ISSUE NO.

25
november 2, 2010
Published
E V E RY f i r s t
t u e s d ay o f
the Month

IN THIS
ISSUE

articles

On Omani
Cultural
Journalism

2
poetry

Poems by
Samaa Issa

Art lives longer …

By: Safaa Al-Nabhani

“Life is short, Art is long”,

the very famous quotation of
Hippocrates genuinely reflects
reality, as one is remembered
and fully appreciated through
his works. During my visit to
England, I visited Stratford
City, where Shakespeare’s
birthplace is set, and Shake-
speare’s works, I did not truly
appreciate his valuable works
until I became closer to it, and
what I learned about him in the
two – day visit in England is not
to be compared to what I did
during my four – year study.
This remarkable care
of this great poet is a way of
valuing him as a person and
his contribution to enrich-
visiting England make visit-
ing these two Shakespearean
attractions one of their top
priorities where they are taken
back to the Elizabethan Era
that witnessed Shakespeare’s
life. Most importantly, for
people studying English
Literature who must have a big
dose of Shakespeare, this can
help them a great deal, as they
tion grows in them.
Now the question is
why do not we start such an
initiation for our literati?
Why do not we move from the
traditional way of learning
about a man of letters –through
books- into a more educational
way similar to what is done
for Shakespeare? Our literati
have produced works that are
ani, Abdullah Al-Khalili and
many others whose devotion
to the welfare of their nation is
5
never denied. fiction
Our literati’s literary works
are as great as Shakespeare’s.
So their least award is to have
Zuwaina
their productions exhibited
and preserved by all means. It
is the governments responsi-
bilities, among of which is our

