شيعي Shi’a Islam

Shi’a is taken from the phrase شيعة علي meaning “follower” or “faction of Ali”. In 632 the Islamic prophet Muhammad -محمد died and no clear successor was apparent. His followers recognized that someone was needed to continue the civil aspects of Muhammad’s activities. To this end they looked to the man who sometimes led prayer when Muhammad was indisposed. He was the person who “stood in front” -إمام. This man was Abu Bakr, Muhammad’s father-in-law.

By the time of the deaths of Umar and Uthman, Muhammad’s second and Third successors, fractures in the Muslim community were becoming apparent. It was in this atmosphere of discontent that Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law Ali established himself as the caliph, or leader of Islam. These four leaders became known as the “Four Rightly Guided Caliphs”-الخلفاء الراشدون. According to Shi’a Islam, Ali should have been the first successor to Muhammad. In 680 Ali’s son Ali Husain, the grandson of Muhammad, was invited to Iraq to become Caliph. He got no support, and was beseiged and killed. The date of his death, Ashura-عاشوراء, has become the most important date in the calendar of the “Partisans of Ali”.

Today there are an estimated 130-190 million Shiites and they make up 10%-15% of all Muslims. They constitute a majority in Iran and Iraq. There are also sizeable populations in Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon. Alawites and Druzes consider themselves Shias, although this is sometimes disputed by mainstream Shias. In Saudi Arabia Shiites are called “accaf” which means rejectors, and suffer discrimination.

The majority of Shiites in the world today are known as Twelvers. The central belief of the Twelvers is the disapperance from view of the last imam, who is also the twelfth and current imam, or Mahdi. They believe The Twelfth Imam is considered to be the only legitimate and just ruler, and therefore no political action can be taken in his absence.

The Sunnis, Short and Sweet

The Sunni branch of Islam comprises the overwhelming majority of modern-day Muslims. Four caliphates after the prophet Muhammad’s death, disagreement over his rightful successor eventually led to the Sunni-Shi’a split: on the one hand, the historical Shi’a community believed that Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali, “and his descendants as divinely authorized to rule the Muslim community” (more info); on the other hand, the Sunni community believed that succession should be determined by the people’s will. While this sectarian division marks a crucial event in Islamic history, the practice and traditions of the Sunni community coalesced gradually over the next several centuries. To summarize, the Sunni madhhab (school of thought) emphasizes the intrinsic role that religion and religious writings (the Qur’an, the hadith) play in public life and policy.

See also Sunni Islam

الحلوة دي

الحلوة دي قامت تعجن في البدريّة

The beautiful lady woke up at dawn to knead the bread

والدّيك بيذ ّن كوكوكوكو بالفجريّة

The rooster was calling coucou coucou

يا اللّه بنا على باب اللّه يا صنايعيّة

O’ skillful workers, let’s open the door to God’s treasures (an Arabic expression that means let’s go to work)

يجعل صباحك صباح الخير

May your morning be the morning of wealth

يا أسطى عطيّة

O’ Master Atiyya

—————-

صباح الصّباح، فتّاح يا عليم

والجيب ما فيهش ولا ملّيم

بس المزاج رايق و سليم

باب الأمل بابك يا رحيم

الصّبرطيّب عال

إيه غيّر الأحوال

يااللّي معاه المال

بردوالفقيرله ربّ كريم

——————–

REFRAIN

الحلوة دي قامت تعجن في البدريّة

والدّيك بيذ ّن كوكوكوكو بالفجريّة

يا اللّه بنا على باب اللّه يا صنايعيّة

يجعل صباحك صباح الخير

يا أسطى عطيّة

——————-

إيدي بيدك يا بو صلاح

مادام معمّل تعيش مرتاح

خلّي إتّكالك على الفتّاح

يااللّه بينا يااللّه الوقت أهو راح

الصّبر طيّب عال

إيه غيّرالأحوال

يا اللّي معاه المال بردو الفقير له ربّ كريم

——————–

REFRAIN

الحلوة دي قامت تعجن في البدريّة

والدّيك بيذ ّن كوكوكوكو بالفجريّة

يا اللّه بنا على باب اللّه يا صنايعيّة

يجعل صباحك صباح الخير

يا أسطى عطيّة

—-

الحلوة دي

الحلوة دي

كوكوكوكو

كوكوكوكو كو

ركو – The Arabic Coffee Pot

Hey all! It’s Joe again.

 Since I skipped last week’s post on “something from the video,” I figured I better make up for it. I mentioned before that I’ve been on the hunt for a bona fide Arabic ركو (coffee pot), and I think I may have found it.

One review I read about selecting a good ركو warned that an opening that’s too big will not allow the froth inside the pot to form properly. We’ve read a few different posts about styles of Arabic coffee, so wanted to be sure I’d make the coffee correctly. (No guarantees, of course; doesn’t it always come down to operator error? )  The one I’m getting is supposed to come with a bunch of different recipes, so we’ll see which of those taste the “best” — if not the most authentic. How would I know, right?

