Wise Words

"Sufism is not a fashion statement but a serious quest for union with God."


Jashn e Khusrau

sufism
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sufi poems
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Art in Sufism

This is a breathtaking water color painting made by S. a. Noori. An article about a recent exhibition in Islamabad covers the spirituality that lives in them:

From Tribune.com./pk:

Noory’s work is nuanced with Sufism- white bearded men in trance, holding the Quran. Perhaps the most intriguing piece is a painting of a tall, bearded man with his hand outstretched upwards holding onto a rope as he looks serenely towards the sand. The rope goes straight into the sky and out of the painting where the viewer is left wondering where the other end of the rope must be.

You can read the complete article here.

sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters

Sanam Marvi

From GulfNews comes this article about Sanam Marvi, considered one of the youngest singer-story tellers:

The rising voice of Sufi music
It's about love … the love of humanity.
It's about a world with no boundaries, no violence and no hunger.
It's about a path that says the only true thing to live by is ‘Haq' or ‘right'.
Its instrument is music. Its storytellers are poets and singers.
Its battle, or ‘jihad', is against the ever-manifest human ego.
Sufism is — compassion. And Sanam Marvi perhaps its youngest storyteller.

To continue reading this article please click here


sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters

What is Real Love?

sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters

New Sufism E Books Uploaded

 

A list of new uploaded books to the section “Pearls of Wisdom”

Ibn Arabi Beginning of Human Bodies

The Takfeer Of Ibn Arabi

THE MUHAMMADAN INHERITANCE

Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih I on Ibn 'Arabi

Ibn Arabi Sufi Physics

A Brief Life Sketch of Shaykh Ibn Arabi al-Shaykh al-Akbar

Ibn `Arabi

Ibn 'Arabi and His Interpreters

Ibn Arabi: philosophy and reason

Ibn 'Arabi's own Summary of the Fusus

To download these e books, just check the section Pearls of Wisdom on right pane.

Thanks to http://findpdfbooks.com

Finding the Mystic Life in All of Us

By contributing writer Kevin Murphy, originally published by KidSpirit Online.

Mysticism seems to move beyond the barriers of duality created by traditional religious doctrines, and expresses the "one Reality" that the saint-like Hindu, Mātā Amritānandamayī Devi, known as Ammachi, addressed during her 2000 visit to the United Nations. Mysticism is the search for an accord with, or awareness of, a spiritual truth or God through direct experience or insight. This idea is investigated by one of Ammachi's followers, Ethan Walker III, who, in the Mystic Christ, claims to have found God in his own life. He declares:

By exploring other faiths we begin to see what is common to all paths: love, tolerance, innocence, compassion, devotion to God, forgiveness and service to others. As these essential aspects are clarified and reinforced by their appearance again and again in the major faiths of the world, we begin to find acceptance and tolerance toward other faiths.

To read the full article, visit this article that appeared on the Huffington Post.

Stanford's Özgen Felek investigates the power of dreams in Sufism

Through a study of dreams, Özgen Felek charts the ascendance of the 16th-century Ottoman ruler Sultan Murad III from humble disciple to spiritual and political leader.

BY KELSEY GEISER
The Humanities at Stanford

Every night when the 16th-century Ottoman ruler Sultan Murad III went to bed, he looked forward not just to rest, but also to the guidance he would find in his dreams. In the morning, Murad, the grandson of Suleiman the Magnificent, reported his dreams to his Sufi – a mystical Islamic master who interpreted and transcribed the signs and symbols to help the sultan make decisions about his empire and his personal progress.

One night while dreaming of a boy with "a bejeweled crown on his head," the sultan reported hearing a voice in his dream that said, "It is not a boy, it is the religion of Muhammad and the religion of Islam; it is the religion of Muhammad."

Hundreds of dream narrations like this were eventually compiled into a bound manuscript that established the ruler not only as a religious leader but also as an important authority figure.

