Tribute To Origami

Folded &and  Photgraphed by JM Uvais

Today is the 101^st birth anniversary of Origami Grandmaster Akira Yoshizawa who passed away on his 94^th Birthday in 2005. This quiet gentleman who revived the ancient Japanese art of paper folding or origami (which is a household name now) was also a Cultural Ambassador of Japan. In 1983 Yoshizawa was honoured with Japan’s Order of The Rising Sun. Google, in the company's grand style  has  also paid homage to this grand master by creating  an origami doodle on its home page.

My friend Uvais first mentioned this national treasure of Japan to me while commenting on a (sparrow I think) origami folded by  this lifelong friend. As it has been my habit, I looked up more about this Japanese grandmaster and I was awestruck by the realistic and diverse folding Yoshizawa has created in his lifelong journey in paper folding!.

Paper folding or origami which is more precise and sweet, is known to reduce tension and is an excellent way to relax at the end of the day. We cannot deny that happiness lies in noticing and giving importance to small details of our daily life. Bread may feed our body while art, poetry and our hobbies like paper folding, photography, writing and various other forms of light activities feed our souls with much needed energy.

The German paper and paper products company PWA, to commemorate the company’s 100^th anniversary, has donated a fountain to the town of Mannheim. Bronze sculptures modeled like origami works, Papyrus Brunnen or papyrus wells or perhaps paper wells is an excellent way for a paper manufacturing company to honour itself with this creative nod to the gentle art of origami.

The above photo and origami hummingbird was folded and photographed and very kindly dedicated to me by my brother Mohamed Uvais who shares my fascination with hummingbirds. My supplication to our Creator is that Uvais sees a real live ‘ flying jewel ‘ . Brother, thank you for honoring me with this folding and also thank you for permission to use this photograph here.  May you live long, may you go on folding, writing and photo shooting for many many years to come.  I am your proud fan. Here is a link to Uvais's works;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmustudio/6853363159/in/set-72157613982548899/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmustudio/6838236512/in/photostream

Thank You!

Tribute To Religions, Customs & Law

Just over 222 years ago (Oh! how Dhiraagu would love to sell me this ‘reethi number’! ) 15 men and 13 women landed on one of the remotest of all islands scattered in the vast Pacific Ocean.. Pitcairn Island is still unheard of by many, though the island got much attention during the birth of this new century as one of the very first islands to witness the sunrise of January 1^st 2000.

When these 15 men and 13 women landed on this uninhabited island they were thousands of miles from the ‘long hands of the law’ to restrict or guide them, some were Christians and many belonged to no major religion known to the West. You see, out of the 15 men, 9 were mutineers from Cap’n Bligh’s ill fated ship the HMS Bounty. They had set Captain Bligh and as many men as a tiny life boat could carry,adrift into the vast Pacific Ocean! The other 19 were Polynesians- 6 men and 13 women.

What happens when  such a diverse group of people are  taken from their natural elements and let loose  to fend for themselves on a remote location is what writers have long imagined. From Robinson Crusoe to The Swiss Family Robinson to The Lord of the Flies.

Let us see what happened to these 28 ‘fully independent’ individuals!  Let me quote from Simon Andrea’s book,  The Secrets of Love & and Lust: “ Each mutineer would have a house, a woman and a plot of land. Other than that there would be no laws and no artificial constraints  on pleasures. Everyone was to do what came naturally, and they did. The men argued, fought and killed each other and the women were divided among the ever dwindling number of victors”

“First the Bounty’s blacksmith, Jack Williams stole a woman from her Polynesian lover Tararo in an effort to replace his own wife, who had fallen from a cliff while collecting birds’ eggs. In response, the  Polynesian men made two retaliatory raids resulting the deaths of two of their own. The second time they killed four English mutineers & and captured their four wives. Then they started to argue as to who would take charge of one of the women, Teraura. Teimua, who believed it should be him, began wooing her with songs. But Minarii, who disagreed, picked up a musket and blew out Teimua’s brains”

“Of the two remaining Polynesian men, one had his head split with an axe when he tried to climb into bed with the widow of the murdered Brown, and the other was hunted down and shot by a rage-fuelled Edward Young. The four remaining mutineers divided the women more or less equally between them, until the irksome Quital lost his drinking companion McKoy (who had thrown himself from a cliff) and decided to stir up trouble by stealing Young’s second consort, Mauatua. Young decided to act first and invited Quintal over for a drink, piled him with liquor, then felled him with an axe”

“ Of the 15 men who had landed on the island, only two would live to see the new century (20^th) In the 10 years they had been there, 12 men had been murdered, one had committed suicide, and one was being buried by the last remaining survivor, John Adams. The last sailor, still aged only 36, looked around with supreme disconsolation at the chaos which had been wrought by both his party and the Polynesians; his only comfort the 10 women who had made it unscathed through the bloodshed and the twenty children who had come into his care.”

