The Legends of Alhambra

"Give him a coin, women, for there is nothing worse in this life than to be blind in Granada.'

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasirgondal/sets/72157631361023114/

Two days from now, on January the 2nd, will be the five hundred and twenty first anniversary of the Fall of Granada. On this day in 1492, Abdullah Mohammad the Twelfth,  Boabdil left the city as the last ruler of Muslim Spain. 

Granada it is, the ultimate tourist attraction in Spain. More than eight thousand tourists a day, and unless you have bought the ticket months in advance, you cannot see the Nasrid Palace. Yes it is the  Nasrid Palace we mean when we say and speak of Alhambra. Not so big in size; in fact not big at all. 

The beauty of Alhambra is not the size, on the contrary it is the economy of space. Moors knew they have not much space on the mountain top to make it big. The geometric illusions make it look a lot bigger than what it is.

And the water. "Alhambra is decorated with water: standing still, cascading, masking secret conversations, and drip-dropping playfully". 

Spaniards were and still are fascinated by the legacy of Moors. They were believed to have power of the occult. There are stories of hidden treasures left by Moors with spell cast so that once the Moors come back, they can reclaim them. It is more or less what we grew up listening to the stories of hidden treasure buried somewhere in the houses and havelis Hindus left. It is perhaps the psychological impact of a race whom one always has apprehensions about and one builds myths about their unnatural powers and undue advantages.

All this is expressed the many tales and fables about Alhambra and its surroundings. Spaniards were really 'enchanted' by the beauty and the charm of the palace. They had to believe something magical about it. There are numerous tales, well archived by Washington Irving and the like, in Arabian Night style, about the Moors hiding in the caves,  for centuries only waiting for the right time to strike back.

Most of these tales conveniently describe Moors as cunning and evil magicians, their women beautiful and wide eyed. They usually end with the victory of the good (Christians) over the evil (Moors). These are all fascinating stories and Irving has masterly narrated them.

There is a story of an astrologer Ibrahim ibn Abu Ayub, son of Abu Ayub Ansari, who mastered the art of living for ever, but only in his old age, so he has to live for ever as an old man.. He travels to Granada, then ruled by Tariq Bin Zayad's lieutenant Abu Hazen. The astrologer helps the king through magic to foresee  the enemies and defeat them preemptively. Eventually the twain end up fighting with each other over a Christian princess and Ibrahim claims the prize by putting a spell on the princess and taking her along with him under the Gate of Justice. They will remain there until the hand carved in the Gate of Justice reaches the key inscribed into it. see below 

Then there is the almost Saiful Malook  like story of Prince Ahmed Kamal who is kept away from women right from the early life by his father as he was told that he will fall in love really badly. Kept in the tower of Generalife Gardens, he is told about love by a bird in love, a dove. He comes to know of a Christian princess Aldegonda in a far away land and is smitten with the unseen love. Then with the help of a wise Owl and a conniving Parrot he runs away and finds his way to Seville, Cordoba and ultimately to Toledo where he wins the hand of the princess in a Soyember like feast. King, the father of the princess, does not agree and Ahmed Kama runs away on a magical flying carpet attributed to the King of Kings, the fabled King Solomon. It all ends well when the king finds out on reaching Granada in revengeful pursuit that his daughter is now the sultana of Granada.

Then there is the story of Zayda, Zorayda, and Zorahayda, the three daughters of Al Hayzari, the Left Handed king of Granada. Their mother was a Christan princess who died soon after giving birth to the triplets. Al Hayzari was forewarned by sages that something will happen, so he kept them away from public eye as they grew up. The overprotective father was unaware that his daughters fell  in love with three Castillian princes who were prisoners in Granada. In the end the girls plan to run away, by climbing down a rope out of the palace. The youngest one falters and is left behind. Her her soul still haunts the palace, until a Christian comes to rescue her and relive her desperate spirit from the eternal mourning. It is eventually done by a girl who is a descendant of the same prince who were to marry Zorahayda.

Then there are stories of ordinary men finding hidden treasures in Alhambra after striking a lucky charm here and there.

These stories inspired the treasure hunters to find and dig in various places; none has been found so far, except what I consider as the gold mine, mentioned in the end of this post.

Walking through the rooms of Alhambra, one is constantly reminded of these fables which only a century ago may have seemed almost real.

The Alhambra Palace can be divided into three sections. if not four. The tour really takes you through in that sequence. You enter by the outer quarter where the common man was heard for any complaints or official business, the second is the place where the royals met the royal and elite guests, and the last is the private quarter area, which leads to the fourth section, the private gardens.

