د اختر سلام

د وړوکي اختر په ورځ باندي ټولو ته ډیر ډیر سلام

 
الله پاک د ټولو مسلمانانوعبادتونه قبول کړي - امين

د اختر اُمبارک شئ

تور خان

Pashto Dictionary

A convenient reference, from the digital archives at the American Library. This comes from the compilation by Henry Walter Bellew, 1834-1892 scanned by Google Books. Open source and available in other formats. Click here.

In the expanded form, it has an English-Pashto search facility.

Tor_Khan تور خان

Discordia

Discordia was the Latin incarnation of Eris, the goddess of strife in the Greek mythological traditions and right now, there are many examples of strife around us. 

Without going into a 'depressingly' exhaustive list of trouble spots around the world, the wars in Libya and Syria serve to illustrate a key point. Both countries have resistance movements that stem from this year's Arab Spring and in both places the opposition threaten an older political tradition of despotic rule by singular individuals. Libya and Syria, had so far, manage to avoid general expectations around accountability at home, because, like the remaining Arab world, they are not democratic. The truth is that however Muammar Gaddafi and Bashar Al Assad choose to view this, the resistance is a form of People Power and undoubtedly both will recognise the significance of this. 

It is this combination of People Power and Discordia which bring me right to India, the world's largest democracy.

Of late the international media is beginning to pay more and more interest to news threads around Anna Hazare, an ex-military political activist in his 70s, who seems to have mobilised the masses and troubled the Indian authorities with his calls for accountability. The government's reaction to Hazare and his followers suggests that feathers indeed have been ruffled and the crack down is drawing both domestic and international comment. Arrested, and on hunger strike, Anna Hazare, seems to have challenged the established belief that India might not also be as draconian as the rest.

People Power and Discordia, live here too.

Riot and Reason

No doubt over the ensuing weeks there will considerable debate over the reasons that seemingly opportunist riots broke out on the streets of the UK and why failures in policing allowed anarchy and fear to follow.

Some will look to blame the encrypted messaging such as that offered by Blackberry and the organisational power of Twitter. These mediums were, of course, pointed to the reason that the Arab Spring became such a formidable force of people power. Applauded by the UK then, but rather ironic when the tables are turned.

There has, alas, been loss of life as a result the riots, and in no way do I think that any of this should be trivialised. There has been damage to property and livelihoods, to individuals and communities. As always they are foremost and our thoughts are with them.

This article by Max Hastings speaks candidly. Much of it says what many people already think but find difficult to express to regular media channels. It is worth a read for a key opinion at least.

More interestingly, I am interested in public standards generally. Surely that is what separates civil society from outright despair and anarchy. Consider two opinions on standards. The first comes from the article and is also quoted on the BBC:

"Liberal opinion holds they are victims, because society has failed to provide them with opportunities to develop their potential. Most of us would say this is nonsense. Rather, they are victims of a perverted social ethos, which elevates personal freedom to an absolute, and denies the underclass the discipline — tough love — which alone might enable some of its members to escape from the swamp of dependency in which they live."

A second opinion by David Wilson, Professor of Criminology at Birmingham City University and a former prison governor considers the culture of entitlement in the UK. See here.

"It's not just about the underclass - it's about politicians, it's about bankers, it's about footballers. It's not just about a particular class, it permeates all levels of society. When we see politicians claiming for flat-screen TVs and getting jailed for fiddling their expenses, it's clear that young people of all classes aren't being given appropriate leadership."

Quite.

London's Burning

A man is shot dead by the police under mysterious circumstances. The full story remains unclear and in the general summer mood of discontent, a community is outraged.

It starts with a peaceful  vigil - family seeking answers, but in the days following, rioters and looters, black, white, male and female described as "sheer criminals" by Theresa May MP seem to have taken a hold of London. Voices that protested the original shooting and the fatality are muted by the chilling images of anarchy.

Dear Politicians, Police, and Leaders of London, this is social breakdown with intrinsic political, economic and moral foundations. This is the society that you nurture and preside over - the society that we are all part of. The rioters are your children; the anarchists of your own flesh. Who is to blame, but society itself?

Two Wolves

Cherokee Wisdom

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one that you feed."

Ramadan Prayers

رمضان كريم