Dear friend,
Oh, piano is a beautiful musical instrument. Do you know that Santour is pattern for Piano? They are like each other, but a piano is larger than Santour It has 7 octaves, but Santour has 3 octaves.
We saw a film in class last Friday. It is very interesting. I copied it in my I pod and I see it in the university way. I have quickened the time in way. University is very difficult in this semester. My units are welding, founding and etc. I try to write to you and send musical pieces for you.
Thank you, I am not a good santour player, but I enjoy playing. It is enough for me.
My friends want to read Masnavi. I love to read it book, but I can go only on Fridays, because I must come long way for class. I am 2 or 3 hours in traffic. I will go to Semnan tomorrow morning.
Oh, I’m so tired.
Wish you the best,
Bahman
Monday, October 11, 2010
Fattemeh, the new member for our Masnavi reading sessions
Hello Fattemeh,
What a pity. Yes, we studied the first page of Masnavi at 8 o'clock with Sabber today. It would have been great if you could have been with us. I am so delighted to see you are interested to participate in these sessions. The journey would certainly be more enjoyable with you and any other friends from any the other classes. It would be a great pity for us to learn English and read the literary masterpieces from the Western literature and then forget about our own literature and mysticism.
We study these books in English: Nicholson's and Javid Mojaddedi's English translations of Masnavi and Coleman Bark's translation of Masnavi and the Ghazaliyat of the Shams of Tabriz. We will certainly read the Persian original poems too. No translation in the world can ever replace the scent of Rumi's original words. The same words whose delight sent Rumi dancing in the marketplace.
Once again I am very delighted to see your interest in Masnavi. Are you free in the morning of any other days during this week? If so let lus meet. Only you and me to catch up with Faranak and the Masnavi. Let me know please.
T
What a pity. Yes, we studied the first page of Masnavi at 8 o'clock with Sabber today. It would have been great if you could have been with us. I am so delighted to see you are interested to participate in these sessions. The journey would certainly be more enjoyable with you and any other friends from any the other classes. It would be a great pity for us to learn English and read the literary masterpieces from the Western literature and then forget about our own literature and mysticism.
We study these books in English: Nicholson's and Javid Mojaddedi's English translations of Masnavi and Coleman Bark's translation of Masnavi and the Ghazaliyat of the Shams of Tabriz. We will certainly read the Persian original poems too. No translation in the world can ever replace the scent of Rumi's original words. The same words whose delight sent Rumi dancing in the marketplace.
Once again I am very delighted to see your interest in Masnavi. Are you free in the morning of any other days during this week? If so let lus meet. Only you and me to catch up with Faranak and the Masnavi. Let me know please.
T
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Masnavi reading invitaion
Friends all,
At 8 o'clock, Monday morning Tehran time, Sabber and I are going to start our Masnavi reading sessions. We will be delighted to have anyone who is interested in our company not just on Monday, but on all the many days which will follow this first sessions.. Sue, it was such a great honor for us to see you want to study the book with us. Reading the Masnavi will stictch your heart to the heart of every single Iranian. What a precious opportunity. Thank you very much for sharing this lovely endeavor with us. Your help is very much needed as we try to cope with the English translations. Yes, of course we plan to read the English translations very carefully too. We plan to read both translations we have available here: One by Nicholson and the other by Javid Mojadadi. We will also read The Essential Rumi by Coleman Barks. In addition to these we plan to read the original Persian poems very carefully. Today it is only Nicholson's translation.
We want to adorn our classes with great literary works from the east and west. You and Herman are the ones who can help us on our way.
This is an invitation to all the friends who come to my English classes to join the Masnavi reading sessions which will be followed by other great works of literature. Just let me know if you are interested.
T
At 8 o'clock, Monday morning Tehran time, Sabber and I are going to start our Masnavi reading sessions. We will be delighted to have anyone who is interested in our company not just on Monday, but on all the many days which will follow this first sessions.. Sue, it was such a great honor for us to see you want to study the book with us. Reading the Masnavi will stictch your heart to the heart of every single Iranian. What a precious opportunity. Thank you very much for sharing this lovely endeavor with us. Your help is very much needed as we try to cope with the English translations. Yes, of course we plan to read the English translations very carefully too. We plan to read both translations we have available here: One by Nicholson and the other by Javid Mojadadi. We will also read The Essential Rumi by Coleman Barks. In addition to these we plan to read the original Persian poems very carefully. Today it is only Nicholson's translation.
We want to adorn our classes with great literary works from the east and west. You and Herman are the ones who can help us on our way.
This is an invitation to all the friends who come to my English classes to join the Masnavi reading sessions which will be followed by other great works of literature. Just let me know if you are interested.