GATE OF JUSTICE:
It is where the entrance to Alhambra was from the old fort. It is mounted by a dome with has the shape of a hand on one side and a key inscribed on the other side. There is a story that once the hand reaches the key, the treasures of Granada will be revealed.

MEXUAR: As the main entrance of Alhambra is closed by the ill fated decision of Charles V when he chose that spot for his personal palace, now one has to enter through the side door ie the Maxuar.



It has some christian influences, but you start seeing what you will see for the next three to four hours. Endless geometric mosaics, wood ceilings, stucco 'stalactites"  ceramic tiles, molded-plaster walls, and filigree windows. The hallmark is the nine thousand plus times repeated phrase of Wa La Ghaliba illala. 

COURTYARD OF THE MYRTLES:The Maxuar leads into a small courtyard which through the side door takes you to the most picturesque place, the Courtyard of Myrtles. The still pond with the reflection of the palace in it, doubles the dimension. 




BARAKA ROOM:
In fact it is Baraka  room ie for the divine blessing, but as in Spanish the work barka means ship, it is now called the Ship Room. It's ceiling is like an upside down hull shape , so the name ship. 


GRAND HALL OF THE AMBASSADORS:
The main room is the Hall of the Ambassadors. It is here the King would greet the guests. The way it is placed, high up in the palace, the guest would have a magnified impression of the size of the room and its grandeur. Through the windows in the walls, one can see the deep valley down. It is this room where the last Muslim king Abdullah "Boabdil" signed the Granada treaty, closing the last chapter of Muslim rule in Spain.




COURTYARD OF THE LOINS:
Through the other end of the Myrtles one enter into the private quarters. Here is the fabled Courtyard of Loins. It is one of the wonders of the Palace. It is fabled that the fountain was a gift by Jewish subjects to the King. It has twelve loins, perhaps depicting the twelve months of the year or the twelve Jewish tribes. At each hour the water would flow out of the mouth of one loin. When the catholic monarchs took over, they dismantled the fountain to find out the way it works. They never figured it out and could not reassemble it again. There has been various theories about how it worked but no one can found it out. Now after a long while the fountain is working under a new engineering plan, but it is still not clear if it is the original way.



There is a section in the palace detailing the UNESCO research about the fountain and the various theories about how it worked.

It is the courtyard of the Loins where the most of the Pakistani movie Gharnata is set. It leads into the Hall of two sisters, a cool place for the Harem members to rest. On the other side is the Hall of Abbercerrages where it is famed that one of the king killed many members of the family to get the line of succession to the other wife's children.

THE WALL POETRY:

Perhaps there never was a monument more characteristic of an age and people than the Alhambra; a rugged fortress without, a voluptuous palace within; war frowning from its battlements; poetry breathing throughout the fairy architecture of its halls.

Most of the inscription is all poetry. The poems are as if the walls of the palace are talking to the visitor and describing the atmosphere. Mostly praising the king.




All these charms and stories of hidden treasures of Alhambra seems to be realized now by the Spaniards of today. The amount of revenue generated by the relics of Moors all over the Spain, and specially in Alhambra tells me that the hidden treasures have been revealed and Spaniards for generations to come will reap the benefits of the infidel Moors they successfully and ruthlessly drove away from a land they called home for almost eight centuries. 

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References:

1. http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/i/irving/washington/i72a/part41.html
2. Rick Steves' Spain 2012

Rituals of Bereavement

As the time is catching up on us, we hear of death more often than before. It is either someone we know or a close one of someone we know. I am used to condolences. It is a part of my business dealing with cancer. In our office one death is often a premonition of another two. They usually leave us three at a time.

Even then, when in the last month I attended six mournful gatherings, it was more than a fare share, all things considered. 

First there was the demise of Dr Riaz Chaudhary's (Pulmonologist) mother-in-law. She passed away in Baltimore and buried in Upstate NY. We drove to Newburgh for a fatiha and qurankhwani. 

Weeks later mother of Dr Shaukat Hussain (Neurologist) suddenly died in Long Island. Janaza was at Masjid Hamza in Valley Stream. He was kind enough to take care of my dying father eighteen years back. His son, a medical student is one of the Huffaz who lead the taraweeh  prayers at ICLI. 

Weeks later Dr Abdul Majeed's (Pulmonologist) sister died after a prolonged illness. She was like on of the sisters many of us have who took care of you when you arrived in a strange land and took you into their arms. Janaza was at ICLI Long Island. 

Within a week was the death of Abdul Hamid's (Shaheen Sweets) wife, Janaza was at Bait uz Zafar. 

