Ayin: Inner Mongolian Tribe

Photo © Ayin-All Rights Reserved
Ayin is a Mongolian self-taught freelance photographer, and is a member of the Photographer Association in China, and was awarded the honor of being one of "The Ten Best Photographers in Inner Mongolia", along with numerous photographic awards in China. In 2007, he was one of the four award recipients of the 4th Annual All Roads Film Festival Photography by the National Geographic.

His decision to document the disappearing Mongolian heritage led to an odyssey to record the live stories of the last Mongolian tribe in Inner Mongolia.

This is ethno-photography at its best.

America's New Dawn

Courtesy The Huffington Post
My personal sense of elation in seeing Mr Obama being sworn is as 44th President of the United States today is nothing short of extraordinary. As a naturalized United States citizen, the past 8 years had dimmed my pride in being an American, but today, it surges back again...more powerful than it ever was.

I can't wait to travel abroad to, as I frequently do, fly back home through Newark airport. For the first time in these 8 years, instead of averting my eyes, I will pause and look up with pride at the photograph of the US President which hangs on the wall of the arrival hall. Just a small respectful gesture perhaps, but to me, one of considerable and profound significance. It will remind me of the emotion I felt when I entered the United States for the first time.

May Mr Obama be all what he promises to be.

Excerpted from Mr Obama's Inaugural Speech:

"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth.

And because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.

To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict or blame their society's ills on the West, know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy."

My Show Off: Qutb Uddin Dargah

Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
A friend (who'll remain anonymous for the time being) sent me various photographs of Indian Muslims, part of a project he's working on. Feeling pangs of envy at the quality and style of his work, I rummaged through my inventory and found this photograph of a scene at the Qutb Uddin Dargah in Delhi.

One of my favorite writers, William Dalrymple, visited the darghas of Delhi and wrote this in his The City of Djinns:

" All around milled the devotees: pilgrims, dervishes and sannyasin, labourers and merchants, scholars and soldiers, opium addicts, petty thieves...Some sat crossed-legged on the cool marble floor; others joined the queue to enter the tomb. As they stood waiting, a dervish in a light woolen tunic fanned them with a large pankah embroidered in gold with sacred Kufic calligraphy. In one corner sat a qalander - a holy fool- deep in animated conversation with an invisible djinn."

Some of you will recognize this was photographed with a film camera (Canon 1v), and is not a digital file. The dargah of Qutb Uddin is on the Theyyam Photo~Expedition itinerary which is set to start on February 19, 2009.