Tag: fiction

Sufism in Cinema: The Case of Bab’Aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul — by Ridade Öztürk

Apr 16, 2022

This article presents a discussion of key aspects of knowledge in Sufism through an analysis of the film Bab’Aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul (Nacer Khemir, 2005). The dominant Western perspective argues for the necessity of a rational, objective form of knowledge which is based on logical argument and precepts. This perspective, however, fails to recognize the alternative form of experiential knowledge which lies at the heart of the Sufi tradition. In this respect, Bab’Aziz is an important film because its content and its narrative technique is an expression of certain knowledge, knowledge without doubt, and kashf, unveiling or discovery. This article compares knowledge in Sufism (Tasawwuf) to the concept of knowledge in the Western tradition, and argues for a reconsideration of the meaning of philosophy as understood by the Ancient Greeks. Originally published in Volume 23, Issue 1 of Film-Philosophy journal and republished here via CC-SA-4.0.

When the Light Dawned by Somnath Zutshi — A Book Excerpt from The Greatest Kashmiri Short Stories Ever Told (trans. Neerja Mattoo, Aleph, 2022)

We are proud to present Somnath Zutshi’s short story “When the Light Dawned” excerpted from The Greatest Kashmiri Short Stories Ever Told (Aleph, 2022) selected and translated by Neerja Mattoo. Inverse Journal has independently curated a visual bibliography of links relevant to the book and its author. Special thanks to Majid Maqbool for sourcing this excerpt.

MUSIC FEATURE: A Song by Kristina Jacobsen Inspired by Ather Zia’s Poem “i. will. cross.” + Exclusive Interview with the Two Professors

In a rare and unprecedented instance, two professors from two different cultures meet at the crossroads of verse and song to produce a creative collaboration around the themes of Indigeneity, marginality, war, colonization, and erasure. The result is an adaptation of Professor Ather Zia’s poem “i. will. cross.” into a song composed and performed by Professor Kristina Jacobsen. Along with Kristina Jacobsen’s song recording (mixed and mastered by Drake Hardin), we reproduce Ather Zia’s poem as well as a recorded recitation by the poet (republished from Sapiens via CC BY-ND 4.0), followed by an exclusive Q&A with the two professors and a list of relevant links for those interested in their extensive work.

Examining Gentrification: A New Internal Colonialism — An Academic Essay by M. Moosa Khan

In this academic essay, M. Moosa Khan assesses a considerable amount of academic writing and research on gentrification to evaluate it as a type of “new internal colonialism.” In doing so, the young scholar expands the definitions and specifications of gentrification that are conventionally western-centric to bring about a view of gentrification that is closely tied to processes of colonization. The result of such academic inquiries provides a more dynamic understanding of gentrification that expands beyond western urban spaces and cityscapes, and well into the “Global South.”

On the Appropriation and Depoliticisation of the Pheran — by A. Makbool and Neelofar Gooroo

This piece by A. Makbool and Neelofar Gooroo raises important and relevant questions about what it means to wear the Kashmiri Pheran, lending particular attention to the ways in which attempts have been made at diluting the Pheran’s political symbolism over the years. Published in our Acquaintance section dedicated to opinions and perspectives, Makbool and Gooroo’s extensive think piece provides ample critique and perspective on cultural appropriation, depoliticisation, and a historical background on how the Kashmiri Pheran became more prominent among Indian wearers, many of whom remain wilfully ignorant about its political and cultural significance for Kashmiris.

Sanjeev Sethi’s Bleb: Deceivingly Focussed Yet Ruefully Discreet — A Review by Dr. Sapna Dogra

Dr. Sapna Dogra reviews Sanjeev Sethi’s concise book of poems “Bleb” (Hybriddreich, 2021). In her short review, the academic excavates important aspects of the poet’s recent work, while discussing the significance of this “Wee Book of Wee Poems” through a critical engagement that is both concise and precise.