Then the mother of Dr Iqbal Jangda (psychiatrist) passed away in Karachi. He flew to Pakistan, stayed there for one and a half days to attend the soyem and came back to have quran khwani at ICLI. 

Lastly mother of Dr Askari Jaffry (Internist) Risalat Fatima passed away in Connecticut. Janaza and quran khawani was at Khoi Center in Jamaica, NY. Askari is the youngest of the brothers. All very active in the community from Westchester to Connecticut. His elder brother Shaukat Jaffri is  known to many. Askari is Zoha's class mate from Dow and is married to the daughter of a close family friend of ours, Dr Nasir Zaidi. 

These deaths and their related events or rituals took me to peoples homes and their houses of worships. I went to three different mosques, sunni, ahmadi and shia. Although the basic ingredient of a mournful gathering is recitation of Quran in some form or another, people do other rituals in different ways. The most engaging and riveting one was the celebration of death at the Khoi Center. It was the soyem event, started with recitation of Quran by participants. Then there was the prayers, maghrabain. Striking difference in communal prayer was that the Imam said the whole prayers loudly, including the sentences and phrases during prostration and sitting, but did stay silent during the qayyam of the last two rakats. 

After the prayers, there was a sitting session, which started with the recitation of Chapter Yaseen and then a prayer for the deceased. 

And then there was poetry. The whole session was devoted to the subject of motherhood. Four poets recited their poetry in Urdu. It was quite touching, given the relevance of the occasion. It was followed by salaam and a speech by an orator. 

Shia's recipe of grief management is to overlap the grief at hand with the tragedy of Karbala. It helps one express grief profusely and thus it becomes therapeutic. 

All these six deaths I mention were of individuals who had lived a full and rich life. They had seen their near and dear ones grow up and be successful in their own right. Deaths are to be mourned and that is what we do to help each other go through these tough times. But the pain of these deaths to their survivors pale in comparison the massacre of elementary school children in Connecticut. Those nascent lives, full of dreams and hopes were mercilessly and senselessly cut short.

It was during one of the dirges of Karbala when the slaughter of children was lamented that I could make the connection with the death of innocence in Newtown Connecticut. I could not stop being teary eyed. 

Rituals is not a bad word after all.

Oh Lord!

Let be forgiven the Alive and the Deceased

The Present and the Absent

The Young and the Adults

The Men and the Women.

Let the Living live at Peace

And the Dying die with Faith

Prayers In An Ahmadi Mosque

Unless one came to the United States in the last five years, it is hard to think that one does not know about Shaheen Sweets. It started as a small shop in Lexington Avenue in Manhattan in 1973. Then it had an exponential rise. By the time I came here in 1988, it was almost on its zenith. There was a sweet factory on Broadway in Jackson Heights, along with another restaurant in the area and the sweets were shipped all across the USA and Canada. Once I was in LA in an Indian grocery store and the only mithaee was of Shaheen. Later it had a slow decline when many competitions arrived, both Pakistani and Indian, and later Bangla Deshi. Now the Manhattan restaurant is gone, one in Jackson Heights is closed and the other is only a sideshow of sweets with the main food service by Dera restaurant. The founder, Abdul Hamid had retired and the sons presumably went their own ways. One moved to Baltimore. One grandson Zeeshan, opened a shop in Hicksville Long Island. That is close to our home and if food at our home is catered from outside, most of the time it is from there.

On Dec 11th, Naseer Sahib, the lifetime loyal of Shaheen informed me about the passing away of Zeeshan's grandmother and of the funeral the day after next, in the middle of the day,  I made necessary arrangements to be there.

So on December the 13th, I entered an Ahmadi place of worship for the first time in my life. Growing up we always had Ahmadi friends. Many a time due to my father's liberal interaction with anyone who was interested in talking, we had Ahamdi enthusiasts working overtime to convert him. I think he visited Qadian a few times in his early life. I grew up reading left over copies of Al Fazl newspaper all the times. But I never went to an Ahmadi mosque until now. 

Sometime during the gradual tightening of the noose on Ahmadi way of life in Gen Zia's time they were disallowed to use the word Masjid for their places of worship. So all of their  masajid were renamed as Bait. Perhaps they got so much used to it that they now call the masjid here in NY as bait; perhaps a way to distinguish themselves.

I had seen the place from outside all the times. It is on my way home. A friend of mine had told me months back that Ahmadis have bought a big place just off the Grand Central Parkway on 188th street. It is named Bait uz Zafar, named after the first Foreign Minister of Pakistan. Apart from being the most famous Ahmadi in Pakistan Movement, he has other claims to have a place of worship named after him. He has translated Quran in English and it a pretty good translation.