T
Yes, noisy Beings
Hi Herman, Thank you for writing to us. I always value your thoughts and friendship. I am very glad to find you beside us here. Friendship is the essence of life to me. How fortunate I am to have Sue and you here with me.
You have sent us a beautiful poem. In our mystical culture, the whole being was boiling in a single ocean when the sun shined and took part of it away separating it from the rest of the ocean. Then the vapor was forced to pour down in the form of rain drops in far away lands and the convoluted maze of an alien world. As a Persian poem says, "The drop of water is an ocean if it is in the ocean. Otherwise it is merely a drop and the ocean an ocean."
Whatever you hear in the universe, either the soft whisper of the fountains and the deafening noise of the roaring rivers, all tell the same story: The story of the love to return to our origin and the ocean that calls us back with every kiss that it puts on its vast shores.. From a single drop of water to the ocean and from the ocean to join another ocean and oceans and so on and so forth.
What journey are the philosophers in The West talking about? Do they speak of any journey at all? The way Rumi complained of a red flute which was separated from the reed bed?
Your brother, Ali
You have sent us a beautiful poem. In our mystical culture, the whole being was boiling in a single ocean when the sun shined and took part of it away separating it from the rest of the ocean. Then the vapor was forced to pour down in the form of rain drops in far away lands and the convoluted maze of an alien world. As a Persian poem says, "The drop of water is an ocean if it is in the ocean. Otherwise it is merely a drop and the ocean an ocean."
Whatever you hear in the universe, either the soft whisper of the fountains and the deafening noise of the roaring rivers, all tell the same story: The story of the love to return to our origin and the ocean that calls us back with every kiss that it puts on its vast shores.. From a single drop of water to the ocean and from the ocean to join another ocean and oceans and so on and so forth.
What journey are the philosophers in The West talking about? Do they speak of any journey at all? The way Rumi complained of a red flute which was separated from the reed bed?
Your brother, Ali
Friday, October 08, 2010
Conversation with Sue
Sue: When you tell me of the customs of your country, like the offering of fruits to passersby etc. is this done every Thursday?
Ali: People consider it a value to do it every Thursday, but nobody follows the custom that rigidly now. I can say that it is very common. When they go to the cemetery, almost all people distribute “Kheirat” which is the date, fruits, sweets or even the food that you distribute among the people you find around yourself wherever you are. They say that the “Kheirat” is for their dead and demand some prayers for their dead from whoever receives it.
Sue: Do you go to the cemetery every week?
T: No, Sue. The reason may be that it is a little too far from our house. People go to the cemetery more than your countrymen here though.
Sue: I love the customs you share with me, and I wonder, does every Iranian act as you do? Are they as thoughtful and demonstrative in remembering their dead and in enacting the rituals?
Ali: Yes, people pay a lot of attention to their dead. When someone dies they hold several funerals for him. One after three days, another after seven days, another after forty days and yet another after one year. Even after that an anniversary funeral is held every year. In a beautiful Iranian film called “The Snowman” someone who is living in a foreign country tells his friend: “I want to return to Iran. In Iran you may be lonely in your life, but at least when you die people do not leave you alone.”
Sue: Khastergari is very strange to me. Almost never does money change hands in a marriage agreement in the United States. And that is a LOT of money by my standards. Does the father of the girl want it all at once, or can your brother pay it little by little?
Ali: The correct spelling is Khastegari, Sue. It is not necessary for you to learn Persian, but it would be wonderful and I am sure very interesting for you to learn some of the words which are culturally very important. I will pronounce them in an audio file and send them to you soon. There are only two or three sounds in Persian that are difficult for you to pronounce. Other than that, Persian is a very easy language to speak. The money does not change hands here either. People usually get along well. Neither the girl nor her family demand the money at once or even little by little. Most of the times it is not paid at all until the man is dead. The money I told you is a lot by our standard too. In Iran women can not divorce their husbands unless they can prove to the court that he is a drug addict, a thief or someone who can not support the wife financially in a decent way. Other than that, if there is not a serious flaw in the marriage the court will not accept the divorce request from a woman. Men, however, have the right to divorce if, of course, they can pay them their “Mehriye”. I must add quickly that even men have to express an acceptable pretext for their decision. But all in all it is easier for men to divorce the spouse. That is why girls sometimes demand astronomical Mehriye for themselves before saying the yes. All in all, marriages flow smoothly in Iran without many divorces. Divorce rate is very low in our country or rather has been very low until very recently. I know it is a bit too high in the US.
Sue: In America, the wedding is paid for by the bride's family usually, and the groom's family plays for the rehearsal dinner. Each family gives as nice a gift as they can to the new couple - but it goes to the bride and groom, not the parents.
