Friday, November 26, 2010

Quite possibly the gay-est email I've received in a while...

As-salamu alaikum brothers and sisters,

Are you going to fast tomorrow? Think about it, it is Eid Al-Ghadeer when it is highly recommended to fast, and Thanksgiving! So why not time your dinner for iftar? If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, then fast anyway! If you have days to make up, this is a perfect day to fast. It is Thursday, Ghadeer, and a short day.

If you have days to make up then make sure your intention is to make up fasting days.

Please make dua for me and all the believers.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Tourist guide, part two

Etiquette of Ziarat (Visitation) of the graves of the Holy Personalities

(Notes taken from Sisters' Study Circle and accounts from zawaar who visited Agha Bashir Najafi in Iraq recently)

The word Ziarat comes from the Arabic verb zaar which means to visit, but it also has roots in the verb zawara which means to turn away. Seems a bit odd that we should turn away from someone when we visit them! Actually it means that we should turn away from everything and everyone EXCEPT the person we are visiting. Ziarat is a form of united oneself with the person who we are visiting and that means standing for what they stood for. So, someone visiting the shrine of Sayyidda Zainab in Syria needs to appreciate the things that she stood for in her lifetime (truth, justice, hijab etc) and make sure to apply these principles in their own lives.

There is a saying that 'a believer is a mirror for the beliver' i.e. try and rub of good qualities onto each other. In this case, try and follow the examples laid out for us by the Holy Prophet and His Household.

There is a saying from the 6th Holy Imam about using ziarat as a means for asking for your needs and Allah will not turn you away.

A scholar once visited the shrine of Imam Husayn in Karbala and saw all the people around him asking for their burdens to be increased! In other words, they were asking for material things (the more material things we have, the more we have to account for). So rather than asking for increased burdens, we should try and ask Allah to remove our burdens and our attachment to this temporary life and help in our goal towards perfection.

The first time we visit a shrine, we should just go and pay our respects to the personality and not ask for any of our wishes. The analogy is a bit like getting in touch with your long lost school friend. You don't see each other for years, but as soon as you meet, you tell your friend - nice to see you, but actually I only came to see you because I need x, y and z!

The other etiquette to maintain are the obvious ones - recite the 'idhne dukool' - permission to enter the shrine supplications. You wouldn't barge into someone's house without permission, so it goes without saying that you don't just go into a shrine without seeking permission. Be humble, don't push anyone (just because the Iranians push, it doesn't give us a licence to! LOL) and don't litter the place either (again, just because the locals have no respect for the environment, doesn't mean we shouldn't either!)

Don't put money into the shrines in Syria. Unfortunately the money in the shrines goes to the person who owns the land and not to the upkeep of the shrine. If you want to donate to the servants of the shrine or the maintenance fund, you will see boxes in which to put the money in.

Last but not least, look after your possessions! Taking valuables (or flashing around expensive mp3 players, phones and cameras) is never a good idea in a 3rd world country. There are many stories of people being engrossed in praying or trying to touch the shrine and having bags stolen or pick pocketed.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Syrian English

Or Syrilish. Its sooo bad its funny. Here's an example:


Instead of 'Building Muslim bin Aqeel', they have made poor Muslim into a middle aged balding man. (bin means 'son of' i.e. Muslim son of Aqeel)

And another example:
I actually thought it was a sweet shop selling baklava and other Middle Eastern Delights, until I walked a little closer and realised that they meant to write 'suites'

Tourist Guide, part one

One of things that people ask me when they come for ziarat is where to eat. Here is my list of recommended eateries:

1. Safir Hotel (The Hotel and the Fresh Delights 'tent' next door to it. The pizza and shawerma are both highly recommended, as it the fresh juice. (I recommend the fruit cocktail with ginger, but beware, its an acquired taste!)

2. Meraj Hotel serves the best Indian food in town. The chef has been trained to feed khojas, so the food always has added spice! (n.b. The chef here used to work at Safir, so standards are high!) Although some things need to be ordered in advance, the chicken karai is always available. The chicken fajitas are not too bad either.

3. Paninos restaurant is near Noorudeen/Dar al Taqwa/ Al Hussain Hotels and near the Iranian Bazar. The mexican chicken is good, as is the pizza. The bill usually comes to half the price of the Safir restaurants. Fresh juices are good too. The owner speaks English, so most of the time you can get your order how you want it. My tip is to tell them to skip the salads and add extra fries!

4. Mahabba Pizza is located near the Iraqi street roundabout. The mini cheese and tomato pizzas are good (and cheap). The shawerma here is good too.

5. KFC: There are about 7 in the city centre. Jumping in a taxi and telling the driver to take you to KFC usually works!

6. Cham City Centre Mall (Yes, they spell is Cham here!). There is a basement full of restaurants. Taxi fare from Sayyidda Zainab area will cost you about 200 liras. Supermarket in the basement is good to buying olive soaps and shampoos. United Colours of Benetton and other clothing stores in the upper levels.

7. Damascino Mall (right behind the Cham City Centre Mall) has a Costa, Subway, KFC, Italian Pizza place. The supermarket here is worth seeing.

Dessert Places

A. Ice cream place near Meraj hotel has a range of ice creams, baklava, cakes and desserts. The hot baklava is particularly recommended! The shop has seating outside and also sells baklava to take home and biscuits.

B. Fresh Delights, next to Safir Hotel serves a nutella fruit salad - chunks of nutella and biscuit, with some of the 5 a day thrown in. Death by Nutella! (Too rich to eat alone!)

My tips:
A. Don't eat shawerma off the streets (apart from Safir and Mahabba). If you saw how they are delivered (and we have!) its not worth it.
B. Stay away from coleslaw (and salads from unreputable places)