The Theocrat: A Modern Arabic Novel (Modern Arabic Literature) (31 page)

Coptic festivals:
Nawruz is the Coptic New Year’s Day festival, celebrated in September; Pentecost is the traditional Christian celebration of the fifty days following the festival of Easter, culminating with Pentecost Sunday which celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit.

Dar al-Hikmah:
the most famous ‘Dar al-Hikmah’ (House of Wisdom) was a library founded by the ‘Abbasid Caliph, al-Ma’mun (d. 217/833), From historical accounts, it would appear that al-Hakim bi-Amr Illah established a similar institution in Cairo.

Fatimid festivals:
the ceremonies involving the opening of the
khalij
(see
Canal
) and the Nile flood were connected with the River Nile and the importance of its annual flood to the economy of the region {that is, before the construction of the Aswan High Dam, which now controls the river’s flow further south). Both are described in detail in Edward Lane’s renowned account.
Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians
(1863).

Kiswa:
a black, brocaded carpet used to cover the Ka’ba in Mecca. Traditionally made in Egypt, it was transported to Mecca as part of the pilgrimage caravan.

Maliki School:
one of the four major ‘schools’ (Ar.
madhhab
) of Islamic law, named after its founder, Malik ibn Anas (d. 179/796).

Mulukhiya:
a favorite Egyptian dish to this day; a thick soup made from a herb usually known in English as ‘Jews’ mallow.’

Smoke Verse:
Qur’an (8:26); “So be on watch for a day on which the heavens will bring a clear smoke.”

Umm ‘Amr’s donkey:
an ancient Arab proverb dating from pre-Islamic times. Umm ‘Amr was a woman with a curse on her, who was expelled from her tribe and rode off on her donkey. The proverb relates that “she never came back, nor did her donkey.” The donkey is therefore a metaphor for any undesirable person or entity who suffers a similar fate,

A little enjoyment, and then they will face a dire punishment
. (16:117)

Every soul tastes death. You will receive your rewards on the Day of Resurrection
. (3:185)

I am the Mount, the inscribed Book, the inhabited House
. (52:4)

O people, a simile is being invoked here, so pay attention. The people to whom you pray in place of God could never create so much as a fly even though they all combined their efforts. If that fly were to rob them of something, they could never retrieve it: seeker and sought are simply too weak. They have not given God his true value; indeed God is powerful and mighty
. (22:73)

Over every knowledgeable person is One who knows
, (12:76)

O you who believe, you are responsible for yourselves. Anyone who goes astray cannot hurt you if you offer him guidance. God is the point of reference for you all. It is He who will inform you of what you are doing
. (5:105)

Remember when you were few in number and oppressed on earth, fearing that others would overwhelm you. God gave you shelter, granted you victory, and provided you with good things, that you might be grateful
. (8: 26)

So wait for a day when the heavens will bring a manifest smoke to cover people. This is a dire punishment
. (44:10)

The imminent is imminent. Only God can disclose it
(53:57)

There is no compulsion in religion
. (2:256)

They schemed and God schemed, and God is the best of schemers
. (3:54)

Those who go astray cannot hurt you if you are rightly guided
. (5:105)

Those who unjustly consume the property of orphans will taste fire in their bellies and will roast in hellfire
. (4:10)

Verily humanity oversteps its reach by thinking itself sufficient
. (96:6)

When they angered us. we took revenge on them
. (43:55)

Whoever associates with God anything, it is as though he has fallen from Heaven and the birds snatch him away, or the wind sweeps him headlong into a place far away
. (22:31)