speare’s Globe, where his plays
are played. Although I studied
English Literature for four
years, during which I was ex-
posed to a great deal of Shake-
ing English Literature as well
as working on preserving his
priceless artistic patrimony.
What is more, it is a means
of improving tourism; people
see Shakespeare’s possessions,
walk in his house, imagine him
sitting by the fireplace writing
a play or a poem, and attending
a play of his; thus, his apprecia-
weighed in gold, so it is a big
pity we do not give them the
deserved consideration. Such
great people are Noor A’ddin
A’salimi, Abu Muslim Al-Bahl-
8
government, to have this issue
as one of their chief concerns
so that our literati live through
their unforgettable works.
2 ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, November 2, 2010
On Omani Cultural
Printed and
published by
Muscat Press &
Publishing House
Journalism
EDITOR IN CHIEF By: Saleh Al-Aamri
Essa bin Translated by: Ahlam Al-
Mohammed Mamari
Al Zedjali
These lines cannot discuss
ceo what critical challenges, which
Ahmed Essa all people now know, the cultur-
Al Zedjali al journalism is encountering.
Yet they try to recall and present
some images and fragments of
Editorial this journalism and its reality
Supervision that stimulate contemplation…
Safaa Al-Nabhani
In spite of the obstacles that
formal and informal Omani
Editors journalism faces, I am thinking
Thomas Roche here of censorship within its
Bader Al Jahwari well-known triangle of taboos
Salim Al-Kindi (i.e. politics, sex and religion),
Dalal Al-Attabi the cumbersome bureaucracy,
Azza Al-Kindi the shallow amount of back-
Muna Al-Battashi ground knowledge and the
Sara Al-Sheyadi way in which the editing and
publishing is handled here,
Text Selection we cannot claim that Omani
Badr Al-Jahwary cultural journalism has not con-
tributed to the local discussion
Design By on critical and creative writing.
Mahmoud Al Hosni We read for most of those who
have written distinctive stories
and poetry or critical reviews
Public and staid articles in the local
Relations cultural newspapers before they
Umayma Al Harthi published their books inside
Ahmed Al Hadhrami and outside Oman. Abdullah
Al-Ryami is probably the only
poet whom we have not read a
Special poem for in the local journal-
Thanks to ism and the only storywriter for
whom we haven’t read a story is
Ahmed Al-Zubaidi.
Society for Fine Arts
at Sultan Qaboos Generally yet imprecisely the
University role of the cultural editor has
changed from being only a pas-
Photography Society sive collector of texts who re-
at Sultan Qaboos ceives them through the news-
University paper mail, selects the wanted
and casts away the unwanted
work and lines them up within
the cultural pages of a paper,
into an active person who has
close relations with the writers,
literati and scholars. He, the edi-
tor, has become a journalist who
is bonded strongly with cultural
issues at all different levels. So,
he is no more a watcher of the
cultural world but he becomes
a doer who plays an important
role in the cultural mobility. It’s
true though that there were one
or two exceptions of those edi-
tors who were alert and active
at that time as “Mohamad Al-
Yhyai”. However, the real change
in the personality of the editor
and their journalistic sensitivity
and mentality has become more
obvious – cultural section edi-
tors are now more closely linked
and interested in the cultural
matters than before.
Now the cultural editor, who
is often themselves a poet or a
writer, realizes the importance
of what friendship with writers
can do; away from being only a
journalist who treats the crea-
tive minds with meaningless
arrogance from his office and
avoids any contact with them!
Yet, as a consequence of the
dramatic changes, this pointless
pride, which used to picture the
writers walking if not crawl-
ing to the newspaper editor or
the subeditor’s offices has been
done away with.
Due to that narrow-minded
and over censored editing, we
lost the chance to read many
creative texts or listen to the ab-
sent voice of the writer and their
experiences through journalism.
Furthermore, many promising
writers have been transformed
(under the misguided instruc-
tions that have nothing to do
with creative writing) into just
writers of desperate notions!
The supposed
warmth between
cultural
journalism
and its writers
is a mutual
responsibility
within the
circle of respect
between them
Yet, here I proclaim that the
situation has improved few
steps after the existence of the
well-rounded cultural editor
who is a creativity maker him-
self beside his journalistic work.
This has resulted in an initial
and basic understanding of the
literatis’ creative experiences
and getting what they say in
their texts and notions.
omani_beacon@hotmail.com
Here, and just for laugh, I
remember a reporter, working
in a visual journalism, wanted
to interview Sa’di Yusuf (1) and
went to Abdelwahaab Al-Byati(2)
shaking his hand thinking he
was Sa’di! Also, another one,
working in audio journalism,
had been laughed at by his
friend’s joke. He wanted to in-
terview three Arab writers from
different nationalities after his
friend gave him their real phone
numbers without telling him
that these writers had passed
away few months ago! Just
imagine Yusuf Idrees(3) family’s
reaction when the journalist
called to interview their dead
Yusuf!
Alas when these journalistic
images are repeated again and
again and when the literati
discover that the interviewer
knows nothing about him let
alone reading any of his works.
Telling the guest how pretty
Muscat and Salalah are just to
steal his admirations without
letting him speak about his
creative and artistic experience.
From here, comes the impor-
tance of the editing specializa-
tions where we can enrich and
deepen the interviews.
Here I mention examples,
just to prove not to exclude, of
some editors who work hard and
ceaselessly: Huda Al-Jahwari,
a novelist, in Shurufat sup-
plement at Oman newspaper,
Hassan Al-Matrooshi, a poet,
in Ashria’h supplement at Al-
Watan newspaper, Suliman Al-
TI M ES O F O M A N
Mamari, a storywriter, at Omani
Radio and Badriya Al-Wihabi, a
poet, at Al-Zamn newspaper.
The supposed warmth be-
tween cultural journalism and
its writers is a mutual responsi-
bility within the circle of respect
between them. Also, giving the
promised writers the chance,
through publishing, and bridg-
ing the gaps between censor-
ing and administrating ensure
live stories that can establish a
journalism that is aware of its
present as well as the future.
Thus, a person can remember,
at least, that one day a news-
paper has added something
impressive to his knowledge
or answered his questions and
found a place in the readers’
hearts or under the umbrella
of the journalistic history that
publishes for publishing sake
not for a personal one…
Cultural journalism in Oman,
the one we read, watch and hear,
has been plagued with mentally
careless and dormant people
who never consider disap-
pointing young and promising
writers. They either work in
irrational haste and achieve
nothing other than publishing
their newspaper on time or
work slowly disregarding time
and ignoring the great ideas and
experiences that knock on their
doors…
Furthermore, there is a
rigidity that some editors have
attached themselves to, or lain
heavily upon, which plainly
TI M ES O F O M A N ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, november 2, 2010 3

