7ilwa yal ba7raiiiniyeh

7ilwa yal ba7raiiiniyeh. I’ve never heard of this song before. The group apparently produced only one album in 1969 and disappeared into oblivion. What I find interesting about the song is the Bahraini accent used. Are the words just being stretched out for the sake of rhyme and rhythm or is this accent actually spoken in Bahrain?

Previous related posts: Bahraini accents, Arabic language/accents

Anger

Angry Man? Outraged Woman? Or a beast lurking for his prey?

Photos I

I find those signs very amusing. They're so typical of local family-owned Arab and South Asian stores and restaurants. Another one I recall is: "Family and friends… please don't enter the kitchen during busy hours." Those seemingly common-sense courtesies ought to be printed in big bold letters and displayed on a high ledge in the store; otherwise you’ll find the whole tribe and next-of-kin marching all over the place…making themselves feel at home.


A very rare meal that we get to enjoy every once in a long while.

My Toenail!

It was around midnight when I felt like cutting my fingernails… toenails actually. My friend who was sleeping over at my place suddenly yelled:

“NOOO! Don’t!”

“Don’t what”

“Don’t cut your nails”

“Why??”

“Cutting your nails at night will bring you poverty”

“heh! who said so?”

“it is written in the ahadeeth”

“which ahadeeth?”

“I don’t’ know but my mother knows”

“Please tell me you’re not serious?”

“Wallah, I’m serious.”

“Hmm! Do you know why Arabs and Muslims are backward my friend?” I said while *tick* the mouth of my nail cutter took a bite out of of my big toe nail. “It is because most people still think the way you do!”

She nodded her head in slight agreement and some hesitation. Of course, how can you expect someone who had been hearing all this nonsense throughout their entire life to change their mind in one night even in the most trivial of things such as cutting your toenails!

Unfortunately, my friend is not unique. As a society in general, our umbilical cord is still attached to the placenta of ignorance in the days of Jahiliyya. We lack the ability to examine the knowledge we receive. We’re just not critical enough…we’re not analytical enough… and we don’t even know our faith enough to the point that we fear questioning some nonsense just because “gee! This might really be part of what I’m supposed to believe in.” “Read!” Gabriel revealed to Muhammad some 1400 years ago and we have yet to do that in the 21st century. Wasn’t it the prophet who said that spending more time learning is better than spending more time praying…that one learned man is harder on the devil than a thousand ignorant worshippers…that the ink of the scholar is more holy than the blood of the martyr? Wasn’t it Imam Ali who said “Use your intellect to understand something when you hear about it… for surely there are many who repeat the knowledge that they hear, and there are few who examine it.” So why don’t we do that? Why are we a bewildered herd as Chomsky would put it?

Well, the answers are obvious but to overcome them is the challenging task because the problem is that as a nation we’re ignorant and in order to be critical of ourselves we need to have the ability to think and realize that there is something fundamentally wrong with us but to have the ability to do that…we need to be critical to begin with…so basically throughout the past few decades we’ve done a good job of cornering ourselves in a Cath-22 situation and the only way out of this conundrum is to… is to…

I don’t really know!

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Brave Kid

This is hilarious! Check it out.

Bahraini Pride

Bahrania posted a couple of trivia questions about Bahrain's history. Those questions reminded me of a friend who would proabably know the answers to all of them. Besides having a peculiar personality, he also has a weird sense of patriotism which is hard to describe. In his digital photo albums you’ll find pictures of Gilgamesh, a historic (mayabe even mythic) figure but who my friend regards more as an ancestor of some sort. He talks about Dilmun and the ancient civilizations on a regular basis as if they have a direct impact on our daily lives as Bahrainis in the 21st century. When I asked him one day why are you so proud of being Bahraini? This was his answer:

I am proud because we have a history over 10,000 years old. We are mentioned in the epics of humanity, from Gilgamesh, to the tales of Alexander the Great, to the Persians, and the Indus Valley, to the Bible. I am proud because I feel that we are in fact one of the superior civilizations. I am proud because I am from a friendly country where everybody loves the other. I am proud because I was born in a land of revolution where people always fought to help those who are oppressed. Where did most of the Shia revolutions against the Umayyads and Abbasids start from? Bahrain. Not only Shia revolutions but also others, like the Zinouj revolution hence the name "il Zinj.” Bottom line is that throughout our history, whenever there were weak people in the region, no matter what background, what skin color, what sect of Islam Bahrainis were always supportive and always died for these people. You tell me what are the people of Bahrain known for? The Golden Smiles, il a9aleh, il 6eeba. Tell me why Bahrain is called "The Land of Eden" not only in the epics of the ancient civilizations but also in the Bible?

Bahrain over the ages has blended many cultures. It had many lovers from Gilgamesh, to Zeus, to Jesus, to Islam. They have all affected her. Bahrain is a beautiful woman, with many suitors. Many have trued to subdue her but she is a playful girl and dumps them all. The Babylonian Gods, called her Dilmun, Zeus and his followers called her Tylos, Jesus wasn't much for nicknames and Islam went with Bahrain. Bahrain took from the Babylonians and the Assyrians the rules and the system of life. From the Greeks it took its cultural identity and its treatment of others. From Christianity, it took the way of life, and the humbleness that is God and from Islam we joined all.

The Hajj

The Hajj is about to begin. It’s almost impossible to feel the hype when you’re a thousand miles away from the scene or if you simply don’t have a family member or a relative who is embarking on this trip of a lifetime, nonetheless, the image of having 2 million people from every corner of the globe wearing the same garments, performing the same rituals, and repeating in one cohesive voice their prayers to God does spark a sense of awe and wonder. I went to Mecca once to perform the Umra, I was young and naive at best back then but I still remember shedding a few tears upon seeing the Ka’aba for the first time. It was a pure moment of awe not triggered by any sense of religious realization or awareness… jut pure awe at the serenity of the scene and moment. I often wonder if it is possible to maintain the same level of spirituality while performing the Hajj and enduring all what a pilgrim has to endure in a very arduous environment and atmosphere. Oh well, to all the pilgrims …Hajj Mabroor wa Sa’ie Mashkur. May all the prayers for peace, happiness, and everything beautiful be granted.


My cute little sis during the Umra

My Grandma

click on image to enlarge
My grandma...the hub. I miss sitting on that beautiful red carpet and massaging her feet.

Snow

Snowy day like almost everyday in the upcoming few months

More old pics of Bahrain

I posted previously a couple of old pics of Bahrain. Here are some more I came across recently:


These pics are also of azza processions. Date unknown.


I found the following pic on postcardman.net. According to the caption, this postcard is a real photo of a mosque in Manama. While the date the photo was taken is not mentioned, it does say that the stamp on reverse was postally used in 1952. Is this minarate still standing today? It reminds me of that old mosque few blocks away from Bab Al Bahrain. Is that it or am I hallucinating?


I came across the following photo of which the caption reads "Manama" on ebay:


This picture, along with many others of the region are compiled in a book called the "Pirate Coast" by Charles Belgrave who was a British colonial officer serving as the personal advisor to Sheikh Hamad, the ruler of Bahrain at that time.

I've been so interested in old photos and documents recently. I can't wait to go back to Bahrain and dig through old family albums.