7475-9377-5
Publ: Bloomsbury


Finished reading A Thousand Splendid Suns written by Khaled Hosseini. To be honest, I liked his first book, The Kite Runner many times more than this. I don't mean to say that this creation of his has proved itself any inferior to his first work in terms of quality; it's something else. The narration dwells mostly on physical descriptions (which, of course, he has done wonderfully enough), and it doesn't necessarily take a Khaled Hosseini to bring forth something like this. But I don't mean that it's an easily possible task though. But I'm sure, only he can give birth to something like The Kite Runner, and no one else; it deals with such an abstract theme, and it needs great skill in making the reader really imbibe the feeling of something so indefinable with the help of mere words. I was literally walking along with each and every word, each and every line of The Kite Runner, but in this book it was hard to bring back my wandering mind in far too many places.

Whereas the first book tells the story of the two boys Hassan and Amir, this one is about two girls Mariam and Laila. Both stories are set against the backdrop of an Afghanistan ravaged senselessly by the rule of religious fundamentalists. But I saw many people who said this second book was far better than the first one. Is it because I'm a male that I liked the first book that tells us the touching story of two male friends more? I have had this experience with the movie Dil Chahta Hai which is about a group of boy-friends and the intricacies and ups and downs in their relationships. All my male friends who have seen it have liked it immensely, and I myself am a huge fan of it. But alas! all the female friends of mine who have seen that movie thought it was mere waste of time.

Apart from the main bulk of the plot, something was there which couldn't fail to capture my interest entirely. It is the magic that flows out of his pen when he portrays love and romance and eroticism. Eventhough such scenes are not too many in this book, wherever they were, they had this mesmerising power in them which I was incapable of overlooking. It brought back to my memory once again the romantic scenes of his first book which my mind couldn't help registering with a star-mark back when I read it. With these two books, he has proved that he is simply the best at it and I believe that a romantic love story from him will do really great! And I desire with all my heart that his next novel be one such dealing with soft and tender emotions that soothe the heart and make it dream and carries one gently into a world all too different from our mundane one, where there is only love and affection and no hatred and cruelty and no deafening sounds of sinister explosives and disturbing gunshots, where our minds slip smoothly into an all-embracing peace..

Courtesy: lunacia, who made it into a bookring

The young student..

"The young student sits with his head bent over his books, and his mind straying in youth's dreamland; where prose is prowling on the desk and poetry hiding in the heart."

- (Lover's gift)

Tragedy of the Mannequins

Book title: Tragedy of the Mannequins
Author: Hassan Nasir

ISBN: 81-88779-08-3
Publ: Pappiyon (Sep.2003)



Hassan Nasir!
Those were the words that captured my attention. Little wonder, I have always been fascinated by these ever-increasing number of muslim names on book covers. Especially the contemporary ones. Salman Rushdie to Asra Nomani, Khaled Hosseini to Nadeem Aslam, these names have never failed in casting that strange spell on me. The used book bearing the faded cover with marks of dried liquid drops spilt on it and sallow, dirty page-edges slightly rolled over at the corners including the paperback binding rested silently, unwanted, unfondled, unhandled, unattended by anyone, perhaps totally rejected by the person who had read it earlier, on one of the two stands on either side of the door of the cute bookshop Idiom Booksellers in Fort Cochin, speacializing in books on Indian culture, history, and literature, run by Michael of U.K. for whom Fort Cochin is a second home. But unlike other muslim authors, this book held something more delightful in it for me. As soon as I managed to pluck my eyes from the attractive light pinkish-maroonish cover art and move on to the first page, I discovered that the book was not written by someone in Afghanistan, Iran or Pakistan or some non-resident UK or USA muslim. It was someone from Kerala. A Malayalee from Cochin. Most surprisingly, Mattancherry! A first novel in English by a Malayalee in Mattancherry is indeed a thing to cherish! I had never heard of this book or the author before. Nor have I met anyone who made the slightest remark about him or his book. And not even a single entry in google search for the title of the book, Tragedy of the Mannequins, until a couple of entries were made by myself in Bookcrossing and Shelfari! Has anyone heard about this book or its author? Very curious :)