omani_beacon@hotmail.com

underestimates the reality of
cultural journalism. They have
never moved a muscle nor have
thrown a stone in the stagnant
lake. Accordingly, the desire to
improve which they often talk
about, if they really mean it,
is blocked by unclean air and
constant abatement affected by
the changes in the world. Among
politics and conservatism, gain
and promotion, assumption and
ignorance, the scenery fades and
the plain reality of instability
and deterioration in journalism
appears!
some “great pens” which were
writing here and there at that
time despite the hurdles, nor
can we forget those poetic and
narrative texts, which were rare,
that blossomed at that stage
and emerged among the pile
of newspaper pages, nor the
footprints of some distinctive
editors who were brought by
summer clouds at that time!
Of course there were some
editors who dealt honestly with
written texts; yet, the short time
their relationship with the
literati and writers was moody
and pre-conditioned. Yet, some
of them have spoiled this rela-
tion, which they should have
defended, to please some offices
and advisory departments and
accepted everything without
being active in suggesting or
improving the situation. Cau-
tiously thinking that if they did,
they may threaten their lives,
considering especially that they
are strangers in this land. In this,
they are absolutely right since
they are responsible and born
to avoid any new ideas without
mentioning their constant fear
of modern writers and their
bold texts that may irritate their
weary heads!
A local newspaper had
published, in issue no.1071,
Monday, June 9,1996, an article
by me entitled “Transparency is
worthier” where I wrote literally
some fragments uttered by two
children, a seven-year old boy
and five-year old girl. Sentence
thirteen was deleted, it reads:
“Donkeys, the signal deceived
them.” Clearly an omission
like this has nothing to do with
Omani publication law but
with a narrow editing and an
irrational censoring. Guinness
World Records would be ex-
tremely delighted to record the
newest number in “the censor’s

