Dundalk Gets to Grips with Islam

louth | arts and media | opinion/analysis

Friday March 19, 2004 13:42

by Sean Crudden

sean.crudden at iol dot ie

5 Anglesea Terrace

087 9739945

ELF Studies Rumi

A small group with the title ELF meets each Wednesday evening in the AOH Hall in Dundalk to read and discuss poets as varied as Rumi, Euripedes and TS Eliot.

Weekly for the past month or two I have been fortunate to be allowed to study with the ELF Group at sessions in the AOH Hall. One of the poets we have been studying is Rumi (Born Afghanistan 1207: Died Turkey 1273). The text being used is “The Essential Rumi” published by Penguin Books.

The following are a few lines I wrote in the class on 10 March 2004 (a response to Rumi’s verse).

“Rumi: Ruminate
Transfiguration.
Enlighten with
The light of joy
Lovely world. Stave
Off depression and death.
Painless ease
No struggle
In the light
Of your candle.
Pleasant imager
Of burgeoning life
Live again!”

It strikes me that the regions now under occupation by American forces were highly civilised at a time when the Norman invasion was beginning the destruction of celtic Ireland. The total achievement of America in the recent wars is not worth one page (or even one line) of Rumi’s writing.

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Comments (4 of 4)

Pedes - Pides??

Sat Apr 03, 2004 16:43

Sorry! It should be "Euripides" not "Euripedes."

The League of Arab States

by ;-) - shalom = saleem

Fri Mar 19, 2004 14:14

founded in 1945
is a loose association of the Arabic speaking States, it's members are:-
Algeria Bahrain Comoros Djibouti
Egypt Iraq Jordan Kuwait
Lebanon Libya Mauritania Morocco
Oman Palestine Qatar Saudi Arabia
Somalia Sudan Syria Tunisia
United Arab Emirates Yemen

Iraq (presently under occupation) no longer attends or takes an active representative part in decisions or policy initiatives.
Yesterday the League of Arab States welcomed the new PSOE government of Spain, which along with Italy shares the most important trade, economic, migration, and other connections with that zone traditionally knowns as the Maghreb.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2846897a10835,00.html

This will hopefully be well recieved by not only those states of the Community who share borders with the Maghreb but also those in the Maghreb who wish see "peace and prosperity" replace insult and ignorance.

Of course there are many who will shall say "oh the Arabic League they hate Israel" don't listen to them. Quite right, but it must be remember that the European "off kilter right" hates Israel as well.

Interestingly then "another counterpoint", the King of Jordan who since 1994 has had a peace treaty with Israel has visited "in secret" Mr Sharon at his ranch "sycamore".

Jordan is host to almost two million refugees from the conflict, and it is thought the "emergent" middle class, (not formerly middle class like in Dublin) really want a long list of normal things.

read the article at the link.
remember it's internet and media.
use your own little head.

Rumi's Advice for IMC addicts

by imur

Fri Mar 19, 2004 13:56

Spring Giddiness

Today, like every other day, we wake up empty
and frightened. Don't open the door to the study
and begin reading. Take down a musical instrument.
Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.

Oops!

Fri Mar 19, 2004 13:48

5 Anglesea Terrace, Greenore, Co Louth.

Sorry! Through haste I neglected to fill in the address bar properly in the article above.

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Dundalk Gets to Grips with Islam

Comments (4 of 4)