Was this book never published? Was it just a proof copy from the press after which the author dropped the plans of publishing it? It is a possibility as there are so many errors, typographical and otherwise. Basic mistakes in the usage of language and spelling errors are so many. Perhaps this was just a draft. In a few places, the language appeared to be a bit poor. If this has been already published, it must have utterly failed and forgotten thanks to these drawbacks. But mostly it displayed a very brilliant expression of language and an admirably flowing vocabulary. Was a ghost-writer involved? Is the excellence found in parts to be attributed to them and the poor portions to a crude framework created by the author on which the former worked? The printing, paper quality and the cover art maintain high standards. The novel itself is, no doubt, a great work of art. If only some technical aspects had been taken care of!

The plot is entirely gripping. This is one of the books that captivates the reader's attention totally. And the pages flip so fast. You just can't afford to toss the book aside and get occupied with something else without having the magical influence of the pages read to that point pulling you back to it harder and harder. My appeal to the author is if only he could make a re-examination of the book and make the necessary minor alterations and modifications, a little touching up, or even a tiny bit of remodelling here and there and remove the detrimental, unfavourable elements (which, I must say, are not so much in the impact they make on the work as a whole as they are in their number), and ultimately hand it over to some people who know how to successfully market a good book, because I have no doubt the book is on par with, or even above par of many of the books that have been labelled international bestsellers today.

The plot tells the story of Asokan who rejects the Gandhian doctrines infused in him by his Gandhian father from his very childhood and goes on to live his life according to his own urges and instincts, backed by the advices by his mother, and not for any ism or ideology. To my sheer joy, the entire length of the narration is interspersed heavily and colourfully with mentions of and references to numerous books, and characters and anecdotes from them, diverse personalities and ideologies and discussions of matters related to culture, literature, arts and history. The perfection in the moulding of the characters and the shrewdness in the design with which they are made to interact with each other contribute wonderfully to the success of the plot. The portrayal of Asokan, Elizabeth Domanic, Aysha(who reminded me of a certain Malayalam blogger and got me thinking if it is really her and if the author has any relation with her), Gopi and others is unforgettably vivid. Gandhi himself, in a way, has an indispensable role to play in the book. If at all I have any problem with the plot and the craft of the protagonists, it is the way he made Asokan appear to be. I doubt if the author has really fully succeeded in making the reader see Asokan the same way he wants to see him himself and wants the readers to see. The narrator of the story finds Asokan's character so praiseworthy and inspiring that he goes on to take pains in getting a posthumous biographical novel of him published and an award instituted in his name to be given away to the best students in the university Asokan studied in. But I couldn't find Asokan as much admirable as the narrator/author seems to want him to be.

Nevertheless, I truly loved reading this book! And it is one of those books I would love to read again.

Eleven Minutes

Book title: Eleven Minutes
Author: Paulo Coelho

Publ: Harper Torch
ISBN: 0-06-072675-X



In 2002, the author Paulo Coelho met an old gentleman in his seventies with his wife and granddaughter at the Grotto in Lourdes, in France. The man embraced him and told about the importance of his books in his life. They made him dream. The words frightened the author because he knew that his upcoming novel Eleven Minutes dealt with a subject that was harsh, difficult, shocking. But however, Coelho has dedicated this novel Eleven Minutes to that old gentleman, Maurice Gravelines with these words:

"I have a duty to you, your wife and grand-daughter and to myself to talk about the things that concern me and not only about what everyone would like to hear. Some books make us dream, others bring us face to face with reality, but what matters most to the author is the honesty with which a book is written."

And now, after finishing reading this book, I'm convinced he has kept his word. He has indeed been totally honest in the process of writing this book.

He sets his protagonist Maria on the hard journey that ultimately helps her in discovering, and those among us who have not yet recognised recognise, the sacredness in what is known as 'sex' and to ponder on why it must always invariably be profane, taboo. This book is about desire, freedom, love, sex..

