Suspended somwhere between.
The medium of poetry is amazing; you can say so much in so few words. I am appealing to the poet in you to enjoy this book. Whatever page you open, there is wisdom in it. I just opened page 70, and here are a few beautiful words that poets would love, particularly those aspiring to nurture goodwill.
Like my Sunni ancestors…
I am on a journey
with others walking alongside
some taking the help of imams and ayatollahs
others the Law of Moses or love of Jesus…
I see those who find the divine in the Ganges
or on top of Himalayas
The find the divine in the noble doings of Lord Ram
yet others find other paths
I wish them all Godspeed..
For all of them are part of the nations and tribes
that the Quran tells me I must love
So that I can love my God.
This poem and many such poems in the book will appeal to just about every one, it is a human proclivity to seek harmony, when you sense it, and it's like heaven. The theme I have noticed consistently is that of co-existence, aka Pluralism; an attitude of building cohesive societies.
Pluralism is learning to respect and appreciate the God given uniqueness of each one of the Seven billion of us, when we do that, conflicts fade and solutions emerge. When Jesus says, "follow me", Krishna says to "surrender to me" and Allah says "submit to my will" the message is same; become like me, me who is beyond boundaries, to me all belongs and I make no distinction between you and the other soul. The best among you is one who cares for my creation. A review of the book is also at: http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/dr-akbar-ahmeds-poetry-suspended.html
Dr. Ahmed yearns for unity, harmony and co-existence in this book for the world in general but grounded in the Subcontinent. Years ago, I wrote, we are proud of our heritage - a multi-faith, multi-cultural, multi-regional and multi-linguistic society, where we have come to accept and respect every which way people have lived their lives. For over 5000 years, India has been a beacon of pluralism - it has embraced Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Baha'i and Zoroastrianism to include in the array of the indigenous religions; Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism and several native traditions.
Quench your thirst and get the book from: https://secure.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=305
Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a speaker, thinker, writer and a frequent guest on Hannity show and nationally syndicated Radio shows and Dallas TV, Radio and Print Media. Over 1000 articles have been published on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, India and cohesive societies. His work is encapsulated in 27 blogs, four websites and several forums indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/. Two of his books are poised to be released this fall on Pluralism and Islam.
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