Salmiya

Today, on the Day of Ashura, grieving for Imam Husayn culminates in Iran and other Shi’a communities with bloody rites. I have reported about the sad events in Karbala in 61 AH elsewhere on this blog . The first ten days of Muharram people in Iran prepare for the holiday. Black flags and banners with Abol Fas, Husayn, Ali are sold, and stalls in the bazaar decorated for the mourning. Religious songs proclaiming ‘Ya Husayn!’ were heard everywhere. I attended several Hosseiniyehs , one on my trip to Nain. In Esfahan, every night, in a tent people gathered in front of the Masjed Shah. Interesting, but plenty of basij and hundreds chador -wearing women created an atmosphere of, in fact, subliminal menace. These events were completely organized, plenty of buses took the participants later home. Last Friday, nation-wide demonstrations against the incredible atrocities of Israel to the people in the Gaza strip reached Esfahan with almost a thousand basij and pasdaran entering the maidaan...

I have recently mentioned these two guys in another posting mainly featuring my friends Seyed and Mirwuis from Afghanistan. All of them are dedicated and honest carpet dealers with profound knowledge, selling high quality pieces from their home country, from Iran and Central Asia. I don’t know how carpet business is right now in Kuwait for Ali and Hussain. It all depends on the Westerners, I suppose. Kuwaitis go for different pieces, I was told in the Persian Carpet Exhibition in Salmiya. I had mentioned them in relation to a photo which I have carried for some time even in my wallet. It shows both, Ali and Hussain and a little Afghan girl weaving a carpet. Hussain, the lad on the right, proudly smiles into the camera. Ali, his older brother, seems to be more quiet but very self-confident. The girl doesn’t smile. In fact, you can feel even an atmosphere of embarrassment emanating from the girl. She might not be older than, say, seven or eight. Let’s call her Fatima. The photo is a ki...