What a story! That is why they say fact is stranger than fiction!

Thank You!

Tribute To Breadfruit

According to  the most prolific of all  Maldivian  writers Hussain Salahuddin (14-4-1881 to 20-9 1948)  it was our Sultan  Muhammad Ghiyasuddin, from the Dhiyamigilee Dynasty, popularly known as Haji Bandaarain  who ascended the throne in 1766 AD, ( ten years before Washington became the first US president! ) who  introduced “Ban’bukeyo”- breadfruit  to the country! (so we were introduced to this meal of a fruit couple of decades earlier to Cap'n Bligh's historic trip! )

Ever since I read of the fateful voyage of HMS Bounty and her strong willed Captain William Bligh, the sight of Breadfruit trees and the fruit itself evokes memories of this historic journey.  William Bligh was Captain of the English ship 'Bounty' sent to Tahiti in December, 1787. The mission was to collect and transport breadfruit trees to the West Indies as a new source of cheap, nutritious food for slaves in the West Indian English colonies.  

The HMS Bounty arrived at Tahiti in October 1788, and it took another 5 months to collect and prepare 1,000 breadfruit trees for the trip.  There was a special cabin re designed at the stern of the Bounty ,as a  nursery to accommodate the breadfruit saplings ( reducing living room for the sailors which is also one reason they were jittery )

The Bounty left Tahiti on April 5, 1789 and on April 28 ( Just a few weeks prior to The French Revolution) the most famous mutiny in history took place. The main reason was that while at Tahiti the young sailors had got used to the idyllic island life and many had native girlfriends! The constant rationing of food, cramped living space and the simple living of the Tahitian life and the harsh living conditions of the average sailor were behind the mutiny.

 After being set adrift in a small boat, Captain Bligh made it back to England in 1791 and a year later, after the court marshal acquitted him, he was back in Tahiti and this time was successful in transporting the trees to the West Indies where the trees thrived mightily ever since.  However, the ultimate goal of the mission was unsuccessful - the slaves refused to eat the unfamiliar food.  It took some time, but the breadfruit eventually became a staple food in the West Indies.

Thank You! ( this article is v lovingly  dedicated to my son Maaz who loves deep fried breadfruit chips ;-)

Political Surfers

If you take a few minutes to closely  observe these graceful athletes as they surf,  you will surely be mesmerized by their agility, strength, stamina and also by their uncanny ability to foresee  and assess the oncoming waves. Instantly you realise that surfing is not for the fainthearted! Their grace can only be matched by the rubbery and the friendly neighbourhood Spiderman who lives next to nobody in particular! To repeatedly do what they do, they must also have the guts of MMA fighters! (Mixed- Martial Arts which is an excuse to bloody the graceful fighting methods of the Orient)

A keen observer will notice that the only way a seasoned surfer keeps standing on the crest of a rolling mighty wave is to always keep his or her balance and be in the ‘sweet spot’ of the wave. Normal waves do not keep on rolling forever, so the surfer must predict when to jump on to the ‘next big thing’!

As an avid listener and observer of our society I have enough reasons to believe that there is a completely new breed of surfers in our society. Slippery yes, but their knees are not supple anymore like those of our friendly superhero. Jumpy yes, but not like the powerful hurdlers of the track and field.  Both are very good at riding a wave when its crest is foaming with power and easily leaving this 'no good wave' to another feisty one which has just started to gather momentum! Let me call these pro surfers of the dry land, the Political Surfer!

Some political surfers also ride on the wave of popularity! His or her own popularity or of the party this politician may happen to belong! Though our multi party system is just a toddler, we have ‘seasoned politicians’! This may seem absurd, but we are quick learners and among us there are super smart individuals. They seem to have ultra sensitive antennae that inform them when it is the ideal time to jump from this party to another.  Perhaps huge figures are calculated as they 'surf' and the politically naive are baffled when they are treated as celebrity of the new party! Without missing a beat they start attacking the party they belonged to, just hours ago! Their former political party is what launched them onto this new wave and that is history! All focus is on the next thundering new wave! What can I call these shameless people who  flaunt their Rolexes and BMWs other than, Political Surfers?

Thank You!

Freedom Seekers

Photo; Sameer- Mohamed Ali Mosque Cairo

In the collective memories of people there are unforgettable days and in the lives of us humans there are undeniable moments outside of time. 

Almost an year ago we all sat down in front of TVs to follow what is happening in Egypt, the epicenter of the Arab world. We saw on television Egyptian youth flock to Tahrir Square; hundreds and then thousands, then tens of thousands of Egypt's youth of all ages. It was a scene of wonderful discipline, commitment and progress. Police surrounded the young processions who were chanting for the most basic of human wants; freedom and a dignified life.

 Suddenly Tahrir Square turned into a mass of flame and fire and smoke and bright lights. Strange small cars hurtling in the heart of youth gatherings, tear gas, water cannon and armored vehicles and bullet shot towards young people in a random criminal acts.