Kindly we say that a news-

paper which nests on strict
censorship only, would not
rescue any journalism, but on
the contrary, it would trouble
and squeeze it! This newspaper
could never nurture birds that
can fly on its sky nor would reli-
ability and highness be written
on its gate of arts, literature and
knowledge.
Moreover, administrative
competence without a percep-
tive journalistic adds nothing to
journalism but the observance
of rules, the monitoring the
inputs and outputs and applying
those ancient financial regula-
tions. Also, the repetitive and
worthless contributions of some
“simple” employees, however
great they seem, adds nothing
but underestimating the reader
in organizations found on, sup-
posedly, enlightenment, declara-
tion and diversity. Alone the
soul of business cannot push the
ship of writing and journalism
to questions and adventurous
seas because there is no such
boundary between journalism
and business or creativity and
brokerage!
Yet, I claim that we should
take advantage of the dark as
well as the bright, the dry roots
as well as the lush ones, because
negativity and the nonsense of a
field can be a main motivator to
reach positivity and nobility and
lead to the creativity. By this, we
will not disappoint the coming
generations.
A person would never forget
Alone the soul of
business cannot
push the ship
of writing and
journalism to
questions and
adventurous
seas...
they spent and the unreason-
able dismissals practiced by the
dominant administration had
taken those sensitive elite edi-
tors away from their journalistic
work into the administrative or
academic one or to a total loneli-
ness instead of attracting them!
Accordingly, those who were
interested in journalism feared
that the cultural newspapers
or the supplements would turn
out to be a widely decorative yet
aimless pages that are published
to indicate a concern for arts
and literature without really ex-
ploring issues. Should it be filled
with texts and studies without
reflecting the editor’s creativity,
freedom, transparency, diversity
and journalistic naughtiness?!
On an editing basis, there Image courtesy of:
were some foreign editors who Khalid Al-Busaidi
made a difference even though
4 ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, November 2, 2010
ascendancy over the youngest
writer!”
Interestingly, the little
speaker had uttered those words
commenting on a reckless group
of teens who were driving their
sports car too fast, when the traf-
fic signal turned suddenly red
in one of Muscat roundabouts,
the brakes sounding loudly. So,
it was not the wild imagination
of the child; it was just a com-
ment upon what had happened
in front of him! It was not, as the
editor who deleted the sen-
tence may think, directed to a
newspaper, a scientist, a country
or to a universe! It was not a
presentation of Abi Hayan Al-
Twhidi (4) in his “God Signals”
or of Al’Hu’taya’s (5) mule which
he died on, nor it was Amr Ibn
Al-Aas’s (6) tricks or Mu’away’s
(7)
or Rommel’s (8). Yet, it was,
doubtlessly, the ill-thinking of
the “smart” editor who cleverly
anticipated that it may insult
his newspaper or his boss or
himself!
On April 7, 2009 I published
the poem “Rain...Rain...Rain”
in one of the local literary sup-
plements and stanza 16 was
omitted which included: “The
teenager says: the sky mastur-
bates too and due to this the
earth is fertilized!” The editor
thankfully had called to provoke
me politely to omit this part
complaining it was the censor’s
wish; however, surprisingly on
publishing it, he deleted five
other words from stanza 13
including the comma!
On December 2008, one of
the supplements had apologized
for not publishing my poem “the
nihilistic chat” for no reason
than mentioning the two words
“bar” and “testicle” unless I
cross them out. However, I
realized that the poem would be
meaningless if I deleted them,
so I opined not to publish it at all
preferring to post it in one of the
Arab websites.
What I would like to point
at here is that the same local
cultural journalism, which is-
TI M ES O F O M A N
omani_beacon@hotmail.com
sues three supplements weekly,
not to mention the daily cultural
pages, may publish a text that
other newspapers may not allow
or approve because the latter
has a stricter censor than the
former one! The word “wine” or
“a bar” may not be published in
one literary supplement, where-
as it can find a place in another
one. This can happen because
the context in which these
words may occur is innocent
and hides no offence or seduc-
tion to experience or try these
things. It is exactly like using the
word “war” or “demon” in any
normal context and language.
The same language that says,
dreams, opens up, proclaims and
thinks especially in the poetic,
narrative and prose texts and
never designates itself a judge
or a cleric. They are words that
have nothing to do with the mor-
als but with art because they are
nourished and protected by art
not by a scandal, insult, crime or
disgrace…
In a sequence like this, we
will bemoan the Arabic heritage,
ignore world poetry, narration,
the heritage which no literary
supplement, now and here, can
approach its bold phrases and
texts in a newspaper that prints
its issues in the 21st century.
Footnotes:
(1) A great Islamic writer
and linguist.
(2) A famous Arab poet who
is known for his affronting
poetry. He required before
his death to be put on a mule
and carried around the city
until he died.
(3) & (4) & (5) Known personali-
ties throughout history for
their tricks and deception.
(6) & (7) modern Arab poets.
(8) An Egyptian famous sto-
rywriter who passed away Image courtesy of:
in 1990. Arwa Al-Rejaibi
TI M ES O F O M A N
omani_beacon@hotmail.com
Zuwaina
By: Sameer Al-Riami
Translated by: Math-
la Al-Wahaibi
It’s a lovely winter day with
a cloudy sky. The cold breeze
touches the soul with a soft
shudder. You are leaning on the
wall of your house, under the
old banyan tree, looking out at
the wide horizon. Like bunnies,
your grandchildren are playing
around you. At that very mo-
ment, the storm of memories
awakens your mind. Like no
other day, the sea is raging; but
it’s raging in a way that you’re
familiar with.
Zuwaina’s eyes are conspicu-