It is a converted place, perhaps a school or a church. Quite spacious for NY, and in the middle of a thriving neighborhood. A very prominent place. The entrance is very visitor friendly and has information on the Ahmadi creed on the walls. The display is pretty impressive with many translations of Quran by Ahmadis in various languages. The main hall is a divided auditorium, front for men and rear for women. 

It seems like that Ahmadis have more of an emphasis to have the head covered, for men. Not that much emphasis on the beard, however. Most of the bearded persons have beard like me, less than half an inch. I remember in old days it was called the  ahmadi dhaari.  People of recognized responsibility don the qaraquli cap, and most of the rest have some sort of a head gear. The pictures of all the leaders in the hallway had either qaraquli caps or the turbans, once make popular by their founder. I remember Dr Abdus Salam wearing that type of turban when accepting the Nobel prize.

The actual funeral was preceded by Zuhr Prayers. The azaan was the same as what I had heard all my life. Not that much emphasis on the melody of recitation. The imam who led the prayer was a traveler and led the prayer in the familiar way. All the rituals were like I have grown up with. In fact some of the other sects have somewhat different rituals and one is sometimes not sure how to follow, but not here. Most of the nonahmadi's like me prayed behind the imam. expect a few. Many of us Non Ahmadis were either trying to establish an eye contact with each other or actively trying to avoid that. In the end most of us did blend in. 

Imam had informed the congregation that he was a traveler and he will only pray for two rakats and the locals should continue the rest of the prayer on their own. That is the way it happens all the times. Somehow most of the congregation did finish the prayer with him, and joined him again for the two kasr for Asar prayers. Perhaps most were travelers like the Imam. 

The janaza prayer was also exactly the same as the sunni prayer. Although it is silent, but the Imam was mouthing the words in a big whisper ( as sometimes they do to guide the congregation on what to recite) and it was of the same sequence ie subhanakallahuma/darood/allahuma agfir-- and without the alhamd.

There was however no communal prayer at the end of the namaz or the janaza, like raising hands and offering supplications. 

Noticeable exception was that the women did not line up for the janaza. It may not be a creed thing. and perhaps the culture of a particular mosque. In our masjid  at ICLI, women do line up for funeral, if they desire so.

All things considered, it was not much different than any other funeral I attend. Somehow funerals and memorials have increasingly become a part of social calender, perhaps a factor of our age as a community. Going in I had cautious skepticism, coming out I felt somewhat good about being there.

Somehow I felt writing about it.

Last Stanza #197/Yadgaar Marsia Mir Anees

Dear All:

Thanks to all who read and responded to the posts in this series.

The events of Karbala continue to exert a strong effect on many to this date, myself included.

Historic accounts vary and are subject to revisions and reinterpretations. 

I think the message of standing up to the tyranny is what resonates with most and is the reason for its everlasting legacy.

All the verses I quoted are from Mir Anees's work.

Thanks to the seminal work by Dr Syed Taghi Abidi, I was fortunate enough to benefit from this masterpiece.

http://drtaqiabedi.com/

I leave you with the last stanza of this 'Yadgaar Marsia" of Mir Anees.

بس ! اے انیس! ضعف سے لرزاں ہے بند بند

عالم میں یادگار رہیں گے ، یہ چند بند

نکلے قلم سے ضعف میں کیا کیا بلند بند

عالم پسند لفظ ہیں، سلطاں پسند بند

------------

 یہ فصل، اور یہ بزم عزا ، یادگار ہے

پیری  کے ولولے ہیں، خزاں کی بہار ہے

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References for the rest of the blogposts: Most of them are shia-centric.

• http://www.faizaneraza.org/islamic-article-read.php?article_id=341
• http://www.islamquery.com/documents/companions%20of%20Imam%20Husain.pdf
• http://www.al-islam.org/karbala-ashura/8.htm
• http://www.al-islam.org/kaaba14/6.htm
• http://www.kr-hcy.com/statichtml/files/104292490386020,print.shtml
• Noorul Ain fi Mashhadul Hussain by Abu Ishaq Ibrahim Asfirini, (418 AH) Urdu translation by Habib Pasha, Hyderabad Deccan

Muharram 10th, 61 AH/ شام غریباں

 شام غریباں

Tradition has it, that Hussain had worn the robe what Prophet had on the night of Miraaj

معراج میں رسول نے پہنا تھا جو لباس

 کشتی میں لائیں زینب اُسے شاہ دین کے پاس

سر پر رکھا عمامہ سر دار حق شناس

پہنی قباے پاک رسول فلک اساس

---------------------------------

بر میں درست و چست تھا جامہ رسول کا

رومال فاطمہ کا عمامہ رسول کا 

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Tradition has it;

The day started by the call to prayer by Ali Akbar.