CONTINUE READING

sufism
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sufi masters

Sufism and Peace

This article talks about how scholars and educationists in India are urging the government to hold an international conference on Sufism to promote the message of peace and love as well as an invitation to people from all over the world to attend the conference in which it would be asked the creation of a Sufi University for research.

Call to hold international moot on Sufism

 

tasawwuf

sufism

love

COMPASSION

I saw a man in the crowd. He was lying there, with dust that he had carried on his clothes from the desert. His clothes were dirty with the mixture of the desert dust and from the city. He was wearing a beard but it was almost difficult to perceive it, as his face was almost covered by one side of his brown rather black from dirt covers. He didn't wear sandals, and his feet were filled with dust and callouses, even on his plants. There, lying this way, there was a group of youngsters who were laughing and making fun of him, trying to find his beard and pull out some hair, while peasants were looking from time to time, but directly going to the market to get some goat and cheese. Be the wall where the man was leaning on the floor, stood a high minaret, all with its joy and silence while birds would dance to and fro, and the sunbeams still were waiting to leave. The man seemed so tired that I looked inside my bag and found some water still remaining from a plastic bottle I was wearing. Crossing the street I approached the group of youngsters and showed the bottle to one of them and said "here, give him some water, for he is exhausted". The young boy looked puzzled at me and started laughing, as if I was not even aware of the meaning of what was going on, a total stranger in a strange land. But that was not the case. I asked him " Do you know who this man is?" And he replied with another question "Do I care"? And he, with the others, continued laughing about him and leaning on him to tell him stupid things. The man was uttering words of tiredness, and of some mysterious happenings that I could not clearly hear. Then I approached him and told the youngsters to stop the mockery and listen. The desert was not close to the city, these youngsters had just left the faculty for the day, they had not gone to the desert, they did not find it attractive, they were occidental, they all were having ear plugs to listen to music, hanging on their shoulders, pockets with music gadgets, and cell phones, some in their hands. They did not like the desert at all, and whoever came from the desert was someone who is lost in its barbaric silence. They were speaking about getting a sandwich on a chain restaurant, and I insisted: "Listen to this man". An old woman approached, wearing a bag filled with fish, it smelled strong and she put the bag on the pavement and started screaming to the youngsters, as if she was their mad mother, and they would laugh secretly as if they were children. But I insisted: "Listen to this man". The woman looked at me and asked me if I knew him, what was happening, was he ill, was he someone I know, and such things. Then the man managed to sit on the pavement, even though he was completely exhausted. He looked to the empty void, with eyes filled with dirt and dry. But then he started to cry. I knew that he had things to say. I took a paper handkerchief and handed it to him. The youngsters started saying that the man was crazy, that they had seen him other times in this same state, that I was crazy to give him attention, that he was dangerous, that he had beaten his daughter years ago and was left alone. I helped him sip some water and the old woman became interested in the story. Probably she would have something to speak about during dinner time in her house with her family. She loved talking! We could hear the sounds from the cars here and there, the stressed rhythm of the market not far away, but somehow that moment was absolutely important, and it isolated the sounds with mastery.
Then, I saw the man, the bearded man. How long had he been lying on the floor? How long had he stayed in the desert? He mumbled and then his voice became clear. He said that he had spent 40 days in the desert, trying to find a spot that others tried to veil for him. He had left his camel, and he didn't know if he would find him again. He spent whole nights under the stars with just water and dates in his pocket. He mumbled again. The youngsters asked him many questions, among them "did you see your daughter? God's willing you will pay for that in the Judgement Day". Well, I thought the man looked drunk, but that was not possible, he didn't smell alcohol at all, and he was a man of religion. A happy unconscious sad face, a man who didn't understand the meaning of his fatality. Who had spent days trying to find something without success. I could only ask "What were you looking for"? He became almost angry and replied : "I've been looking for you, and you, and you too, and you, and you...." pointing to all of us, with a trembling, infirm finger, with a long nail and fiery eyes. We are not people from the desert, and we are not better than you, I said. "Probably not", he replied, but what I was looking for was here, the mere life, the mere breath, the simple joy, the dirty laugh, the deep compassion." As I tried to get rid of his hand who grabbed me by my skirt, he looked to the sky and said: "I do not own anything, yet I receive so much mockery, so much help, so much attention". The youngsters looked at him startled. And he became a dazing voice, saying poems aloud, thanking God for the dust, for the so called empty days and nights in the desert if that was to find our love and also disrespect, for "all that comes from humanity becomes a necessary lesson in my life". He stood up, and left with help of a cane, his cloths dirty and his feet naked. We all spent a few talking about what had just happened, when the youngest boy pointed to the pavement where that man had been lying and said "Look!, a book he left!" I took the book, a little book, very old and used, and read the first sentence: "You helped me find my way, now I can die in peace. I could not speak, I had no time to, they all took my words before I was even going to utter them". You will never see me again in this life. I am free. And suddenly, the minaret let waves of candor come to our ears and hearts. The muezzin was calling us for a prayer.

