A Different Drummer

So Ramadan is coming to a close. My month of fasting and spiritual introspection hasnt really led me to a new understanding of my God as I hope - but mainly becuase having though about it, I really became more committed to my atheism than I was before. Although doing some reading on different spiritual and non-spiritual beliefs, I did discover that there is a nice place where I fit in. Ladies and Gentleman, I am proud to announce that I am....a.......Secular Humanist. "What is a secular humanist?", I hear you asking. Well in short:

"Secular Humanism is a term which has come into use in the last thirty years to describe a world view with the following elements and principles:

• A conviction that dogmas, ideologies and traditions, whether religious, political or social, must be weighed and tested by each individual and not simply accepted on faith.
• Commitment to the use of critical reason, factual evidence, and scientific methods of inquiry, rather than faith and mysticism, in seeking solutions to human problems and answers to important human questions.
• A primary concern with fulfillment, growth, and creativity for both the individual and humankind in general.
• A constant search for objective truth, with the understanding that new knowledge and experience constantly alter our imperfect perception of it.
• A concern for this life and a commitment to making it meaningful through better understanding of ourselves, our history, our intellectual and artistic achievements, and the outlooks of those who differ from us.
• A search for viable individual, social and political principles of ethical conduct, judging them on their ability to enhance human well-being and individual responsibility.
• A conviction that with reason, an open marketplace of ideas, good will, and tolerance, progress can be made in building a better world for ourselves and our children."

Suits me just fine. Plus, one of my literary heroes, Christopher Hitchens, is a champion of the Secular Humanist cause, and his absolutely hilarious, devastating critique of Mother Theresa, "The Missionary Position" is an inspiration for all to follow. Check out this interview with Hitchens for a better look into his worldview - and try to get a copy of "The Missionary Position" if you want a laugh out loud and interesting look at the truth behind a 20th century "icon".

Anyhow, having found the conveniently comfortable and roomy idealogical box that I fit into, I declare my spiritual search of Ramadan a success. Yay for me.

Ramadan ends this weekend. The end of Ramadan is a big public holiday period, the feast of Eid (ayyyy-ed, unpronouncable if you don't know the pronounciation of the Arabic letter 'ayn). There are two Eids each year, one after Ramadan and one about 3 months laster. The second Eid is the more famous one, where every family slaughters a sheep in rememberence of the defeat of the invading sheep army that threatened to overthrow the Abbuyyid dynasty in an orgy of wool and bleating. Or something like that. Anyhow, the one coming up is the more vegetarian, pacifist, non-sheep-killing Eid.

Eid is a day of feasting, and sounds similar to the way we westerners spend christmas day, without the alcohol. Big family thing, lots of food coming at regular intervals, surrounded by a couple of public holidays. So what will I be doing with my 5 day long weekend? Lazing around in an Oasis in the desert, thats what! A group of us are heading off to Siwa, which is an ancient oasis in the middle of the Sahara, close to the Libyan border.

Siwa has its fair share of history. It has been a mystical place in the region for thousands of years, and most famously, was home to the Oracle of Siwa. Alexander the Great visited the oracle before his conquest of the known world, and was told, quite accurately, that he was soon to conquer all of Asia. Must be a real morale booster for a young man and his army at the beginning of a long campaign half way across the globe.

Siwan people are very different to the Egyptians of Cairo and Alexandria. They speak their own language, Siwi, and are ethnically Berber, a pan-sahara grouping of nomadic people who stretch across all of North Afica. They make their living primarily though growing dates and olives (Egypt is the world's largest date producer. Didnt know that before? You do now!). They also do fairly well off the hash smuggling business, from what I have read. I mean you need something to do out there in the middle of the desert, right?

So will will be going to the Oasis town itself, and staying there for one night. Then we'll head out into the desert, and spend two nights under the stars. Complemented by a natural sping pool, jeeps, sandboards for the occasional dune-surf, and a couple of Siwaans who will costruct the tents, fire up the barbeques each night, and take out out for a tour of their homelant.

"And if you look to the right, you will see sand, and then out in front is some sand, and then - over past the sand dune there, we will come to something really special - what we call Xsisusa in Siwi, but in English I believe the word is......Sand"

It should be a fun weekend.