Hussain's supporters insisted on first to fight. By noon, many were gone. 

The first one to die was the same Hur, who stopped Hussain in Karbala, now had changed sides overnight.

Then Ali Akbar, Abbas and the rest of the immediate family.

The last one to be killed before Hussain was the infant Ali Ashgar.

And then Hussain. 

آے حسین یوں کے عقاب آے جس طرح

کافر پہ کبریا کا عتاب آے جس طرح

تابندہ برق سوے سحاب آے جس طرح

دوڑا فرس نشیب میں آب آے جس طرح

یوں تیغ کوند گئی اس گروہ پر

بجلی تڑپ کے گرتی ہے جس طرح کوہ پر

---------------------------

And then the shaam-e-ghareebaan!!

How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land

جنگل سے آئ فاطمہ زہرا کی یہ صدا

 !امت نے مجھہ کو لوٹ لیا یا محمدا

اس وقت کون حق محبت کرے ادا

ہے ہے یہ  ظلم! اور دو عالم کا مقتدا 

انیس سو ہیں زخم تن چاک چاک پر 

زینب نکل! حسین تڑپتا ہے خاک پر   

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گھر لوٹنے کو آے گی اب فوج نابکار

کہیو نہ کچھ زباں سے بجز شکر کردگار

خیمے میں جب کہ آگ لگا دیں ستم شعار

رہیو مری یتیم سکینہ سے ہوشیار

بیزار ہے وو خستہ جگر اپنی جاں سے

باندھے نہ کوئی اس کا گلا ریسمان  سے

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https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/3054/Battle_of_Karbala

Muharram 9th, 61 AH, The Last Night

Tradition has it:
 


In the afternoon, Kufan army moved in a formation to attack. Hussain sent Abbas and Ali Akbar for the delay of one night to pray.
 


Hussain relieved his companions from the oath of allegiance and allowed them to leave who ever wanted to leave by putting off the candles. 


When candles were lit again, no one had left.

کچھ مشورہ کریں جو شہنشاہ خوش خصال

ہم بھی محق ہیں آپ کو اسکا رہے خیال

پاس ادب سے عرض کی ہم کو نہیں مجال

اس کا بھی خوف ہے کہ نہ ہو آپ کو ملال

------

آقا کے ہم غلام ہیں  اور جاں نثار ہیں

عزت طلب ہیں ،نام کے امید وار  ہیں

--

Happy Thanksgiving 2012

The roots of Thanksgiving notwithstanding,

We have this tradition for quite a few years now, as the children have grown, to have the Thanksgiving Day as a day of culinary catharsis. All the children, our kids and their cousins and friends, make a dish individually or collectively and share it with all. Most of them worked into the long hours of night before. 

It has evolved into an energized effort by the kids to engage. 

We had food, very eclectic, followed by a prayer and comment session. Everybody spoke what they thought they were thankful of, and prayed for the passed on souls, including my father who passed on 18 years back this week. 

And in the end was, as their is always, a birthday cake for one of the cousins.

Here is the (almost) complete menu:

Appetizer:

• Chips and Salsa
• Spanakopita (Haleema)
• Mushroom and nut pate with crackers and celery/carrot sticks (Ali Bhai)
• Dip/salsa (Bhabhi)

Entree:

• Whole Roast Turkey (Ben's Kosher)
• Savory Stuffing & Gravy
• Vegetable Rice ( Nani)
• Chicken Salan (Nani)
• Bhindi (Gohar)
• Mac’n’Cheese (Anam and Ahmad’s Joint)
• Pasta with Pumpkin Parmesan Sauce (Faria)
• Mushroom Risotto and Seafood Risotto (Ali Bhai)

Side Dishes:

• Mashed Potatoes
• String Beans Almondine

Accompanied with:

• Cranberry-Pineapple Compote
• Fresh-Cut Coleslaw
• Assorted Relish Tray

Dessert

• Pumpkin Pie
• Kheer (Zoha)
• Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes (Haleema and Saleem)
• Chocolate Chip Cookies (Andalus)
• Oreo Cheesecake Cupcake (Faria and Sobaata)
• Gluten free pumpkin chocolate cake (Bhabhi)
• Chocolate Mouse Cake (Cardinelli)

Tea

•     Nasir

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasirgondal/sets/72157632081877764

Muharram 8th 61 AH

And by the 8th there was no water left in the camp.