The mysterious man never came again, and finally, the youngsters avoided that they had just invented the story of him beating his daughter. For they had never seen that man before. The following weeks I would stare at the same point but the man wasn't there. The youngsters would look at me with a question mark on their faces. "No, I haven't seen him". And after all, God always sends mysteries that can never be solved until we are wise enough to perceive the source of such mysteries. These youngsters now, when they see me, they greet me and look more serious than before. Somehow they have grown up a little more and they approach to give me some words of respect. About the woman, she screams my name until I turn and see her, and invites me to go to her house and try her dinner with her family. We have become good neighbors all of us, and still the minaret smiles to the crowd and to us, while the birds sing strange songs they only understand.

sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters

I wish...

I really wish I was able to write more, in fact.. Write! I haven't done it since... a year, perhaps? Yet I have things to share, as I have been traveling inside and outside. But I really don't know where to start with, as things don't seem as easy. Struggle, I am thankful for it, Love, Thank you for it, new horizons, excitement and wonder, but really looking forward to the beginning of this quest.



sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters

Lubna

Lubna, by Jose Luis Muñoz

The Library of al-Hakam (al-Andalus) was the most important one, during caliph al-Hakam II (961-976), founded by the Omeya Dinasty. He also created the sina’at al-nas where copists would work in excellent calligraphy, like Abu Fadl b. Harun, of Sicilian origin, and Sa’aid b. Muqqadas as well as the Lubna women (al-Hakkam secretary) and Fatima

Fractal Heart

sufism
tasawwuf
sufi poems
sufi masters
sufi teachers

tasawwuf

The Breath of the Merciful

 

The Breath of the Merciful is understood as the cosmic dynamic that vitalizes the many in the One. It is the ever-present ‘Breathing’ that makes it possible for this infinite universe of duality to come into being while never being other than the nondual essence of the One. Seeing the nature of this dynamic gives us a chance to intuitively understand how there can simultaneously be the one indivisible essence of the Realand the endless proliferation of phenomena. This understanding, if it occurs, is not conceptual and is not simply a metaphysical nicety. ‘Getting’ the relation between the relative and the absolute is at the heart of all experiences of spiritual awakening.

This is a very interesting article about the Mysticism of Music that I invite you to read

The Open Path

 

Three Pearls

Three pearls fell down the river, from my broken necklace. I let them go, let them see what I couldn’t, let them encounter adventures I would never dream of.

But don’t look at us, the pearls said while I glanced from the distance, and my feet started to wallk back home over the dusty ground.

Look at the pearls of the Unseen, you are lucky, we are almost there, and we are tears now. Not pearls. You are lucky, they said, for the waiting, the searching, the seeking, is the whole adventure, the great reward, where rivers of pearls become tears of joy. We are now tears going to encounter the ocean of Love. But you are still not there, so feel and cry, and suffer and smile and struggle, because this is where all the signs of Love can lead you to be what we are now. And I sighed and desired to be them.

