Qasmi, literary feuds and national neglect
While responding to the comments on my ATP post on Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi , I rambled a little on the literary feuds among the…
By: GS
Raza, Amit K Bharati’comment makes me happy as it shows that we can avoid misunderstandings by communicating and interatcing with our neighbours. Let there…
By: Shaista Hussain
What a beautiful collection of poetry and prose! And no Raza, its not cluttered at all…!! Full of energy, lots of ideas all packed…
By: iFaqeer
Just discovered this site. Wonderful space!! What you say about Pakistan defining oneself resonates with me. Of course, it is interesting-though inevitable, really-that those…
By: trystwithgodot
not sure i agree that by “acknowldging our past…confronting our present we can gain liberty”. our past is sordid (for the most part) and…
Dalrymple’s The Last Mughal
I was introduced to William Dalrymple when I read the City of Djinns a decade ago. What struck me was the fluid style of…
By: Gary Wunderlin
I stumbled across your site about a month ago. I live in the States. I travel to India each Feb. I do enjoy the…
War and Dialogue – Imagining Ourselves
Tune in now to our latest exhibit, ‘War & Dialogue’, where we take you beyond the headlines and show you how war is affecting…
The brain is wider than the sky
A friend has reminded me of this lovely poem. The expanse of this poem is soothing… The brain is wider than the sky, For,…
Imagining Ourselves – War and Dialogue
Imagining Ourselves (IO) is a global online exhibit featuring art, photographs, essays and film by young women in their 20s and 30s asking them…
The Suspect Paki – “May God give us many Schindlers”
I have been thinking about this all weekend. Read this post from an aptly titled blog, Suspect Paki on Friday and am still haunted…
My heart is open to all winds..
I am grateful to Zahid Hussein from Islamabad for introducing me to these lines. The Wahdatul Wajood (Unity of Being) school of thought in…
The Entrancing Qawwali
Based on the medieval Persian musical tradition of Sema, Qawwali in the subcontinent was popularized by the Chisti Saints and their dargahs. Perhaps the…
Islamophobia of Muslims
A sad day for Pakistan and progressive Islam. A close associate of Javaid Ghamidi– perhaps the best known Pakistani exponent of enlightened (I hate…
Everything except love is devoured by Love
The wild beast wouldn’t dare to devour the flesh of the lover: Love is recognized both by the corrupt and by the good; and…
The Ship Sunk in Love
My evening glows with Rumi’s presence. I am posting poems that I have been reading today. Contrary to several purists, I enjoy all the…
Put thy eyes into mine…..Shah Hussain
My wrist in the beloved’s grip, I cannot ask Him to leave hold. Dark is the night, the cloud is dripping, I suffer it…
the Conference of the Birds
The theory of Tawhid (Unity of Divine Being) has been beautifully expressed by the Persian Sufi poet Farid ud din Attar (1157-1235) in his…
I have two ways of loving You
Rabi’a al-‘Adawiyya, also known as Rabia Basri(c.717-801) was one of the early mystics from Basra a port city in Iraq. Being a woman she…
By: amit k bhartari