The street philosopher and the holy fool : a Syrian journey / Marius Kociejowski.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kociejowski, Marius.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kociejowski, Marius--Travel--Syria.

Kociejowski, Marius.

Travel.

Syria--Description and travel.

Syria.

Physical Description:

262 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Stroud : Sutton, 2004.

Summary:

The ancient land of Syria remains for many a sinister and forbidding destination, only recently opening up to foreign travellers. Marius Kociejowski presents a completely fresh and unexpected face to this mysterious country. Based on his own visits to Syria, The Street Philosopher and the Holy Fool describes a journey which brings him into contact with a host of colourful and unusual characters, each of whom is an outsider of sorts.

Abed, the 'street philosopher', and Sulayman, the 'holy fool', are two of these intriguing people. Their friendship is emblematic of the polarities of Syrian daily existence - an ancient culture threatened by economic and political pressures. Sulayman is an alchemist and healer who moves along a path of asceticism strange even to his fellow Muslims. Yet his 'holy folly' has historical precedent in the figure of St Simeon Stylites who stood on a pillar for thirty-seven years. Abed, while he is desirous of Sulayman's otherworldliness, also yearns for a world where, in his own words, he can 'cut the watermelon and live normally'. Other characters include Myrna, a Christian stigmatic, 'the prince of fools' Abu al-Talib, who speaks in parables and the jokester Sufi saint of Damascus, Shaykh Ahmad al-Harun. In their company, Marius Kociejowski walks the narrow line between reason and folly.

Touching on madness and melancholia, Sufism, alchemy, love and marriage and the search for one's soulmate, The Street Philosopher and the Holy Fool is an extraordinary book. Rich with humour and insight, it glows with the delights of the anexpected. It is beautifully written and provides a memorable account of the deeper purposes of travel: to absorb the spirit of a place. to meet people from a different sphere of life and to return changed.

Contents:

1 A Full Moon Over Antioch 3

2 To Aleppo Gone 22

3 The Street Philosopher & the Holy Fool 38

4 The Amazing Adventures of Abu Walid 57

5 The Green Turban 75

6 Man with a Yellow Face 93

7 A Desert Father 108

8 The Prince of Fools 131

9 Our Lady of Soufanieh 150

10 Sulayman's Dream 166

11 The Shaft 191

12 Time of the Aubergine 210

13 A Likeness of Angels 226

14 Fool's Gold 244.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [261]-262).

ISBN:

0750938064

OCLC:

56463401