Ibrahim Abdel Meguid Sinai
of Amber • Distant Train

No Out Sleeps in Alexandria • The Other Time

Yahya Taher Abdullah
The Collar and the Bracelet • The Mountain of Green Tea

Leila Abouzeid
The Last Chapter

Hamdi Abu Golayyel
A Dog with No Tail • Thieves in Retirement

Yusuf Abu Rayya
Wedding Night

Ahmed Alaidy
Being Abbas el Abd

Idris Ali
Dongola • Poor

Radwa Ashour
Granada

Ibrahim Asian
The Heron • Nile Sparrows

Alaa Al Aswany
Chicago • Friendly Fire • The Yacoubian Building

Fadhil al-Azzawi
Cell Block Five • The Last of the Angels

Ali Bader
Papa Sartre

Liana Badr
The Eye of the Mirror

Hala El Badly
A Certain Woman • Muntaha

Salwa Bakr
The Golden Chariot • The Man from Bashmour

The Wiles of Men

Halim Barakat
The Crane

Hoda Barakat
Disciples of Passion • The Tiller of Waters

Mound Barghouti
I Saw Ramallah

Mohamed Berrada
Like a Summer Never to Be Repeated

Mohamed El-Bisatie
Clamor of the Lake

Houses Behind the Trees • Hunger

A Last Glass of Tea • Over the Bridge

Mahmoud Darwish
The Butterfly’s Burden

Tarek Eltayeb
Cities without Palms

Mansoura Ez Eldin
Maryam’s Maze

Ibrahim Farghali
The Smiles of the Saints

Hamdy el-Gazzar
Black Magic

Fathy Ghanem
The Man Who Lost His Shadow

Randa Ghazy
Dreaming of Palestine

Gamal al-Ghitani
Pyramid Texts • The Zafarani Files • Zayni Barakat

Tawfiq al-Hakim
The Essential Tawfiq al-Hakim

Yahya Hakki
The Lump of Umm Hashim

Abdelilah Hamdouchi
Tie Final Bet

Bensalem Himmich
The Polymath • The Theocrat

Taha Hussein
The Days • A Man of Letters • The Sufferers

Sonallah Ibrahim
Cairo: From Edge to Edge • The Committee • Zaat

Yusuf Idris
City of Love and Ashes • The Essential Yusuf Idris

Denys Johnson-Davies
The AUC Press Book of Modern Arabic Literature

In a Fertile Desert: Modern Writing from the United Arab Emirates’

Under the Naked Sky: Short Stories from the Arab World

Said al-Kafrawi
The Hill of Gypsies

Sahar Khalifeh

The End of Spring The Image, the Icon, and the Covenant • The Inheritance

Edwar al-Kharrat
Rama and the Dragon • Stones of Bobello

Betool Khedairi
Absent

Mohammed Khudayyir
Basrayatha

Ibrahim al-Koni
Anubis • Gold Dust • The Seven Veils of Seth

Naguib Mahfouz
Adrift on the Nile • Akhenaten: Dweller in Truth

Arabian Nights and Days • Autumn Quail • Before the Throne • The Beggar

The Beginning and the End • Cairo Modern

The Cairo Trilogy: Palace Walk, Palace of Desire, Sugar Street

Children of the Alley • The Day the Leader Was Killed

The Dreams • Dreams of Departure • Echoes of an Autobiography

The Harafish • The Journey of Ibn Fattouma • Karnak Café

Khan al-Khalili • Khufu’s Wisdom • Life’s Wisdom • Midaq Alley

The Mirage • Miramar • Mirrors • Morning and Evening Talk

Naguib Mahfouz at Sidi Gaber • Respected Sir • Rhadopis of Nubia

The Search • The Seventh Heaven • Thebes at War

The Thief and the Dogs • The Time and the Place

Voices from the Other World • Wedding Song

Mohamed Makhzangi
Memories of a Meltdown

Alia Mamdouh
The Loved Ones • Naphtalene

Selim Matar
The Woman of the Flask

Ibrahim al-Mazini
Ten Again

Yousef Al-Mohaimeed
Wolves of the Crescent Moon

Ahlam Mosteghanemi
Chaos of the Senses • Memory in the Flesh

Shakir Mustafa
Contemporary Iraqi Fiction: An Anthology

Mohamed Mustagab
Tales from Dayrut

Buthaina Al Nasiri
Final Night

Ibrahim Nasrallah
Inside the Night

Haggag Hassan Oddoul
Nights of Musk

Mohamed Mansi Qandil
Moon over Samarqand

Abd al-Hakim Qasim
Rites of Assent

Somaya Ramadan
Leaves of Narcissus

Lenin El-Ramly
In Plain Arabic

Mekkawi Said
Cairo Swan Song

Ghada Samman
The Night of the First Billion

Mahdi Issa al-Saqr
East Winds. West Winds

Rafik Schami
Damascus Nights • The Dark Side of Love

Khairy Shalaby
The Hashish Waiter’ The Lodging House

Miral al-Tahawy
Blue Aubergine • Gazelle Tracks • The Tent

Bahan Tahar
As Doha Said • Love in Exile

Fuad al-Takarli
The Long Way Back

Zakaria Tamer
The Hedgehog

MM. Tawfik
Murder in the Tower of Happiness

Mahmoud Al-Wardani
Heads Ripe for Plucking

Latifa al-Zayyat
The Open Door