Thoughts from a young girl.

A Quote by Ibn Arabi

All those among the Sufis who had no visible murshid (guide), that is, an earthly man like themselves and a contemporary, called themselves Uwaysis. One of the most famous was abu'l-Hasan Kharraqani (d. 425/1034), an Iranian Sufi, who left us the following saying: I am amazed at those disciples who declare that they require this or that master. You are perfectly well aware that I have never been taught by any man. God was my guide, though I have the greatest respect for all the masters.

Ibn al-'Arabi (1165 - 1240)

 

Science - Number 19

Say I Am With You

The Shadow of your Soul

A History of Islamic Philosophy

Part of the course syllabus will be focused on Ibn ‘Arabi and his mystical philosophy; Discusses the life and works of Ibn ‘Arabi and Sadr, and his mystical doctrines on wahdat al-wujud and its influences on the later development of both mysticism and philosophy.
ICAS PARAMADINA UNIVERSITY, JAKARTA, INDONESIA

A Mystic Journey - Canada

 

 

Saturday March 20. 10:15- 11.

 

Place:

109 855, rue Sherbrooke Ouest Montréal, QC Canada H3A 2T

More Information: Pavillon Leacock

Osho : The Sufi is not an escapist

Please read this article about the sufi character, it is very beautiful, and important. Via The Mystical Path

 

Sufi Soul: The Mystic Music of Islam

For hundreds of millions of Sufi followers worldwide, music is at the heart of their tradition and a way of getting closer to God. From the Whirling Dervishes of Turkey to the qawwali music of Pakistan, Sufism has produced some of the world�s most spectacular music celebrated by Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Dalrymple�s film traces the shared roots of Christianity and Islam in the Middle East and discovers Sufism to be a peaceful, tolerant and pluralistic…

 

READ MORE

 

International conference on Sufism and peace begins in Pakistan

Delegates from 70 countries are attending the conference which is aimed at promoting the philosophy of Sufism as it can help fight the menace of extremism.
Source: Xinhua
READ MORE

 

Azam Ali - I Am a Stranger in This World!

Sufi Music

Listen these two beautiful musical instruments: the ney and the guitar...

Quest for Red Sulphur: The Life of Ibn 'Arabi Claude Addas, Peter Kingsley

Quest for the Red Sulphur: The Life of Ibn Arabi is undoubtedly a landmark in Ibn Arabi studies. Until the publication of this book, anyone who wanted to learn about the life of Ibn Arabi has had little choice of material to work from. This major study by Claude Addas is based on a detailed analysis of a whole range of Ibn Arabis own writings as well as a vast amount of secondary literature in both Arabic and Persian. The result is the first-ever attempt to reconstruct what proves to have been a double itinerary: on the one hand, the journey that took Ibn Arabi from his native Andalusia to Damascus - and on the other hand, the Night Journey which carried him along the paths of asceticism and prayer to the ultimate stage of revelation of his mystic quest.
Ebay Auction

Creative Imagination in the Sufism of Ibn 'Arabi (Routledge Library Editions: Islam) (Volume 7) (Hardcover)

Product Description: In this volume Henry Corbin emphasizes the differences between the exoteric and esoteric forms of Islam. He also reveals that whereas in the West philosophy and religion were at odds, they were inseparably linked, at least during this period, in the Islamic world. A valuable section of notes and appendices includes original translation of numerous Sufi treatises.
Amazon.com

Religious experts explore other faiths

 

 

There are two things people should never to bring to the dinner table: politics and religion. But when four experts of clashing religions converge on grounds to understand one another, the outcome like the attempt, is unparalleled.