The reviewer also warned about getting a ركو with too much “volume”; I didn’t fully understand his rationale, but he seemed to be saying that large-volumed pots cause the water to boil unevenly, preventing the coffee from cooking adequately, and thus impacting the quality. (The website is here: http://www.math.tamu.edu/~comech/tools/cezve/) If anyone happens to read what he’s saying differently, I’d love to hear it.

Cards

I was watching the video on Arab culture and noted the card game. I embarked on a search to find what types of card games are popular in the Middle East. I like to play a little pinochle now and then, so it was with great interest that I read of a card game called Tarneeb.

Like Pinochle, Tarneeb is a card game requiring skills in bidding, playing and defending. During bidding, partners try to support one another. A player needs to consider his/her partners’ cards to identify the best trump suit and the right level for the call of the team. Since players cannot make many bids before they run the risk of being too high, each bid needs to convey as much information as possible, both about distribution and high-card count. In responding to a partner’s bid, a player usually passes, jumps in partner’s suit with support and a stronger hand or bids a new suit. 

Tarneeb is played throughout the Middle East, including Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq. It is also played by Arab Immigrants to the
U.S. I found several Tarneeb clubs in the U.S.that appear to be active and thriving. There is even a computer based version of the game available. When I do my pre-deployment training, I will be training in a mock Iraqi city full of Arabic speaking persons playing the role of Iraqis. I hope I have a chance to learn Tarneeb while there.

Other card games played in the Mideast include Whist, and Poker. Another game, similar to Casino is known as Basra. There is also a game called 41 that sounds similar to Hearts.

Arabian Peninusla coffee

On page 120 of the text I became curious about the colorless coffee of the Arabian Peninsula. http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/198802/the.flavors.of.arabia.htm:

In the Arabian Peninsula, coffee is usually a straw-colored brew, made from lightly roasted beans, lavishly perfumed and flavored with crushed, large green cardamom pods, and served unsweetened in miniature handleless cups in a stream of generosity that ends only when the guest’s thirst is unquestionably satisfied. As it is one of the world’s most expensive spices, cardamom’s generous use is intended as an honor.

Cardamon is a spice in the ginger family. It is usually included in Arabic coffee. It must be prepared immediately before use.

Hooka or water pipe

The hooka or water pipe is known by many names in the Arab world. Names like nargeela/nargile/narghile/nargileh, argeela/arghileh, shisha/sheesha, okka, kalyan, or ghelyoon or ghalyan. It consists of four parts, a base, a bowl, a stem, and a hose. The base is filled with some water acting as a filter. Then on the top is a bowl which holds the tobacco and the heat source. The heat Source is usually a red coal is covered with a piece of foil. Then placed on top of the tobacco. From the base a hose is connected. Then the hose connects to a stem or pipe. The tobacco (tobamel or maasselt) hat it used is very different form the American or western style. It is kept wet instead of dried, and is often flavored.

        The hooka is a common site in the Arab world, but is being replaced by western cigarettes. Often they are present in cafes or in shops that specialize in the smoking of hookas. Before the introduction of tobacco from North America the hookas were used for smoking hashish or opium. A true Arab hooka only has a single hose which is shared by a the group of people.

Middle Eastern Dance

Since I enjoy learning and watching various types of dance I decided to learn a little more about middle eastern dancing. In the west it’s commonly referred to as belly dancing but in Arabic its referred to as raqs sharqi or raqs baladi. Alot of the steps and movements are isolated circular motions and uses every muscle group in the body . Sometimes objects are balanced while they’re dancing (the article I read gave examples of baskets, swords and cains) or the dance is done with scarves or veils. There are variations of this dance done in other countries as well such as Turkey and Greece. Interestingly, I originally thought that this was only done by women but historically men have practiced this style of dance, too.

The exact origins are unknown but there are some theories as to where it came from:

It came from dances of early Egypt
It descended from religious dances
It was part of traditional birthing practices in its country of origin
It was spread by the migrating Roma people
Attached are some photos of the costumes worn in dance performances.

There is also a group in Fairbanks that teaches middle eastern dance called Tundra Caravan.

http://tundracaravan.iwarp.com/index.html

Angie

Audrey’s Culture Topic

The Darfur Conflict In Western Sudan

Darfur, a region in
Western Sudan has been ravaged by war factions for the past few years. Many are referring to the violent tribal warfare as ethnic cleansing. The conflict is between the Janjaweed, a militia group recruited from local Baggara tribes, and the non-Baggara people. The Janjaweed have been attacking three particular groups: the Fur, Zaghawa, and Massaleit. Casualties from the conflicts are number around 400,000. In
Darfur the majority of the residents are Muslim, as are the Janjaweed. The conflict that is taking place in the
Darfur has several causes. Many consider the fighting to be between Muslims and Africans. But economic, social, and political agendas have also contributed greatly to the struggle. In 2003, two local rebel groups suggested that the government was favoring Arabs over non-Arabs. These groups were the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM). The SLM is connected to the Fur and Masalit, as well as the Wagi clan of the Zaghawa and the JEM is associated with the
Kobe clan of Zaghawa. The United Nations has been in the center of the conflict trying to resolve it.