The author has littered (to my utmost delight:) ) all over the book with lines I would simply love to quote in as many places as possible. As one of my old for-a-short-while friends cum compulsive quote freak (like me :p) Bassem Sabry who used to write in Teenstuff says, quotations are nothing but our own views put in words by others in a far better and more beautiful way. Yeah, I am amazed how totally in tune I had been with the author throughout the book!

I don't think anyone can write a book as this in a subtler way. It's so fully pregnant with poetry. See how he starts the book:

"Once upon a time, there was a prostitute called Maria. Wait a minute. 'Once upon a time' is how all the best children's stories begin and 'prostitute' is a word for adults. How can I
start a book with this apparent contradiction? But since, at every moment of our lives, we
all have one foot in a fairy tale and the other in the abyss, let's keep that beginning.

Once upon a time, there was a prostitute called Maria."

..



Courtesy: solskinn who made a bookring of this

a caged bird..

"Once upon a time, there was a bird. He was adorned with two perfect wings and with glossy, colourful, marvellous feathers. In short, he was a creature made to fly about freely in the sky, bringing joy to everyone who saw him.
One day, a woman saw this bird and fell in love with him. She watched his flight, her
mouth wide in amazement, her heart pounding, her eyes shining with excitement. She invited the bird to fly with her, and the two travelled across the sky in perfect harmony. She admired and venerated and celebrated that bird.
But then she thought: He might want to visit far-off mountains! And she was afraid, afraid that she would never feel the same way about any other bird. And she felt envy, envy for the bird's ability to fly.
And she felt alone.
And she thought: 'I'm going to set a trap. The next time the bird appears, he will never leave again.'
The bird, who was also in love, returned the following day, fell into the trap and was put in a cage.
She looked at the bird every day. There he was, the object of her passion, and she showed him to her friends, who said: 'Now you have everything you could possibly want.' However, a strange transformation began to take place: now that she had the bird and no
longer needed to woo him, she began to lose interest. The bird, unable to fly and express the true meaning of his life, began to waste away and his feathers to lose their gloss; he grew ugly; and the woman no longer paid him any attention, except by feeding him and cleaning out his cage.
One day, the bird died. The woman felt terribly sad and spent all her time thinking about him. But she did not remember the cage, she thought only of the day when she had seen him for the first time, flying contentedly amongst the clouds.
If she had looked more deeply into herself, she would have realised that what had thrilled
her about the bird was his freedom, the energy of his wings in motion, not his physical body."

- Eleven Minutes

A different business..

"
'Prostitution isn't like other businesses: beginners earn more and the more experienced
earn less. Always pretend you're a beginner.'
"

- Eleven Minutes

The Bookseller of Kabul

Title: The Bookseller of Kabul

Author: Asne Seierstad

Publ: Virago - 2004

ISBN: 1 84408 047 1

It was a bit of a dragging read, but I managed to finish it. I don't think this is a great book. The author tells us the story of an Afghan family at the time of the Taliban regime and afterwards. She narrates incidents from this family consisting of many members, and through them tries to give us a picture of the Afghan society of the time. But I think she has been successful in neither. Neither could she weave up an interesting story out of the plot, nor show us enough of the Taliban influenced nation. Both lack depth. The account of the happenings of Sultan Khan's family has nothing in it that makes it an artistic creation of fiction. It's nothing more than a dull, monotonous report. And as she had to concentrate on the affairs of the family, she couldn't give us much of the real society shattered by the Taleban.

I guess most of the readers who say it's a fantastic book are westerners. And the reason must be their introduction to something from the culture of the East that sounds strange and fascinating in some way as it is all different from their own. This is the same thing I felt about The Memoirs of a Geisha. But I think that that book was a bit better than this as it could claim a bit more depth to its overall content.

Courtesy: katrinat who made a bookring of this.

