Found on the excellent Mind Body Soul blog
This is an excerpt, read it all here.
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Madonna syndrome: I should have ditched feminism for love, children and baking
A playwright who embraced the feminism espoused by her mother and flaunted by Madonna now feels betrayed
Zoe Lewis
"I never thought I would be saying this, but being a free woman isn't all it's cracked up to be. Is that the rustle of taffeta I hear as the suffragettes turn in their graves? Possibly. My mother was a hippy who kept a pile of (dusty) books by Germaine Greer and Erica Jong by her bed (like every good feminist, she didn't see why she should do all the cleaning). She imbued me with the great values of choice, equality and sexual liberation. I fought with my older brother and won; at university I beat the rugby lads at drinking games. I was not to be messed with.
Now, nearly 37, those same values leave me feeling cold. I want love and children but they are nowhere to be seen. I feel like a UN inspector sent in to Iraq only to find that there never were any weapons of mass destruction. I was led to believe that women could “have it all” and, more to the point, that we wanted it all. To that end I have spent 20 years ruthlessly pursuing my dreams - to be a successful playwright. I have sacrificed all my womanly duties and laid it all at the altar of a career. And was it worth it? The answer has to be a resounding no. "
3 comments:
Salam. I am new to your blog and must say it is very nice to read the views of a Pakistani with a more intellectually inclined Sufi perspective. I hope and pray that more Western educated Pakistanis start seeing things in a traditional way.
I would like to know more about the intellectual scene in Pakistan. How do the traditonally minded intellectuals such as Suheyl Umar,etc fare?
Also, I was wondering as an art teacher if you have tried to incorporate some of the writings of Titus (Ibrahim) Burkhardt. He has written some fine essays on the subject.
wa alaykum as salam, Aasim bhai, Suhaeyl Umar as yet is little known or appreciated in Pakistan.
However, through the books he has recommended to Suhail Academy and got published, I think he has made a major positive contribution to the cause of the intellectual Sufi perspective, as you term it, in Pakistan.
and yes, I do use 2 of Sidi Ibrahim Titus Burkhardt's texts quite a lot, Sacred Art East & West & the Mirror of the Intellect, tho' I'm not an out-and-out Prennialist, I do admire them and am very grateful for all they've contributed to Islam. AHM has also acknowledged their contribution, and they are selling well in Pakistan, all major bookstores & libraries carry a selection. So the books of Lings, Nasr, Muzaffar Iqbal etc. are being widely read since 1999; so inshaAllah we hope to see a change in the intellectual climate by the next decade.
Keep praying bhai, inshaAllah Pakistan is in transition, and the Sufi revival is going strong, all praise to God.
Salam. I have had some time off from my daily schedule and spent close to an hour reading your wonderful blog on Pakistani Sufi arts. I am wholly amazed and have a host of more questions for you. You are like the Pakistani (uncle?) I always wanted to meet!
My first attraction to the deen was through Pakistani Sufi art. You cannot imagine how great a feeling it is to hear of a Pakistani who understands and values its importance.
I am wondering if you could share more of your essays on arts in Pakistan. Do you have a book or could you recommend me some books on the topic?
Islamic arts in Pakistan is very unique I believe in that each sub-culture (Pathans, Punjabis, Sindhis, etc.) within the nation has its own highly developed forms of art. Despite the cultural, linguistic, and ethnic differences among groups however, there is a clear seal of unity on all the forms.
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