 

READ MORE

Spiritual Heritage

17-24 April: 4th Festival of Sufi Culture in Morocco

The 4th Fez Festival of Sufi Culture will be held from 17 to 24 April in the palaces, riads and Andalusian gardens of the city of Fez around the theme "Mysticism and poetry”.
The festival will , according to the Association of Fes Festival of Sufi Culture, continue to show Morocco as the land of the ancient home of Sufism and promoter of dialogue among cultures, but also as a bridge between the East and the West, symbolized by the mediating role that Morocco has always played, especially in its modern history.
As in previous years, the festival offers a musical program blending various artistic creations of the Sufi world. It will celebrate the Shahi Qawwals of Ajmer Dargah Sharif, who come from India, and the troupe of Chinese music and Sufi songs "Maqamat", Mustafa Zaman Abbasi from Bangladesh, Hussain Al Aadhamy from Iraq, Syria Shaykh Habboush and Jalal Eddine Weiss of France. *
The festival will bring together the Moroccan artist Karima Skalli and the Haj Younis, who will pay tribute to Abu al-Hasan Ash Shusturi.
Other troops famous for Sufi music are also invited to animate the festival evenings. The sumptuous Batha Museum will house the night of Samaa Tariqa Boutchichiyya, Charqawiyya, Darqawiyya, Wazzania and Siqilliyya Khalwatiyya.
Other evenings will also be expected by enthusiasts of Sufi music, including a vigil Samaa Haj Mohammed Bennis and concert Briouel Mohamed, who is accompanied by "great voice" of Samaa Morocco.
At the intellectual level, debate will be animated by personalities from different cultures and religions, academicians, intellectuals, spiritual leaders, politicians, business leaders and actors of civil society, which will meet in the Forum 'Giving Soul to Globalization".
Several other conferences and forums are also in the program.

 

Source: moroccoboard.com

Musical manna will rain down from a Sufi heaven

Come, but be careful. That was the advice the composer of Slumdog Millionaire gave to Indians thinking of studying in Australia.

A.R. Rahman said he had not considered cancelling his tour after the attacks and murders of Indians in Australia.

''A lot of my friends' sons [have come] here and they have gone back very happily. They have benefited from Australian studies,'' he said.

Rahman will give a free concert in Parramatta Park tomorrow.

He advised students to take care after dark and avoid areas where drug and alcohol problems were rife, and he called for greater responsibility in the reporting of the murders.

''The media is a great tool but it can also be misused,'' he said. ''Speaking to a lot of people [they say] some of them are racially biased and some are not. But they get painted with the same colour.''

He would not comment on moves by a Hindu militant group in Mumbai, Shiv Sena, to prevent Australian cricketers from playing there until the attacks had ceased.

He believed music could play a role in healing the tensions. ''This concert is about reaffirming the friendship and interest of both people, and I hope this concert brings that.''

Rahman, who shot to international attention with his film soundtrack and its exuberant anthem, Jai Ho, is a practicing Sufi. He converted from Hinduism after meeting a teacher of Sufism, the mystical form of Islam, 20 years ago. He also changed his name, from Dileep Kumar to Allah Rakha Rahman.

''He [the teacher] never told us you have to become a Muslim, but out of interest I started getting inquisitive about stuff,'' he said. Rahman's music is influenced by his beliefs: ''The whole philosophy of Sufi is to give to the universe, to be unconditional. It is like the rain falls on everyone and the sun's rays fall on everyone … So that philosophy has fascinated me and that's what I follow. Music, too, is about giving.''

Rahman has won two Oscars and been nominated for two Grammys. His concert at Parramatta is at 7.30pm tomorrow (today in fact:-) )

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Sufism a panacea for all social evils

Sufism is a panacea for issues related to violence and hatred and an elixir for those who feel inclined to share and promote love, compassion and empathy among mankind for making this world a better place to live. It is the epitome of secularism and the basic premise of a pluralistic society.