Abu Dhabi International Book-Fair- 2009

The Abu Dhabi International Book-Fair- 2009 March was more than a bookfair.
A few pictures from the fair:

A section of German books

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The DC Books stall for Malayalam books

A Chat with the Arabic writer Hoda Barakat

Fusion.... Renowned German pianist Laura Feldmann plays the piano to the recitation of a poem by the Arabic poet Mohammed Khalifa

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Kids' fun corner. A quiz is going on for kids. A good company with the jovial quizmaster

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Algerian- French writer Assia Djebar with French Professor Richard Sieburth

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The traditional tents arranged by The Emirates Heritage Club

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Idrees from Madhya Pradesh in the Indian stall of Goodword Books. This picture was made on his request (I've already sent by post to his Madhya Pradesh address three copies of this printed)

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A French stall from the Antiquarian section of the book-fair. They specialize in rare and old maps, atlases and the like

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Yet another stall belonging to the Antiquarian display of very old editions

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An old manuscript in Arabic

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Yet another attraction... Stone Books!! Stone sculptured in the shape of books. An item to adorn your living room with

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Existence is abundant..

"Existence is abundant - millions and millions of flowers, millions of birds, millions of animals — everything in abundance. Nature is not ascetic, it is everywhere dancing — in the ocean, in the trees. It is everywhere singing — in the wind passing through the pine trees, in the birds.... 
What is the need of millions of solar systems, each solar system having millions of stars? 
There seems to be no need, except that abundance is the very nature of existence; 
that richness is the very core; that existence does not believe in poverty."

- Osho

A memorable evening!

March 3, 2009; Abu Dhabi Centre for Culture & Heritage:

I saw her through the space between the banister and the ceiling. I was lingering somewhere half way up the flight of stairs savouring the sweet flow of music from the live piano played at the entrance of the open restaurant upstairs. And the ambience of the interior of The Abu Dhabi Cultural and Heritage centre lit up by the dim yellow lights made the evening all too special. She wasn't anywhere to be seen five minutes before. Now she was there surrounded by not more than a dozen of people. No big crowd save the people, mostly westerners, lingering in the corners only a stone's throw away, seemingly hesitant to come too close, and reluctant to go too far, forming small groups of informal discussions, yet making sure that she was in the field of view. In short, she was totally Accessible. I'm talking about Mira Nair. Yeah, the highly accomplished film-maker of our time who made masterpieces like Salaam Bombay and Mississippi masala, and of course, Kamasutra: A tale of love (this last one was meant for those folks who know her only linked to that title :) )

She was there in the open, available, smiling, humble, welcoming, and not too much people were there to create any sort of inconvenience. I suppose they didn't make an entry of the programme in their pre-published schedule. Perhaps it was all an arrangement at the last moment. And that's how she was so freely available and I, along with my friend, could manage to get her autograph and even exchange a couple of words. She wrote 'Salaam!' and signed on the pamphlet of the movie Salaam Bombay which was to be screened a few minutes later in The Dhafra Auditorium of the cultural centre. (see the pic below which was clicked by my friend's wife. Doesn't she deserve The Best Photographer award?!! Anyway it's good that my face is blurred; Ain't I an anonymous blogger? :) )

It's me talking to her!! The one in the middle looking on in the blue t-shirt is my friend

The pamphlet with her autograph

There was a few minutes speech by her just before the movie started. Her voice was crystal clear as much as her ideas were. Her speech was too brief and yet she succeeded in making the points she intended to make. This was a woman who was so damn clear about what she wanted to speak as well as what she wanted to do. And that was something that was too conspicuous to be overlooked even when earlier I watched one of her movies seriously for the first time. Let me quote myself from an earlier post of mine about her film Mississippi masala: "She is so clear in her work.. nothing more, nothing less.. nothing overdone, nothing underdone.. right up to the mark. great!"

After the screening of the movie Salaam Bombay, the mother of all sorts of Slumdog Millionaires, there was a Q&A session for a short while. She made it clear in her talk that she didn't believe in wasting her time unless she was able to create something worthwhile out of it, as she was a person of family and many other preoccupations and she was accountable for the time she was absent from those engagements.

That was one of the most cherishable evenings! A big fat thanks to ADACH!!

S.A.W Jan-Feb 2009

Received Jan-Feb 2009 free issue of Saudi Aramco World. Thanks S.A.W.!