Ali: In Iran there is an engagement celebration which is rather small. It is held in the girl’s house and of course paid for by the bride’s father. He receives the groom’s family and relatives as his guests. They make a Sofreh, gather around it and a clergy man who is almost always a Mullah reads a “Khotbeh”. After that the bride and the groom sign several documents. Fathers sign the documents too along with several other people as witnesses. The wedding celebration is held and paid for by the groom’s father.
Sue: How has your brother gotten to know this girl? Can they date? If not, how do they know if they will be compatible?
Ali: The girl worked for one of my brother’s friends. My brother saw her there at first, observed her closely for several months and when he realized that she was decent and lovable he stepped forward. Now before anything is made official they talk to each other on the phone for many hours every day. The phone bills for the two families are disastrously high. They may even see each other -- sometimes secretly, sometimes openly.
Thanks for your attention to us. Hope these help.
T
Ali: People consider it a value to do it every Thursday, but nobody follows the custom that rigidly now. I can say that it is very common. When they go to the cemetery, almost all people distribute “Kheirat” which is the date, fruits, sweets or even the food that you distribute among the people you find around yourself wherever you are. They say that the “Kheirat” is for their dead and demand some prayers for their dead from whoever receives it.
Sue: Do you go to the cemetery every week?
T: No, Sue. The reason may be that it is a little too far from our house. People go to the cemetery more than your countrymen here though.
Sue: I love the customs you share with me, and I wonder, does every Iranian act as you do? Are they as thoughtful and demonstrative in remembering their dead and in enacting the rituals?
Ali: Yes, people pay a lot of attention to their dead. When someone dies they hold several funerals for him. One after three days, another after seven days, another after forty days and yet another after one year. Even after that an anniversary funeral is held every year. In a beautiful Iranian film called “The Snowman” someone who is living in a foreign country tells his friend: “I want to return to Iran. In Iran you may be lonely in your life, but at least when you die people do not leave you alone.”
Sue: Khastergari is very strange to me. Almost never does money change hands in a marriage agreement in the United States. And that is a LOT of money by my standards. Does the father of the girl want it all at once, or can your brother pay it little by little?
Ali: The correct spelling is Khastegari, Sue. It is not necessary for you to learn Persian, but it would be wonderful and I am sure very interesting for you to learn some of the words which are culturally very important. I will pronounce them in an audio file and send them to you soon. There are only two or three sounds in Persian that are difficult for you to pronounce. Other than that, Persian is a very easy language to speak. The money does not change hands here either. People usually get along well. Neither the girl nor her family demand the money at once or even little by little. Most of the times it is not paid at all until the man is dead. The money I told you is a lot by our standard too. In Iran women can not divorce their husbands unless they can prove to the court that he is a drug addict, a thief or someone who can not support the wife financially in a decent way. Other than that, if there is not a serious flaw in the marriage the court will not accept the divorce request from a woman. Men, however, have the right to divorce if, of course, they can pay them their “Mehriye”. I must add quickly that even men have to express an acceptable pretext for their decision. But all in all it is easier for men to divorce the spouse. That is why girls sometimes demand astronomical Mehriye for themselves before saying the yes. All in all, marriages flow smoothly in Iran without many divorces. Divorce rate is very low in our country or rather has been very low until very recently. I know it is a bit too high in the US.
Sue: In America, the wedding is paid for by the bride's family usually, and the groom's family plays for the rehearsal dinner. Each family gives as nice a gift as they can to the new couple - but it goes to the bride and groom, not the parents.
Ali: In Iran there is an engagement celebration which is rather small. It is held in the girl’s house and of course paid for by the bride’s father. He receives the groom’s family and relatives as his guests. They make a Sofreh, gather around it and a clergy man who is almost always a Mullah reads a “Khotbeh”. After that the bride and the groom sign several documents. Fathers sign the documents too along with several other people as witnesses. The wedding celebration is held and paid for by the groom’s father.
Sue: How has your brother gotten to know this girl? Can they date? If not, how do they know if they will be compatible?
Ali: The girl worked for one of my brother’s friends. My brother saw her there at first, observed her closely for several months and when he realized that she was decent and lovable he stepped forward. Now before anything is made official they talk to each other on the phone for many hours every day. The phone bills for the two families are disastrously high. They may even see each other -- sometimes secretly, sometimes openly.
Thanks for your attention to us. Hope these help.
T
Ginsberg Quote
I thank my dear friend Ali for a heartfelt introduction.
I thought I would share this quote by way of an introduction. It is by a poet who apparently happened to also be a philosopher. That seems to happen quite a bit, you know.