ous; full of tender shyness. See
how she walks timidly among
her friends. She hides her face
from men. Her sight doesn’t
go farther than her foothold.
Zuwaina, Nasser’s daughter, is
the one I’m going to marry.
Her dowry was three pen-
nies and mandoos al mishtra
(1). She was taken to him on
a camel, its green howdah (2)
decorated inside and outside.
Men and women went holding
lamps accompanying her. They
wandered in the dark dusty
villages, singing and drum-
ming in happiness all the way.
Zuwaina, covered with a green
shawl and the Holy Quran on
her head, walked shyly among
the crowds until she reached her
boudoir. The inside of the tent
was decorated with colourful
textures and many small mir-
rors. The women sang joyfully
upon leaving the boudoir: “May
Allah bless the groom and his
family” (3).
That night, she was the most
beautiful of brides and I was the
happiest groom. She woke up
every day to the cock-a-doodle-
doo at dawn, said the Morning
Prayer and ground coffee beans
in the mehlas (4), beating it in
a certain rhythm. On a low fire,
she added cardamon and rose
water to the morning coffee.
She adored him. He was tall,
strong with sharp eyes that
blazed with harmony and ambi-
tion. His love trapped her. When
she was between his arms, she
dissolved like the sugar in tea.
That night, she cried in
her bower as if she had lost a
beloved one; she clung to his
dishdasha, begging him not to
leave her.
- Honey, please don’t leave.
I’m afraid that you won’t come
back again.
- I will come back with lots of
money, Zuwaina. Wait for me
dear.
She stood still with the other
women, bidding him farewell.
No one heard her crying there.
She covered her tears under her
black scarf. She suppressed her
feelings, waved to him with one
hand and left the other touch-
ing her belly in which he had
planted his seed before he left.
The storm is getting stronger
and you are fighting death, cling-
ing to the sail, pulling the ropes.
Your voice breaks the sound of
the storm. The sail is torn into
pieces. The waves are higher
than mountains. The sambooq
(5) is singing sarcastically “The
Sea Slave is calling you”. The
crying of your baby girl and
Zuwaina’s screams cross your
mind. Then, the wind thrusts
you into the abyss.
The villagers of that foreign
village gathered around him.
Click clicking their tongues in
sorrow, “It’s God’s will that he
survived the Sea Slave! How did
he survive? Lucky for him, he
has been given a new life.”
He opened his eyes slowly;
their murmurs and the splash-
ing of the sea’s waves awakened
him. He couldn’t move; his head
and neck were the only parts
of his body that were above the
sand.
Her body is buried; the mum-
bles of a religious man asked
the crowd to bid this lady who
has just given birth farewell and
pray for her soul to rest in peace.
When you are back, your
child walks towards you with
her first steps. She gets closer to
you shyly while they encour-
age her to go on, “Your father,
your father” they say again.
She stumbles, falls down and
immediately leans on her small
hands to get up again and walks
towards you. Tears slip from
your eyes and wet your beard. In
her hug, you feel Zuwaina, your
bride, your lover. You name her
Maryam.
The house is full of children;
Salim, Hamad, Hessah, Awaash,
and Maryam as well. Whenever
the shasha (6) ship gets closer
to the beach, they stand in a line
to receive it. They give a hand in
carrying what the sea has given.
- Life is tough Mooza, I have
to travel again.
- Travel and bring me back a
golden necklace this time.
When you are back, your
children are old, their mother is
rejecting you. It ends in divorce.
- You have always lived in her
memory, you never loved me.
- There is no woman like Zu-
waina, I will never forget her.
After that, you travelled a lot,
got married many times and
had many children. You visited
ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, november 2, 2010 5
many ports and met new people, used to crush beans
yet her memory refused to fade. And you look up at the 5) A mythical monster in the
Zuwaina’s memory - a bird that horizon, recalling the old days. Arabian Gulf that drowns
sings to the heart. You recall her With the splashing of the waves, ships
memories day and night. You you sip at your memories. The 6) A traditional Omani boat
live in the details of her memory. sea is rough today, unusually; made of palm branches
You narrate her story to your it’s rough in the way you are 7) This line is a traditional
grandchildren. You tell the story familiar with. opener for many Omani tra-
many times. It’s their grand- ditional poems and songs
mother “Zuwaina” who died in 8) This is a well-known tra-
the spring of her life. ditional Omani song
Footnotes: 9) The skin dye used to
- Tell us the story of grandma 1) A box filled with gifts for decorate the bride’s hands
Zuwaina, Grandpa. the bride and groom’s feet the night
- She was beautiful, like your 2) A seat for riding a camel before a traditional Omani
mother Maryam. She was shy; 3) A traditional wedding wedding.
she walked tenderly hiding her song
face from men. Her sight never 4) A brass or wooden bowl
went further than her foothold.
And among all women, Zuwaina
bint Nasser is the one I loved.”
Here you are, wearing your
cotton cloak, your ancient
blanket covering your body.
The body that was used to the
toughness of the sea is now too
old to bear the toughness of
the weather. Years have curved
wrinkles in your face. Your
beautiful voice echoes with:
Yo dan dan.. Yo dan dani (7)
My new dress, oh how lovely
it is
My new dress is good since
it’s new
But becomes ugly when it gets
old (8)
Here they are around you
like a bracelet around your
wrist. They sit under the shade
of the huge banyan tree that
Zuwaina planted with her hands
decorated in henna (9). You still
remember the detailed patterns
of her hennaed hands. They are
around you enjoying your sto-
ries about the sea and Zuwaina.
Their tinny bodies shaking from
the cold weather, they sneeze
and laugh. Image courtesy of:
Khadija Al-Moqbali
- Grandpa.. Grandpa..
tell us your story about the sea.
6 ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, November 2, 2010 TI M ES O F O M A N

