The Conference of the Birds
“The ocean can be yours; why should you stopBeguiled by dreams of evanescent dew?The secrets of the sun are yours, but youContent yourself with motes trapped in beams.” Farīd al-Dīn ʻAṭṭār, The Conference of the Birds
Author: mzabteam
Blazing a Trail: Amira the Wanderlust
Amira the Wanderlust is an adventurer in every sense of the word. Hiker, explorer, mountaineer and expedition leader as well as founder of the adventure group ‘The Wanderlust Women’, she is the contemporary Argonaut rekindling a modern take on the 15th-17th C age of exploration. Much like the anthropologist, Amira travels from region to region discovering and documenting – the only catch being that Amira is a cultural force within herself. Donned in a hijab and niqab (face veil) Amira looks starkly different to the collective imagining of a contemporary explorer. In a global society from Macron’s France and his sanctions against the hijab to the female Iranian resistance to forced/ imposed hijab, Amira is emblematic of audacious courage, existing with neither tensions as her point of reference but rather her religion and her desire to explore our home that is earth, being her guiding principles. Captured on Instagram traversing the valleys of the Lake District, the terrain of Ben Nevis or paddle boating in a National Park all while maintaining her religion and her …
O To Live! To Build a Quiet Life: Deep Time, Eschatology and the Anthropocene
ANTONIO. I hold the world but as the world, Gratiano; A stage, where every man must play a part, And mine a sad one. GRATIANO. Let me play the fool! ~The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare The centre, for many, seems not to be holding. Turning and turning in the widening gyre, it appears that we homosapiens have lost our way. The darkness has dropped a thousand times over and still we ignore the tensions between our profound purpose and the brevity of life… On a blue-skied afternoon in London, against the backdrop of a chorus of birdsong and the murmuring happenings of a leafy suburb, I embrace the concept that despite the socially constructed stratification of what is and what isn’t considered the ideal life, there is no real hegemony or hierarchy in one’s approach to and experience of it. To me, to live means to cultivate a quiet life. To engage with the world around us, to build meaningful relationships and to practise the avocations that make us feel most like ourselves. How …
The Moonlit Cabin
after Izumi Shikibia and Nizar Qabbani Dew kissed ferns unfurl in silence. Sea relentlessly blankets shore. How many times will I betray, only to find myself in this mountain’s shade? You watch as I fade into forest. The earthly scent of cedar stirs longing. My every footfall, in any direction, can only lead me back to you. What gentle hearth this stillness is, nestled in your arms again. Wind and rain reduced to memory Caressing this cabin’s windowpanes. Nothing, Save the full moon’s light Can reach me here. it’s all ephemeral except the One Rooted in the rainy Pacific Northwest, Efemeral’s multilingual written verse and spoken word performance entwine reflections on faith, language and the human psyche. Her latest English works have been published in the anthology, “A Kaleidoscope of Stories” published by Lote Tree Press. She has pieces in anthologies by Rumi Center for Spirituality and the Arts and was also published in The Puritan’s 2019 issue, “What Does It Mean to be a Muslim Writer?”. Her Arabic poetry is currently featured in the …
Stuck in Traffic Salawat
اللهم صل وسلم على الذي يسعى إليه كل من ضل السبيل عدد أنوار القوافل والراكبات وعدد المسافرين والقادة فمن تمت رحلته جوار الحبيب فقد رزق في رحلته بكل ما أراد we who have lost our way pray: Ya Allah, send Your Peace and Blessings upon our Compass our Northern Star our Drinking Gourd as many times as there are lights leading caravans and cars headlights and stars and as many times as there is light on the faces of travelers and wanderers for we know, whosoever concludes their journey by his side has reached a destination sought by every guide it’s all ephemeral except the One Rooted in the rainy Pacific Northwest, Efemeral’s multilingual written verse and spoken word performance entwine reflections on faith, language and the human psyche. Her latest English works have been published in the anthology, “A Kaleidoscope of Stories” published by Lote Tree Press. She has pieces in anthologies by Rumi Center for Spirituality and the Arts and was also published in The Puritan’s 2019 issue, “What Does It Mean to …