Egypt’s fertile land on both sides of the mighty Nile was once called the bread basket of the Roman Empire. This fertility and the strategic location, at the meeting points of three mighty continents has been more of a burden than a blessing to the Egyptian people. Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony and much later Napoleon, all invaded Egypt and then the British and then successions of corrupt kings ruled till 1952. The last three presidents were more close to monarchs than presidents and finally  the Egyptian people yearned to breathe a breath of freedom and fresh air!

As they say, you don’t bring revolutions, they come!

 Since 1927 Time magazines editors have been choosing a Person of the Year. A person or persons who have been most influential to us, good or ill throughout the year, whose news have affected us. Last year the editors of this esteemed magazine chose  'The Protester" as the Person of the Year 2011.

Thank You!

Give Something To Get Something!

“A Sprat to Catch a Mackerel” is a famous English idiom which is very much self explanatory to people like us in the Maldives, who have been using small bait to catch a larger fish. We have often used a tiny fish to catch a big fish, a big fish to catch a large one and a large bait to hopefully get a HUGE one!

The mackerel above is resting on a small pile of rehi or Silver Sprat I bought to be baked in the oven or to be deep fried ( this is the hazardous method to our health, but the most delicious, Oh! God, why can’t the doctors and our taste buds ever EVAH agree!) Since time immemorial our forefathers have used a variety of baitfish to catch the many varieties of Tuna in our waters.  By far the Silver Sprat above is the favourite. For some reason they are abundant in our South in the North East Monsoon and found in our Eastern atolls in the South West Monsoon.

The Blue Sprat or hondeli is also in our Bait National Team, while Fusiliers or muguran also help in achieving the goals with the help of Anchovies or miyaren. The pretty but hardy Blue Damselfish that  often help us out in distress are the nilamehi.  In the end it all boils to one thing; soup? No! here it all boils to the fact that you have to sacrifice something to get something else. We all hope that the bait be smaller and the catch, much larger!

Maldives being a tiny country with minimal resources to educate our students here at home, had to send our sons and daughters abroad in the hope of a better future for them and for the country as well. Mothers had to bear unimaginable emotional burdens to see their daughters and sons leave for countries they have hardly heard of! Students themselves had to learn a foreign language before they can join the mainstream!

Craftsmen had to be apprentices to skilled workers and toil for long hours before they can hope to acquire the skills of their masters. Sportsmen have worked for ten to fifteen years just to get qualified for an Olympic team, and that is just the lucky One Percent or a fraction of that one percent! There is no method so far in which we can just learn a trade with the touch of a magic wand. Practice, practice and more practice and huge sacrifices are the key, and to see a world champion other factors have to fall in line too!

Thank You!

Tribute To A Dead Tree

This tree  was between Velaanaage Office Building and our Parliament House ( now only her mutilated stump remains). This could be the busiest area in Male’ with more than 60% of all civil servants of Male’ working in this vicinity. About 5000 school children and parents pass this way daily, to and from schools.

This dead tree caught my attention by complete surprise. I had rested under this beautiful tree in her Prime. I had often looked forward to the red traffic light, as an excuse to stop my motorcycle under her shade.  I also found out that just like me, other motorists had the same intention too! They signaled to the right long before they reached the bend ahead of them! This could mean one thing only; they too wanted to rest in her shade and enjoy the soft rattle  when she fragmented the wind to a million soft breezes  with her leaves. Sadly many of us forgot to turn off our growling engines and listen and feel this cool micro oasis &  get the most of her therapy offered to anyone who cared to stop by voluntarily or was forced by the commanding red light!

As I stopped often, I had wondered about the name of this rare tree, the fruit looked like irregular salami sticks and from about 40 feet below, her fruit appeared to me almost the same colour too. I had meant to ask someone the name of this huge tree or what we called her strange fruit. But before I could do what I should have, the tree just appeared to be dead, unceremoniously!

Is the worth of a tree, by her mass, or is it the girth? She was average! Is a tree's worth, the number of her fruits multiplied by the  retail price in the supermarkets or wholesale price at the market? Her fruits were not edible nor collected as ornamental novelties! Or her vibrant flowers? Did not notice any on her! Perhaps deserves more respect, if a politician declared her as The National Tree? That honour went to a colleague!

Dead trees do not make it to the 2 O’clock news or get mentioned in the obituary sections of Time magazine or Haveeru newspaper, trees do not  cry out or take one last deep breath as they die. A dead tree receives no eulogy celebrating her robust life or for pleasing us for generations! A dead tree does not even get to lie in tree-cemeteries! When trees die of natural causes, they do not crash with a thundering noise. They die silently, and are missed only by a grateful few. For trees die standing and alone with minimum fuss and often to the delight of those who need the wood! Quite contrary to  most of us,  a tree is worth more to some people; dead !

Thank You!