These views were expressed by speakers during the valedictory function of a two-day national seminar on ‘Sufism and Sufi Literature’ that concluded at Punjabi University on Friday.

Syed Sarwar Chishti from Gaddi Nashin, Dargah Sharif in Ajmer and H K Dua, Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune were the guests of honour.

Talking of ‘Talibanisation of Islam’, Chishti said militants, who are bent upon destroying the pious fabric of the religion through their virulent and disruptive acts, were the outcome of false indoctrination coupled with ignorance.

“We have to remain vigilant and cautious against spilling over of extremism from across the border as these brutal forces won’t find scarcity of resources to help them in their dastardly mission,” Chishti said.

While assuring the Vice-Chancellor all support in establishing a Sufi Centre, he called upon the media to play a responsible role to help revive a peaceful and congenial atmosphere.

Dua, in his address, said that Sufism provides the most befitting answer to the theory of ‘Clash of Civilizations’.

Rating internal strives as more dangerous than external aggressions, Dua said that various existing denominations have no remedies but people do have. Vice-Chancellor Jaspal Singh reiterated that truthful living was the quintessence of Sufism.

Source: IndianExpress.com

AMIR VAHAB - NAVAEE

A very beautiful old Persian Sufi Song.

Perhaps someone could translate it for us?

 

 

Beloved

I dance, I am a woman;
I sing, I have a soul;
I spread flowers over our encounter,
and let them fall
over our hearts...

I give you the cup of wine
in whispers
and in sounds of happiness,
in love poems,
and songs that come from heaven.

I sip from this Love
with tears in my eyes,
babbling the name
of the All-Nothing that  sees us, with a smile.

We both are looking for the same;
searching, always searching;
and even if we see...
We still prefer to wonder.

Under the stars I find the Beloved
through my earthly beloved.
You feel paradise
through this love that becomes LOVE.

We are children, we are joy,
we are starting to live the real void
reaching ladders and wings and lights
upon us.

Beloved, you take me to The BELOVED.

 

Maryam

The vocation of every man and woman is to serve other people.

PLEASE HELP HAITI: STATE OF EMERGENCY

Yele.org

Oscar winner plays for peace

The Sydney Morning Herald

 

Amid tension over attacks on Indian students, a musical superstar wants to help, writes Matt Wade.

Can Bollywood rhythms help soothe international tensions? A.R. Rahman, the superstar of contemporary Indian music who created the Oscar-winning soundtrack for the hit movie Slumdog Millionaire, thinks they can.

As fury grows on the subcontinent over attacks on Indians in Australia, Rahman will stage a free concert in Sydney's Parramatta Park on Saturday to "build a bridge of understanding". Rahman suggested the show as a gesture of goodwill.

"This concert is a statement of friendship, peace and love," he says before leaving for Australia.

Rahman's desire to stage the concert underscores how deeply the attacks have been felt across India. He considers it his "duty" as a musician to help promote understanding between both countries.

"The show is to celebrate … music and friendship. I feel a concert is a very spiritual gathering where people from many different backgrounds can come together doing the same thing. It's a great way to make a statement of love and peace."

Rahman's show, which is part of the Sydney Festival, was announced last August after a series of attacks on Indian students in Melbourne and Sydney. The assaults received blanket media coverage in India and damaged Australia's reputation as a safe destination for students.

Tension has flared again in the past fortnight after the violent deaths of two Indians in Australia, including the stabbing murder in Melbourne of former student Nitin Garg. These incidents have made Rahman's visit more poignant.

He hopes the Parramatta show will help break down cultural misunderstandings and boost the morale of tens of thousands of Indians studying in Australia.

"It's not just the music, it is what's behind the music," he says. "I really hope we get a positive response in Australia."

The celebrated score for Slumdog Millionaire won Rahman two Oscars, a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe last year and introduced him to a global audience. The film's uplifting anthem, Jai Ho, became an international hit, topping the charts in several countries including Australia.