In Conversation With Ahmad Ikhlas: On Dub Poetry, Faith and Travel
“The first step is intention. Once that foundation is established then the balance will naturally follow.“ Read on as we catch up with Ahmad Ikhlas, an international dub poet, reggae and garage musician who draws on his Jamaican heritage and his British upbringing to form a unique style of music and poetry, used in praise of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). We are curious to know more about what led you to being a dub poet, reggae and garage artist? Could you tell us more about your developmental experience and the influences that shaped you to do what you do today?I grew up listening to reggae in it’s various forms Rock steady, ska, dancehall, lovers rock revival etc. I guess it’s part and parcel of growing up in a Caribbean household. This genre had a strong influence on my style and delivery as a Garage MC which came as second nature and something I unconsciously perceived. I’d perform weekly on Pirate Radio stations and in clubs. When I became serious about practising my faith I gradually …
An Interview with Sabah and Muneera of ‘Black Muslim Women Bike’
MZAB magazine caught up with Sabah and Muneera exploring their outdoors initiative ‘Black Muslim Women Bike’. Read on as we explore the minds of these two adventurers and the inspiration behind this initiative. Who is behind Black Muslim Women Bike? Muneera: Black Muslim Women Bike started almost by accident, I started cycling just before lockdown when advised to do so by the doctor due to an on going injury I had from running. I was told I need to build muscle and I may never be able to run again which was devastating because I had been running on and off since about 2014 when my friend Nisa Ali come to visit me in the UK and told me about a triathlon she was training for. I was looking for ways to keep fit, I can’t swim, I didn’t have a bike, so running seemed like the easiest thing, all I needed was myself. So when the doctor told me that, I thought at least I can try cycling. Good thing, in terms of timing, …
Untitled: Mariam Ali
If it means I can create words that reach Uranus and Saturn I surrender to God’s will. Even if it means cutting open my chest with my bare hands and taking out this heart using the dripping blood as ink I surrender to whatever befalls the softest of them all. But please continue beating a beautiful drum like rhythm because this sore spot will soon grow bright green leaves ready for summer.
On Turkish Tea And Rumi: An interview With Döndü Kazankiran
Where are you from and what does your name mean? I’m from the Netherlands but my family is from Turkey. My name means “Return/turn”. There is actually a funny story about it which I would like to share. In the olden days when a Mother gave birth to a lot of girls, they would name the last born girl “Döndü” so the next child will hopefully “turn” its gender and be a boy. This tradition and name is popular in the middle of Turkey called Anadolu (Anatolia). What has brought you to London? In 2015 I came to London to do an internship. I met my husband and fell in love with him and when I finished studying in The Netherlands I moved to London so we could be together. What do you love about your culture the most? Even though I was born and raised in the Netherlands, my big Turkish family has always taught me about the Turkish culture and manners. What I love the most is our warm hospitality. This can …
On Nature and Gardening With Sally Hallywill
ON NATURE AND WILDLIFE Sally Hallywill cares for the plants and wildlife at Lordship recreation ground in North London. Read on as we catch up on all things nature… I really like your theme of ‘sanctuary’, because it resonates so much with what I feel about the ‘outdoors’, and, at the moment, the specific places I choose to spend that time in. These are Lordship Rec, which I feel so fortunate to live near, and my shared house and land in France, where I started a small Orchard with a view to managing it organically both for the benefit of us humans who spend time there, but primarily for ‘nature’ to have a refuge from the extensive surrounding fields of industrial agriculture. This summer in particular I am also spending a lot more time with my sister and mother in south Norfolk, and enjoying the utter tranquility and wide open spaces around their village in the countryside. My main interest is not so much in ‘gardening’ – I sometimes describe myself as an ‘anti-gardener’, but in …
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