Winds

Prose lll
We allow ourselves to be blown by the winds
The average Europe- whether democrat or
communist, manual worker or intellectual-
seemed to know only one positive faith: the
worship of material progress,
 Lao-tse

• new faith of the heart was needed, a burning

surrender to values which tolerated no Ifs and
Buts: but whence to gain such faith ...
• swung along around the pendulum of hearts
content and discontent.
 Dorian…..European bias

• in the spring of 1922, departure For Jerusalem

• it was the wrong notion of the Europeans that

Islam was no more than romantic by-path of man's
history,
• with the only two faiths which the West considers
fit to be taken seriously: Christianity and Judaism
 Journey..
• The journey continues, partly , by ship and partly
by train, feels the hospitality Bedouins during
journey.
• Finds a fascinating landscape of desert.
• Arabian hospitality overcomes all poverty':
• The wind dilemma but the contentment of the
inhabitants
• "God says, Revile nоt destiny, for, behold – I am
destiny ..." ,
 How ,by the simple
explanation, the Hajji,
had opened to the
writer the first door of
Islam
 Impressive scene outside uncle Dorians’
house
• Hajji and his savants- meals-manners-worship
• contentment
• Question
Question Answer
• 'Do you really believe that • Did Не not create both, soul
God expects you to show and Body , together? And
Him your respect by this being so, should man
repeated bowing and not ргаy with his body as
kneeling and prostration? well as with his soul.
Might it not ....: better only
to look into oneself and to
pray to Him in the stillness
of one’s? Why all these
movements of your body?
• We turn toward the Kaaba, God's holy temple
in Месса, knowing that the faces of all
Muslims, wherever they may be, are turned to
it in prayer, and that we are like one body,
with Him as the centre of our thoughts.
• First we stand upright and recite from the Holy
Quran, remembering that it is His Word given
to man that he may be upright and steadfast
in life. Then we say, "God is the Greatest,"
reminding ourselves that no one deserves to
be worshipped but Him;
• and bow down deep because we honour Him

above all, and praise His power and glory.

• Thereafter, we prostrate ourselves on our

foreheads because we feel that we are but

dust and nothingness before Him , and that Не

is our Creator and Sustainer on high.

• Then we lift our faces from the ground and remain
sitting, praying that Не may forgive us our sins and
bestow His grace upon us, and guide us aright. and
give us health and sustenance. Then we again
prostrate ourselves on the ground and touch the dust
with our foreheads before the might and 'the glory of
the one.
• After that, we remain sitting and pray that Не bless
the Prophet Muhammad who brought Нis message to
us, just as Не blessed the earlier Prophets; and that
Не bless us as well, and as those who follow the right
guidance; and we ask Him to give us of the good of
this world and of the good of the world to wore.
• In the end we turn our heads to the right and

to the left, saying, "Реасе and the grace of

God be upon" - and thus greeting who аге

righteous, wherever they may be.

 The old man

The old man with simple explanation had

opened to me the first door of Islam
 Zionism
How did the writer
conceive strong objection
to Zionism?
 Zionism

• Zionists were not inclined to give much

consideration to the fact of Arab majority; nor
did they seem to attribute any real importance
to the Arabs' opposition to Zionism.
• Arabs who, according to them, were no more
than ·mass of backward people.
• Arab cause would at least give rise to some sort
of uneasiness on the part of the Zionist
leadership.
 Zionism

• Political support for the creation and

development of Jewish homeland in Israel.
• And international movement specially for the
establishment of Jewish national and religious
community in Palestine and later for the
support of modern Israel.
 Zionism

In the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which

promised the Jews 'national home in Palestine,
• The whole idea of Jewish settlement in
Palestine was artificial
• as in 1916 the British had promised as price [ог
his help against Turks, ап independent Arab
state which was to comprise all countries
between the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian
Gulf. But promise was broken.
 Dr. Chaim Weizmann

Dr. Chaim Weizmann, the undisputed leader of the Zionist

movement.
 Dr. Chaim
Asad Dr. Chaim
• What about Arabs’ • We expect they won't Ье in
majority? majority after few years.‘
• Does the moral aspect of • We аге doing no more than
the question ever bother taking back what we have
you? Ьееn wrongly deprived of.
• Arabs could, with equal • Arabs had only conquered
justification, demand Spain Spain;
for themselves
• the Hebrews also came as
conquerors Palestine.
• The Arabs who settled in
Syria and Palestine after ---------
their conqueror in the
seventh century were - no
minority. answer
• They intermingled with the
inhabitants
Resuming career as journalist
 Journalism

• decided to break into real journalism.

• began to write articles on Palestine, hoping

that sooner or later some lucky twist of
fortune would enable me to travel all over the
Near East.