غربت میں پڑ گئی ہے مصیبت حسین پر

فاقہ یہ تیسرا ہے مرے نور  عین پر

--------

وہ لو ، وہ آفتاب کی حدت ، وہ تاب و تب

کالا تھا رنگ دھوپ سے دن کا مثال شب

خود نہر علقمہ کے بھی سوکھے ہوے تھے لب

خیمے جو تھے حبابوں کے تپتے تھے سب کے سب

اُڑتی تھی خاک ،خشک تھا چشمہ حیات کا

کھولا ہوا تھا دھوپ سے پانی فرات کا 

Muharram 7th 61 AH

Tradition has it that water was stopped that day.

Cries of thirst could be heard from the children in the camp.

Whatever water was stored would be gone in a day.

زاری تھی ، التجا تھی ، مناجات تھی ادھر

واں صف کشی و ظلم و تعدی و شور  و شر

کہتا تھا ابن سعد یہ جا جا کے نہر پر 

"گھاٹوں سے ہوشیار ! ترائی سے با خبر"

دو روز سے ہے تشنہ دھانی حسین کو 

"ہاں مرتے دم بھی دیجو نہ پانی حسین کو"

Muharram 5th, 61 AH

Tradition has it:

Negotiations continued,

Hussain proposed to Umar Ibne S'ad three options: 

1. Let him go to Yazid, 
2. Or return to Mecca
3. Or to fight nonbelievers ie  the Turks.

 In Kufa, Ibne Ziad was inclined to agree but Shimr advised against that. He also mentioned that there has been a long conference between Hussain and Umar ibn S'ad.

 Ibne Ziad sent Shimr to Karbala with orders to Umar Ibne S'ad to ask Hussain for unconditional surrender. Apparently Shimr had the orders to take over if Umar Ibne S'ad does not carry out the orders.

 Shimr arrived with a big army to fight an army of less than 80.

  

اکبر سے مڑ کہ کہنے لگے سرورِ زماں

باندھے ہے سرکشی پہ کمر ، لشکرِ گراں

                                                           

                  

تم جا کہ کہہ  دو خیمے میں یہ اے پدر کی جاں  

بچوں کو لے کے صحن سے ہٹ جائیں  بیبیاں

غفلت میں تیر  سے کوئی بچہ تلف نہ ہو

ڈر ہے مجھے کہ گردنِ اصغر ہدف نہ ہو

Muharram 4th, 61 AH

Muharram 4th, 61 AH

Tradition has it that negotiations took place.

Hussain realized that Kufans have changed the allegiance. Muslim bin Aqeel has been murdered.

In response to inquiry by Umar ibn Sa'd, Hussain expressed his desire to return to Mecca. Umar wrote to Ibn Ziad, the Governor, about the desire, which was sternly turned down.

Kufa is a few miles away from Karbala.

خیمے میں جا کہ شہ نے دیکھا حرم کا حال

چہرے تو فق ہیں اور کھُلے ہیں سروں کے بال

زینب کی یہ د عا ہے کہ  اے رب ذلجلال

بچ جاۓ اس فساد سے خیر النسا کا لال

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بانوے نیک نام کی کھیتی ہری رہے

صندل سے مانگ ، بچوں سے گودی ہری رہے

Muharram 3rd, 61 AH

Tradition has it, that while Hussain was already surrounded by the men of Hur,  Umar bin Said arrived with four thousand men on command of Ibn Ziad.

ہاں غازیو ! یہ دن ہے جدال و قتال کا

یاں آج خون  بہے گا محمد کی آل کا

چہرہ خوشی سے سرخ ہے زہرا کے لال کا

گزری شب فراق دن آیا وصال کا

ہم وہ ہیں غم کریں گے ملک جن کے واسطے

راتیں تڑپ کے کاٹیں ہیں اس دن کے واسطے  

Muharram 2nd, 61 AH

Some years back I send a daily email for the first ten days of Muharram, with verses for Mir Anees, which I took from the book compiled by Dr Taghi Abedi. http://www.drtaqiabedi.com/

Somebody asked me to do that again. Here it is, starting on the second day.

I request we avoid discussions of sensitive nature. These days are of very solemn nature for some of us.

As Iqbal said:

غریب سادہ و رنگین ہے داستان حرم 

Muharram 2nd, 61 AH

Tradition has it, that Hussain's caravan arrived and camped at the place we know now as Karbala today.

فاقوں  میں تشنہ کامی و غربت پہ رحم کر

یارب مسافروں کی جماعت پہ رحم کر

Thanks For All The Wishes

This is what I send out on emails last night.

