Blasphemy of Love

* This is an entry for the June Blog of the Month Competition

PRAYER: noun/BrE/preə(r);word origin: middle english;from old french preire, based on Latin precarius 'obtained by entreaty', from prex, prec-'prayer'.

Synonym: plea ;

Meaning: an earnest wish.

It had been ages since the soil had tasted dew. Time had made the green age into browns. Lips were parched, throats dry, still there was no sign of rain. From where I was sitting, I could see a blazing sun, who himself looked ashamed as he had nothing to hide his nudity, no clouds, still… by the small window of a house nearby, sat a little girl  her face bathed in the sun's gold. While i gazed at her tiny form, the passing wind mocked me. With every blink of her lashes,I trembled, fearing her gaze. She had read me, her blue orbs which held the purity of the oceans, so paradoxical to the scenario around her, reciprocated my gaze with an expression I could not comprehend.

Pushing away the thought I moved towards the mob which was gathered around Moses(A.S), who claimed himself to be the messenger of God. Ever since the drought it has become a routine for the people of my tribe to pray in congregation to the God of Musa for rain ...but the situation had only worsened. The few scattered clouds which had given us hope a day before, vanished; the heat poured down, and the drought intensified.

It was revealed to Moses (A.S) that there was a sinner amongst the tribesmen ,who had disobeyed Allah for more than forty years of his life. Only with the departure of that sinner from the tribe; rain will be granted...

Hearing that, my heart skipped a beat. Wiping the sweat beading my brows, I looked left and then right although my heart gave verdict that the commandment pointed towards me, still I hoped that I won’t be the worst of my tribe in eyes of Allah... I hoped that someone might step forward and confess. When nothing happened, I told myself to remain quiet for the sake of my honor. Then as my gaze wandered to the distance once again, I saw the little girl, now sitting outside the brown adobe, still staring at me with those blue orbs… my heart trembled with guilt and its walls collided with a such force that the echo reverberated in my ears… with blood pulsing through my temple a tear of humiliation leaked from my barren eyes and my heart prostituted in the feet of the God of Moses(A.S) in humility, craving forgiveness. To hide from the eyes awaiting someone to step forward my eyes closed; gazing into the nothingness.

While my pounding  heart was being shredded into pieces. I heard a clatter  of  excitement in the crowd. Had someone stepped forward? Was there greater sinner? Suddenly a drop of something cool  fell on my eyes and slipped by my nose. Then more rain drops followed, which danced on my forehead and soaked into my hair . The rain that showered from the heavens washed away all the sins from my book of hayat. My plea was heard, my earnest longing had been conveyed, I was forgiven.

The little girl ,who now danced in the rain ,once again gazed at that old man it was difficult for her to differentiate it was  his tears or the rain that had drenched the face .

Somewhere near Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh) asked Allah (SWT), "O Allah, you blessed us with rain even though the sinner did not come forward."

And Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, it is for the repentance of that very person that I blessed all of Bani Israel (Children of Israel) with water."

Prophet Musa / Moses (pbuh), wanting to know who this blessed man was, asked, "Show him to me O Allah!"

Allah (SWT) replied, "O Musa, I hid his sins for forty years, do you think that after his repentance I shall expose him?"

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PRAYER: noun/BrE/preə(r);word origin: middle english;from old french preire,based on latin precarius 'obtained by entreaty',from prex,prec-'prayer'.

Synonym: sermon

Meaning :a fixed form of words that you can say when you speak to God

The sleepy owl wriggled its head in the comfort of his wings, as the naughty moonlight tickled him once more. With an irritated sigh and a grumble from his belly the gray eyes opened slowly and tried to focus the scenario afore. The paddy rice field was the same as the previous night, gloomy and serene, but in the corner next to the scarecrow ,was someone crying; crying like there was no tomorrow, as if he had lost the world. Rubbing off the sleep, with a shuffle of his bodice, the owl stretched its wings and flew towards the crybaby.