"There is now more recognition for my work," Rahman says. "I can walk into any studio and talk to any artist … I have the freedom to be more choosy and to express what I want to express in my music."

Rahman has achieved hero status in India and his success is symbolic of a new, more internationally oriented and globally influential India. He has fond memories of playing to packed crowds in Sydney and Melbourne in 2005. "They were some of my best audiences," he says. "There was great hospitality … There was a lot of encouragement and a lot of love so that's what forced us to come back again."

Rahman says about 80 people will be involved in Saturday's high-energy concert, which is expected to be one of the highlights of this year's festival.

"It's a showcase of all the stuff I've done for 18 years … It will be packed with lots of exciting things like video, lights and dance. There are a lot of positive things coming together for this and I hope it's a great success."

Even before last year's international triumph, Rahman had experienced huge success in his homeland where film and pop music merge. He started as a session musician and composed jingles for commercials in his home town of Chennai, formerly Madras. Rahman launched his career as a film composer in the thriving South Indian movie industry which produces hundreds of films each year in languages such as Tamil and Telugu.

In 1992 he gained critical acclaim for his score for the film Roja and was soon writing music for Bollywood and beyond. He has written more than 100 film scores, typically churning out five or six a year.

Rahman's film scores and soundtracks have reportedly achieved sales of more than 300 million, making him one of the best-selling recording artists in the world.

A Time magazine critic described him as the ''Mozart of Madras'' and the magazine included Rahman in its list of the world's most influential 100 people last year.

The 44-year-old's personal story reflects India's religious diversity. Rahman's father, a composer, was a Hindu and his mother a Muslim. He was given the Hindu-sounding name - A.S. Dileep Kumar - but converted to Sufism, a mystical and lyrical form of Islam, in the late 1980s and changed his name to Allah Rakha Rahman.

His music has been deeply influenced by his religious experience and Rahman attributes his achievements to divine blessing. "My whole journey in music … has had a spiritual guidance," he says.

Despite his national and international success, Rahman is still based in Chennai and continues to work on South Indian films. He says that working in the Indian film industry has given him great freedom to experiment. ''I often tell directors I want to do this and they say, 'Yeah, go ahead and we'll make sure it works in the movie.' ''

His tens of millions of Indian fans have now come to expect innovation. "The people of India constantly push me to the edge, asking 'What are you going to do next?', so their interest has pushed me to work harder."

Rahman says Indian classical music has provided a base for his composition but he borrows from an eclectic range of styles including pop, folk, rock and hip hop. "I don't like to get typecast," he says.

Rahman believes the success of Slumdog Millionaire has created a bridge between Western and Indian audiences that could lead more people to explore Indian music. The international success of Jai Ho showed that contemporary Indian music can attract an international audience.

"Indian music has potential to have a bigger impact on the world," he says.

A.R. Rahman plays at Parramatta Park on Saturday from 7.30pm. Gates open at noon, and the venue will be closed when it is full.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

 

Heart, self & soul: the Sufi psychology of growth, balance, and harmony

I. The Psychology of Heart, Self, and Soul
II. Opening Your Heart
III. Transforming Your Self
IV. Your Seven Souls
V. Harmonizing Your Seven Souls
VI. The Practices of Sufism: Psychospiritual Therapy
VII. Sheikh and Dervish: Spiritual Guidance in Sufism
VIII. Dropping the Veils

 

To read the review of this book, you can visit this page.

Book in Google Books

ORIGINS AND MEANINGS OF THE EIGHT-POINT STAR

- Universal Symbolism
-Astrological Origins
- Use in Islam
- Ancient use of Eight-point Star Symbol
-Religious Integration of Symbol
- Use in Ornamentation and Pattern Building
-Mystical Significance
- Breath of the Compassionate
-Conclusion
TO READ ARTICLE VISIT
ORIGINS AND MEANINGS OF THE EIGHT-POINT STAR by SARAH TRICHA