I would not be able to thank everyone personally, so this email.
We are all right and so is everybody I know whom I have been in contact with.

By the time I woke up this morning, it looked  as anticlimax as there was not much wind or rain. Just the light was gone, so it is even now. A tree and a half were the level of our damage.

Only later in the day I realized how much of a damage was done. It took me hour and a half and sixth alternate route to reach my sister's house which is just two miles away. Closed roads, fallen trees, full length or dangling on the electric wires.

My son, who lives in the city, East Village, south of 14th, had to change two apartments of friends to be in a dry land with power. My one nephew refused to leave his apartment on the 16th floor on 1st ave and 36th,  is trapped up there as there is five feet of water in the lobby.

My practice partner had to leave his Williamsburg apt and spent a fortune for staying in the city.

Rest of us, our siblings, nephews and nieces are fine in the NY NJ area.

All these are minor inconveniences compared to those who have their homes flooded or destroyed.

We have no choice but to enjoy candle night dinner in full moon with family. Haleema providing background ukulele music.

Thanks again to all who called, texted, emailed, wished and prayed.

It helps; one feel loved, cared for and connected.

Khuda hafiz and goodnight.

Nasir Gondal

Gharnata to Granada

Slide show of pictures: Click here

Badr bin Mughera perhaps never existed. A white robed upright Andalusian Muslim, played by Yusuf Khan in Gharnata, standing up to the Christian invaders in face of increasing odds, is still the image which stayed with me.

The movie, a typical Nasim Hijazi work, is historical fiction. It is available in youtube in 16 sections. Close to end you realize that you have been taken for a ride. Like 'Inglorious Bastards' it is nothing but wishful thinking. In the movie, the last Muslim ruler Mohammad Abdullah, played by Aslam Pervaiz as a flamboyant young man with no clue to run a country, is killed by his mother for his treachery. Ferdinand, played by the ever-scary Adeeb, is almost fatally wounded, and orders a retreat. 

It is otherwise a great movie, released in 1970, starring Talish (as traitor Abu Dawood), Iqbal Hasan, Saqi and Rozina. It was the first movie of Asia. There are great songs in the voices of Noor Jehan and Mehdi Hasan (main hoon yahaan, kis naam say pukaroon/raat bhi hay). lyrics Tanvir Naqvi, 

What happened was quite different from that. 
Mohammad Abullah, known in Spanish folklore as Boabdil, was in endless war with his father for the throne. His father Abdul Hasan, (Muley Hacen) was not the pious king as portrayed in the movie. However, he was the one who decided to stop paying tribute to the Christian Kings. That eventually lead to the ultimate downfall of Granada. He had two wives. The first, Ayxa (Aisha) mother of Boabdil was of Arabic descent. The second one was a Christian turned Muslim Isabel De Solis also known as Zorraya/Surraya. Abdul Hasan tried to have Boabdil killed as he wanted to have his son from Isabel to be his heir. 

That did not work, Ayxa was instrumental in bring her son to power. Once he became the king, Boadbil had a rocky relationship with the Christian Monarchs. He changed his relationship with them so many times, and reneged enough on his treaties to give Ferdinand and Isabel a valid ground to invade Granada. In the end Boabdil signed a treaty in the most majestic of majestic Alhambra rooms, the Hall of the Ambassadors. He gave away the keys of the city and accepted a principality down south in the Alpujarras. Eventually he sailed to Fez.

Strangely there were two powerful families, one behind each of the two wives of Abdul Hasan. The Abencerrages (saddler’s son, ibn-el-serraj) supporting Ayxa, and the Venegas, the Christians turned Muslims supporting their fellow Christian turned Muslim Zorraya. After the fall of Granada, the Venegas and Zorraya with her sons, renounced Muslim faith, turned Christian again and guaranteed their good fortunes for generations to come. The sons of saddlers followed the way with Boabdil to Alpujarras and ultimately to North Africa.

Driving up north to Granada from Nerja, one travels through Sierra Nevada range, along the river. It is almost like traveling through its namesake in California. Driving up the Hills where Granada is, one cannot help appreciate the natural beauty of the valley.

Reminded me of what Boabdil would have thought when he looked back riding down towards his exile to Alpujjara. He wept at the site and his mother (whom Hijazi would rather had killed her son) famously said,

Ibka l-yawma bikā'a n-nisā'i ʿalā mulkin lam taḥfuẓhu ḥifẓa r-rijāl

You weep like a woman for what you could not defend as a man.