omani_beacon@hotmail.com

Poems by Samaa Issa

Translated by Nasser Al-Taee

1
12
8
The small white love tree
Bent its branches Oh tree, what have I brought you
Like the dry river of a pale old The tree said: today
woman “When I threw you onto earth The bucket is empty as you can
Whose lovers journeyed to their I knew you’d come back to me see,
death For I am your womb and eternal On earth, there is not a drop of
And she became a wasteland tomb.” water

2
*** All the springs have dried up,

The tree that grew in the [re-
mote] desert
Was nothing but your bones.
It drank from your blood
Brought by a bird
From places far away
9
The creator of the infinite
The breast feeder of our hearts
The annihilation.
Death renews itself
Like a yellow leaf.
And night has cast its dark
curtains
On all the suns and the moons.
The breast and the tree leaves
dried up
There is no longer a sign of life.
But, do you really have this

3
*** vested interest in life? How?

You pour the dew of dawn
On the grass
Like tears of a woman
Weeping her dead child.
10
And you are dried up like death
for many ages.
A woman is accompanied by a Ah tree, do you still have hope?
tree Do you still hope that life will
The tree is her guide to the holy come to you again?

4
***
I left my father to die in silence
Near a remote water spring
There, beneath the burning
bush
Where the ashes of our ancient
God hide
The flower used to grow
Amidst small ruins
That smile to the house! And
he wills
lake And how can I bring you this
The tree is guarded by darkness lost hope?
When the earth sweeps us to the Here darkness saturates all
infinite faces of life
We slide into its remote space And the rivers exert their venge-
And like a cloud that vanishes ance through annihilation
In a dark sky We who exited time and space,
Without rain how can we enter them again,
We used to roam How can we be full of greenery,
In search of our ancient dwell- splendor,
ings. And ecstasy?
You no longer have a water

11
His memories in peace. spring to drink from

5
And I no longer have a womb to
I lie now beneath a dead papaya embrace me
I die tree with an old cat who refused So that it may throw me to the
And you grow old to abandon the tree alien world of existence.
My son Where she used to grow under My father instructed me to
The homeland remains its shades while she grew before water the tree
A virgin tree her magical eyes…. For she won’t be alive again un-
Renewing its seasons The clock on the wall, the dead less it is green
Year after year papaya tree, the cat when I And I’ll quench your thirst today

6
gazed at her eyes and she was
lying like a woman; her eternal
The night belongs to the ba bird white eyes, and her glowing
And she leads me to the tree green pupil
Beneath its shades Swims in that mysterious haze
Lies my mother After she sneaked inside it in
*** deep silence, the soul of the dead
through my entrance to the time
and place
So I may not enter a place like
others,
I’ll enter into the life of a leaf
and I’ll grow from beneath the
earth