Ending his flight in grace, he sat onto the scarecrow’s  head  and heard the most weird prayer he had ever heard. The man was crying ,"Oh my Lord, I love you so much that I don't know how to express it in words, this rice I have grown with my utmost earnestness, if you would like I would crop off the  best of grains ,cook them in the best of spices ,by the best of my recipes, endorse it with the best of my lambs and serve it to you in the best of my cutlery ..oh my god that is, all, I can do, I hope to do, my love for you has filled to the brim, and my heart aches. I don't have the words to write you poetry, as I am not a literate enough, and I have not learnt the words of the Lord's prayer as I was careless .The church has shunned me for my awkward praise ...lord put my heart at ease ...at least you should accept my heart.”

For the owl’s stomach grumbled once more he spread his wings and soared in the night's air, the fireflies went past him, so did the scented wind. The bat hooted and the moonlight gleamed as the clouds scattered and stars giggled. A bright light enveloped the man, while the twinkling fireflies danced around him. The night glowed in the darkness, as if angels had descended from the heavens. The owl was amused  and wondered what game the nature was playing. Catching a passing fire fly in its beak 'What's up?' asked he. 'The prayer has been accepted ,the words of this man has been honored by the Lord,’ replied the firefly, as it wriggled out of his touch

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PRAYER: noun/BrE/preə(r);word origin: middle english;from old french preire,based on latin precarius 'obtained by entreaty',from prex,prec-'prayer'.

Synonym: confession

Meaning: a public declaration of faith

The streets of Baghdad echoed with shrieking silence, the dust danced in alley ways with the drunken wind of the dawn. The altar standing in the heart of the city loathed it self for its fate ,as a heart filled to the  brim was lying at its footstep. Slowly the residents of the city ,came out of the big mosque and gathered round the altar. After ages of being rusted off by moulds it was his day ,he had been taken out of the dungeon and set up in the middle of this city next to the majestic gallows, but to his demise it couldn't help but mourn at its fate, for the one tied to the pole next to him was Mansur Hallaj ....a man whose song he had cherished in the darkness of the dungeon ...a man whose face he had longed to see ...a man whose cup was filled with love to such an extent that the wine drank the cup ....and there was no distinction left... In this state of drunkenness had sung the song of Analhaq 'i am haq(God)'.

Soon the stoning (lapidation) started. Mansur, helplessly tied to the gallows, struggled through the shower of pebbles and sang  over his lung his melody of love; but was stoned even more. Blood stained his skin but there was nothing that could mum the mantra of Analhaq . From among the mob of ignorants immerged a soul that was enlightened, a friend of Mansur, one of the very few who  acknowledged his language of love. The gallows welcomed the friend and the altar bowed in his honour. At last someone had come to the sufis aid.But little did they know that the friend was bound by the chains of norms and fiqh, slowly he knelt down to pick up the smallest, the lightest of the stones to throw at his friend.The altar swore by the wood of balut that he was made from, it was the heaviest and the deadliest blow received by Mansur that day ..his struggle stopped ..the shine in his eyes slipped away with the tear that went past his cheek ...it was the end ...the heart that loved died.

A decade later...

The altar, now battered, still stands near the gallows. People might fear coming near it but it is him who fears them more . Time has shown that death of a heart that loves is not possible, as it is said that the cries of Analhaq still reverberate through the streets of Baghdad, dancing with the wind, playing with silence, tickling their hearts..

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Every language, religion, society, tradition gives a new meaning to the word prayer. But in all the traditions and customs prayer has always been a source of hope and mode of catharsis. It is the way back home. It is something that makes us realize this reality of 'Kun fayakoon' (be; it happens). For me, prayer is like a blank piece of paper, which the creator of this universe has placed in each person's heart. It’s up-to us what we do with it ; write a symphony, paint , dance over it  or make an origami plane and fly on it ......

Prayer meaning and origin source:

http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/prayer

- Anam Tehreem (Class of 2018)