It pretty much says the one thing that really needs to be said about what the philosopher does.
So here it is. Enjoy!
hb3g
"Art recalls the memory
of his true existence
to whoever has forgotten
that Being is the one thing
all the universe shouts."
Allen Ginsberg
I thought I would share this quote by way of an introduction. It is by a poet who apparently happened to also be a philosopher. That seems to happen quite a bit, you know.
It pretty much says the one thing that really needs to be said about what the philosopher does.
So here it is. Enjoy!
hb3g
"Art recalls the memory
of his true existence
to whoever has forgotten
that Being is the one thing
all the universe shouts."
Allen Ginsberg
Our Incomplete Existence
Galway Kinnell is an American poet who has won numerous awards and just recently won an award worth $100,000 US. For me, poetry is a music to my soul, and very often Kinnell can write in such a way that one knows there is no better way to explain what he has described. My soul is complete when I read his words. Here is a quote from him:
"Everyone knows that human existence is incomplete. Among those who are especially troubled by this are those who turn to writing. Writing is a way of trying to understand the incompleteness and, if not to heal it, at least to get beyond whatever is merely baffling and oppressive about it."
I encourage you all to write. Keep a journal, or at least try to write down one thought in Farsi and English every day. One does not get wise except by tiny steps. I hope this will encourage each of you, before you go to bed, to look at your world and universe and to write a bit about it.
Sue
"Everyone knows that human existence is incomplete. Among those who are especially troubled by this are those who turn to writing. Writing is a way of trying to understand the incompleteness and, if not to heal it, at least to get beyond whatever is merely baffling and oppressive about it."
I encourage you all to write. Keep a journal, or at least try to write down one thought in Farsi and English every day. One does not get wise except by tiny steps. I hope this will encourage each of you, before you go to bed, to look at your world and universe and to write a bit about it.
Sue
Introducing Herman, our new American friend
One day, several years ago, Sue introduced Herman to me. He is now a very dear friend to us both. Herman has a passionate love for philosophy. Something that I believe is more valuable than being a mere philosopher. All these years, I have always loved him as a highly respectable man and admired his insatiable thirst for something beyond the low, ordinary life or rather something that gives meaning to it.
I am honored that he has accepted my invitation to join the site I can't wait to see him among us.
T
I am honored that he has accepted my invitation to join the site I can't wait to see him among us.
T
Bahman's letter to Sue,
Dear Sue,
Santour’s surface is like a desert and Mezrabs are like a man who goes until dusk until find water in desert. When they find water stay in a part and dance there. After, they go again for searching water in desert. I played some piece and recorded them. I will send them for you. Please tell me your idea about them. I am not a good player because I only play for two years.
I am so sorry. I couldn’t find a word for my sentence. My correct sentence is this ‘I think wars and captures are a reason for the sad quality in our music. In our music a key is divided into 24 parts.
If you go to Tehran you should go to my Santour’s class. I am sure you enjoy it. You should go to our home because my family loves to see you. I love to see you in Tehran.
Do you play Violin now?
Take care,
Bahman
Santour’s surface is like a desert and Mezrabs are like a man who goes until dusk until find water in desert. When they find water stay in a part and dance there. After, they go again for searching water in desert. I played some piece and recorded them. I will send them for you. Please tell me your idea about them. I am not a good player because I only play for two years.
I am so sorry. I couldn’t find a word for my sentence. My correct sentence is this ‘I think wars and captures are a reason for the sad quality in our music. In our music a key is divided into 24 parts.
If you go to Tehran you should go to my Santour’s class. I am sure you enjoy it. You should go to our home because my family loves to see you. I love to see you in Tehran.
Do you play Violin now?
Take care,
Bahman
Sabber's letter to T
Hello Mr. T
How are you today? These days I am looking for every film or
every thing that help my and all other students' English.
Actually now I have understood what English is and now I can say that I love it
and I think without you and Sue and other kind students never Couldn't talk or
write as well as now.
With your help, we can finish all episodes of the BBC planet earth series
and many good documentary.
Now I want to say that I am ready to start reading the Masnavi and every time that you were free we start it.
If I have many mistakes in my letter to you, I'm so sorry.
Take care .
Sabber
How are you today? These days I am looking for every film or
every thing that help my and all other students' English.
Actually now I have understood what English is and now I can say that I love it
and I think without you and Sue and other kind students never Couldn't talk or
write as well as now.
With your help, we can finish all episodes of the BBC planet earth series
and many good documentary.
Now I want to say that I am ready to start reading the Masnavi and every time that you were free we start it.
If I have many mistakes in my letter to you, I'm so sorry.
Take care .
Sabber
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)