7
tree: Fertilizer to the dead queen
The small papaya tree, which To the thirsty seeds of love and
Each dawn no longer tenders its shade to with love. Image courtesy of:
The tree shakes its breasts stray cats, and to the alien sleepy Abdulla Al-Hamdi
The dead birds fall from its body. wind.
*** ***
TI M ES O F O M A N
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Ethos:
Between Philosophy and Religion
By: Saleh Al Balushi
Translated by Salim
Al Kindi
Ethics are the sum of values
and principles one believes in
and dictate how one deals with
others. Through ethics, a life of
happiness, stability and psycho-
logical contentment is ensured.
Some claim that it is also the
discipline which investigates
the state of happiness or how
life should be.
The Iranian philosopher
Murtadha Al-Madhari believes
that giving an accurate defini-
tion of ethics is not possible
unless we take into account
general concepts and the abso-
lute. Hence, Al-Madhari shows
the manner of how one should
live as a human being, and in
happiness as a human being.
If we consider the issue from
this individual perspective, we
will be faced with an incorrect
definition, because the indi-
vidual decides what he wants
for himself only.
We come across someone
talking about the good deed he
has done for another man, for
instance, helping the poor or
relieving a distressed person.
It will be said to him, “You have
earned a reward from Allah,” or
“You have earned rewards only
Allah knows.”
Hence, a question arises
about the nature of human
moral actions. Do they stem
from a mental side as some phi-
losophers say or does it have re-
ligious premises on the grounds
of reward and punishment as
prescribed in the traditional
religious systems.
Plato considers ethos from
his social theory and says that
what holds timeless values are
three: justice, beauty and truth.
He attributed the three values to
one thing and that is goodness.
It is the only thing that should
be pursued and worked for and
it is the essence of ethics.
He also believes, as does
his mentor Socrates, that the
knowledge of good is enough to
perform it, as it is unreasonable
and illogical to reach an aware-
ness of good and not perform
it. The reason behind not
implementing it is sheer igno-
rance. Thus, in order to fight the
corruption of ethics, it is neces-
sary to eliminate ignorance
firsthand. Plato believes that if a
man becomes a philosopher, he
will surely be a good man. It is
impossible to be a philosopher
without good ethics, for evil
comes from ignorance. Person-
ally, I think this view is too ideal,
as evil and bad ethics do not
always stem from ignorance, but
also from baser instincts that
drive men.
Aristotle accepted ethics to
be the passage to happiness.
According to his theory, men
seek happiness, not goodness as
Plato says. Therefore, Aristotle
believes that virtues and ethics
are mediums through which
one reaches the goal sought
after, which is happiness. The
goal is what we wish for and
seek, while the medium is what
we think with and undertake.
Actions related to the medium
should be optional, hence the
care for virtues is a matter as-
sociated with the medium.
Aristotle opposes his teacher
Plato in that knowledge and
science are sufficient to secure
virtues. He rather believes that
the self needs to undergo educa-
tion to develop the essence of
virtue. This is what happens
through the persistent practice
of being in the golden mean.
Immanuel Kant disagrees
with Aristotle in that the mind
is the only force that drives man
in the quest to reach happiness.
Kant believes that instinct is
likely to be that force, and I
think it is close to the concept of
hypocrisy in Islam. We often see
someone doing a good deed not
because of an ethical force as
Aristotle says, but because of an
instinctive concept to reach an-
other goal unforeseen by others.
Accordingly, Kant believes that
human desires vary from one
person to another. Therefore, he
suggested that to build the eth-
ics, there should be a reliance on
a supreme principle that is not
derived from experience; that
is the liberation of the ethics
from desire in order to be able
to know whether the behavior
is moral or not. Kant rejected
Aristotle’s principle that hap-
piness is the supreme good and
modified this into a new concept
that corresponds to his own
philosophy and vision in ethics.
He defined it saying that it is
good is unconditioned by desire
or particular interest.
The English philosopher Ber-
trand Russell says about Kant’s
doctrine that, “Ethics in Kant’s
doctrine include a strict Calvin-
ist probity. That is because it is
clear that the only important
thing in these ethics is the fact
that our behavior should stem
from correct principles. This
opinion states that our enjoy-
ment about anything, which we
are obliged to do according to
the ethics, becomes an impedi-
ment to the moral behavior. In
view of that, if I like my neigh-
bour and I feel that I should
assist him in times of need, this
behavior, according to Kant,
will not have the same ethical
value as to when I do a similar
good behavior to a hated person.
Thereby, the whole matter turns
to a set of unpleasant burdens,
which we act upon, not because
of desire, but because of follow-
ing a principle. The doer will be
the good will that is by itself the
unconditioned good.”
The Moroccan intellectual Dr.
Taha Abdul Rahman thinks that
Kant based his secularization
rationalization of ethics through
a religious principle. In other
words, he separated them from
religion and examined them
through analysis and theoriza-
tion. He gave the example of the
“solidarity” concept, which is
originally the principle of “char-
ity” in Christianity and “com-
passion” in Islam. He theorized
it to become solidarity.
The Iraqi researcher Mr.
Ahmed Al Qabbanji criticized
the philosophical theory of eth-
ics because, as he explained, it
excludes everything related to
God and religion in its stand-
ards. God in the Islamic thought
is the center of faith, ethics and
all behaviors of the believer.
Ahmed raised the question
of how could we abandon the
concept of divinity and pleasing
ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, november 2, 2010
the Lord in our ethical behavior
when the prophet PBUH con-