Mother leans against history — Two Poems by Zeeshan Ali

Zeeshan Ali presents two poems that process a history of war, one from the perspective of a “mother’s longing for freedom” and another, a two-part prose poem that expands from multiple voices, some discernible, and others not as much. The perspectives and the voices that emerge from both poems can be seen as diametrically opposite to one another, while maintaining a common setting that emphasizes the tension and contrast to be found within these verses by the young poet.

2021: An Inverse Year in Review

With 2021 just behind us, we look back at all the pieces published during the past year in ascending chronological order on an animated timeline. Here are all the pieces published by our contributors and from Creative Commons sources that shaped Inverse Journal’s 2021. You can click on any piece that you may have missed or that you may want to revisit and it will open in a new browser tab. With this timeline, we say hello to a new year.

Books and Songs That Carried Us Through 2021 — by Inverse Contributors

As we come to the end of this difficult year and enter the new one, Inverse Journal has asked its contributors to participate in a collective piece where they share—with our readers and their fellow contributors—the one book and/or the one song that stayed with them throughout the year or during a considerable part of it. Below are entries from some of our contributors who responded to the online survey and shared their picks for this 2021 as it passes by. In a human world where catastrophe and devastation also wreak their havoc on meaning-making and signification, one imagines that books and songs are imbued with a restorative and restructuring power—with both operating within and outside of human time. It with this thought in mind that Inverse Journal presents a limited selection of such books and songs curated and picked by some of the same contributors who make this space possible.

Making Sense of the Word: Kashmir — Four Poems by Danyal Hassan

Danyal Hassan presents four poems that—in trying to make sense of the word ‘Kashmir’—develop a manifesto-in-verse against the nauseating exotica and orientalist framing that Kashmir is subjected to while a history of war, subjugation, and dispossession remains conveniently ignored—and at the expense of such exoticization and orientalization.

Martha Argerich: Third piano concerto & “Suites” Romeo and Juliet, Prokofiev — ARTE Concert

Star Argentine pianist Martha Argerich performs Prokofiev’s third piano concerto with the French Radio Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of conductor Myung-Whun Chung. Also on the programme is Prokofiev’s Ballet Suites from Romeo and Juliet.

Literariness and Media Art: Theoretical Framing — by Claudia Benthien, Jordis Lau, Maraike M. Marxsen

Abstract: Literariness suggests a certain quality within texts that “makes of a given work a work of literature”. The various literary devices that establish correspondences within literature are also prominent within language-based media art. Formalism was guided by the question of which attributes define literary or poetic language. Linguists as well as literary theorists have claimed that the idea of literariness as a poetic ‘deviation’ from standard language is relevant to both written and spoken texts —which is important when examining audiovisual artworks and their oral performances of literary aesthetics. Self-referentiality is also central to the theory of performativity. The ambiguity of poetic signs is grounded in the often indecisive tendency towards figural or literal signification. Irina Rajewsky fosters an understanding of intermediality “as a category for the concrete analysis of texts or other kinds of media products”. For the purpose of investigations into ‘medial configurations,’ she proposes three subcategories: ‘medial transposition,’ ‘media combination,’ and ‘intermedial references.’ Republished from The Literariness of Media Art (Routledge, 2018) by Claudia Benthien, Jordis Lau, Maraike M. Marxsen. Via CC BY-NC-ND.

Monologue on the Sea — A Poem by Olayioye Paul Bamidele

Olayioye Paul Bamidele presents a poem “about the need for black people to unite irrespective of tribe, culture or tradition.” According to its poet, the poem’s inspiration comes from “the story of slaves being mistreated by their traders, as narrated to me by my father.” The young writer and Mass Communications student adds, “These slaves were mistreated at home and betrayed abroad. Later these people became the freedom fighters of Africa and the founders of the Négritude movements across the globe.”

Wandering Through the Alleys and Making Sense of Central and West Asian Remnants in Srinagar — by Subhajit Pal

Relying on research and interview material gathered during his stay in Srinagar, Subhajit Pal discusses Kashmir’s historical connection to Central and West Asia as it manifests in contemporary times.

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