ابك اليوم بكاء النساء على ملك لم تحفظه حفظ الرجال

The lament of Boabdil at that pass earned the name of Moor’s Last Sigh.  (also the title of a book by Salman Rushdie.)

GRANADA, THE POMEGRANATE:

The word means pomegranate. It was captured in the first year of Muslim invasion in 711. It remained a distant province of Al Andalus while in the center the power shifted from Warlords, to Umayyad princes, to the rise of Cordoba Caliphate, the onslaught of the La Reconquesta, to the Moorish Almovarids and Almohids. 

THE DEAL:

In the  beginning of 13th century while the Muslim Spain was divided into multiple Taifas (kingdoms) and after the fateful battle of  Las Navas de Tolosa, Maarrka’ tul Aqab, the puritanical Almohids started to lose ground.  Cordoba fell to The Reconquest in 1236 and all the eyes were on the then Capital of al Andalus, Seville. The emir of Granada, Mohammad 1 Nasr, carved out a deal with the Christians which more or less ran like this. He will help them get Seville and in return Granada will be spared. He will get his independence and will remain loyal to Christians as a vassal state.  Seville fell in 1248, Granada earned a lease of independence which lasted two hundred and forty years.

Sobriquet wa la Ghalib-a il Allah.

This was considered so big a victory for Granada that when he returned the whole city came out to greet him and chanted al-Ghalib billah (Victorious through God) for him. That thought struck with him and later, perhaps in deeper contemplation, he saw God's hand in his 'victory' which he had earned. So he proclaimed the now-edged-in-eternity motto of Nasirid dynasty, And there is no one victorious except Allah, wa la Ghalib-a il Allah.

This dynasty, Nasirid, claims to be a branch of Banu Khazrij, one of the two Yasribite tribes who welcomed the Prophet on his migration from Mecca..

It took the Catholic kings of Iberia more than two centuries to emerge as a united force when Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabel of Castile got married. Before that wars within and the devastating plague helped Granada grow in the shadow as a prosperous and multicultural state.

There can be no doubt that Granada was considered the worthiest prize for the Catholic Monarchs, Isabel and Ferdinand, that they decided to move their final resting place from Toledo (where they already had a mausoleum built for themselves) to Granada. However they chose not to be buried on the Hill. Their graves are in the Cathedral which is down the hill. 


I did not have the chance to go there.

THE HILL:

In about 200 years after the Muslim rule, there were significant differences between the people of mixed Arab and Spanish descent ie the Muladis, and the Arabs. In a bloody battle, the Arabs were defeated and sought shelter on a hill, the Sabikah Hill. A castle was built to secure it, and perhaps the mud had red hue, it was called Qalatul Hamra. It was ignored for another century or so. Then it was Ismail bin Naghrela, the Jew to reach the highest military post in Andalusia, who renovated and rebuilt the city.

The hill has a few other places to visit besides the Alhambra.

The Alcabaza


 This is the actual Fort. It is one of the two places on the hill which can be seen only once in a day. It offers a breathtaking view of the whole valley, from its tower. Sierra Nevada Mountains on the south, the palaces on the east, and the fertile valley on the west. 


The tower was the place for the administrators to see if the farmers are growing the crops on time and when is the right time to go down and collect the taxes. It was also the place to call the faithful to prayers five times a day. Later the Christians fitted it with the Bell. 

Charles V Palace.  

Then there is in-your-face unfinished palace of the most powerful man in history in his own time. Charles V, was the son of Ferdinand's and Isabel’s daughter. His father was the King of France. Pope gave him the title of  the Holy Roman Emperor, his dominion included Spain, Italy, France, Americas and Far East. After becoming the King of Spain, he renovated a room in Alhambra for himself.  He perhaps was not contented with that and wanted to have a palace in his own name.

It is built right where the original entrance was to Alhambra.  It is really an eyesore, for its location. It could have been a grand palace, but after his death , his son decided not to complete the palace and moved on to built his own palace in Madrid, Real.  So the Charles Palace is left without the dome in the middle. Now it is uses as an amphitheatre for open air concerts. 

There is a Mosque turned church, Mezqutiqa de Sante Maria, which was closed on the day of our visit. 

The Gardens

Generalife from Arabic JannatulAreef, are the best place to have the outside view of Alhambra. Gives one an experience of Moor's concept of a garden, a place like heaven on earth.

Next, the Palacios Nazaries or the Nazarid Palace or the Alhambra

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References:
http://www.andalucia-andalusia.com/Alhambra-Granada-Spain.html

http://www.adurcal.com/enlaces/ingles/14.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasrid_dynasty

http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/i/irving/washington/i72a/contents.html