fined the objective of his mis-
sion and religion to refine the
human behavior. The prophet
PBUH said, “I was but sent to
complete the good morals.”
Man between good and evil
Discussing ethics leads to the
discussion of good and evil. How
do we know that this deed or
action is good or evil?
The philosophers took two
different well-known opinions.
The first believes that every
man has an instinctual force
that enables him to distinguish
between good and evil, and
between right and wrong. This
force enables him to judge the
act whether it is good or evil.
The force is sometimes called
“perception” or “intuition” and
its prominent theorists are
Carlyle, Fichte and Kant.
The other party denied the
instinct concept and said that
our knowledge of good and evil
is based on experience and that
it develops through the progress
of time and the prosperity of
thought. Experience shows
us whether this action is good
or evil. This is known as the
experimentalist or evolutionist
doctrine because they said that
human morals evolve through
generations and time. Ethics
in the twentieth century, for
instance, are different from the
ones in the middle ages let alone
the first centuries prior to the
evolution of man into civiliza-
tion. The most prominent figure
of this doctrine is the philoso-
pher Herbert Spencer.
In the Islamic religious
system, the source of knowledge
7
to good and evil is the text. I
mean by text, the Holy Quran
and Hadith. The latter means
the reports of statements of
prophet Mohammed PBUH.
The Ashaera (1), who represent
the majority of Muslims, believe
that its only through Sharia
(2) we determine what is good
and what is evil, while the mind
merely confirms the judgment
of Sharia. This contradicts
with the sayings of Al Mutazela
(3) who said that the Sharia
confirms the judgments made
by the brain.
Footnotes:
1) Ashaera: Muslim scholars
belonging to Al Asharia, an
Islamic school founded by
Abu Al Hasan Al Ashari. Its
main doctrine emphasizes
the use of Sharia as a sole
legislator, taking the Holy
Quran and Hadith as funda-
mental sources.
2) Sharia: Islamic law
3) Al Mutazela: The recluse
ones, an Islamic school that
departs from the tradition-
al norms of Islam and used
the “mind” as a legislator. In
other words, they believe
that the human mind can
tell the difference between
right or wrong without
referring to any text.
8 ISSUE NO. 25 | tuesday, November 2, 2010
The Massacres in
Zanzibar…
Forgotten Shades
of Memory
By: Haitham Su-
laiman Al-Busaidi
Translated by: Assim
Al Saqri
The Jewish people have not
forgotten the acts of slaughter
and massacre against their
ancestors during the Nazi’s
reign, nor have the Armenians
forgotten that the Turkish
took lives and whatever rights
their ancestors hoped for in the
beginnings of the twentieth cen-
tury. Both Jews and Armenians
presented their complaints and
demands in several forms such
as depicting details of their trag-
edies in novels and films that
appeal their causes. Their pro-
tests have extended to issuing
international warrants and con-
ducting investigations to reveal
those acts of tyranny. Groups
and lobbyists still exhaust all
legal capabilities to assert laws
and international principles
that preserve the sanctity of hu-
man life. And this is a battle not
always lightly won, despite hard
evidence, Turkey still does not
officially recognise the events
that transpired in Armenia as
genocide.
We are not here to dispute
former claims nor question
those historical events, but
rather we wish to emphasise
Painting by: another wound on the soul of
Shareef Al-Mahrooqi humanity, one which festers
deep in our history, tormenting
the Arabic mind and soul. My
omani_beacon@hotmail.com
concern here is the massacres
of Zanzibar, where thousands of
innocent people were extermi-
nated in cold blood, and where
Arab dignity was utterly ruined.
Honourable souls were chained
by subjugation and despotism,
pure souls were subjected to
intense humiliation and women
suffered the taste of anguish and
misery.
These were horrible acts that
will not fade from the minds
of free souls. Was the blood of
our fathers spilled for noth-
ing? Have rights been buried
within historical records? Has
the evidence been forsaken in
the libraries shrouded in dust?
Or has bloodshed against Arab
people become the assumed
undisputed fact of all time?
Our memories are full of
pieces of evidence and vivid
images of those horrible events
in far off East Africa, images
of bleeding bodies and falling
castles. We will not forget the
voices that bitterly spoke about
the atrocity and the horrifying
acts of genocide. We will never
forget the price that innocent
souls have paid, the price of
those whose blood spilled
around the Zanzibar fields
marking the words of sacrifice.
Does all that blood deserve to be
disregarded?
The massacres were an
inevitable result of conspiracy
and treason, a game of colonisa-
tion at a time when revolutions
and independence movements
were commonplace. Just as An-
TI M ES O F O M A N
dalusia and Palestine were lost,
so was Zanzibar when it was
ravished from the Arabs after
being the centre of a flourishing
culture and democracy, and a
opportune destination for the
poor coming from Yemen and
the Gulf.
It may be said that it is a thing
of the past, but is there a single
answer for questions as: How
can rights be denied because
of the lapse of time? Can a free
man give up his blood because
of time? Does the honourable
man accept this tarnish on his
dignity? Of course not. As we
are responsible before a just
God and a witnessing history,
we must re-establish the case
and indoctrinate the suffering
of our fathers in real actions,
through legal complaints and
international warrants in courts
until we get re-establish the
rights of Zanzibar’s victims.
We must mightily strive to
get those super powers and
the successors of arrogance to
confess to the crimes and mas-
sacres committed there. Those
murderers and criminals must
be chased relentlessly, and if
they are dead, the case must be
resurrected from their graves.
A wake-up call must be given
to transform the case into art
and writings since the demand
to speak out about it have faded
away when all Arabs, particu-
larly in Oman and Yemen, gave
up their desire for revenge.