Gold and Blue

I would like to change the taste little bit and switch to my leaves and sticks series. I took this picture in Khoor va Biabanak date farm in Central Iran. The palm leaves and blue sky are really turning me on to shot some abstract pictures. Here is one of them that I took using circular polarizing filter on my Nikkor 100 mm and Agfa optima negative.
فكر كردم براي تغيير ذائقه براي روزهاي آينده ازمجموعه عكسهاي شاخه و برگ استفاده كنم. اين عكس رو از نخلستان‌هاي خور و بيابانك گرفتم. براي ايجاد آسماني با رنگ آبي تيره از فيلتر پلاريزه سيركولار استفاده كردم ولنز مورد استفاده هم نيكور ١٠٠ ميليمتري بود. براي رسيدن به توناليته رنگي مناسب هم از نگاتيو آگفا اپتيما استفاده كردم

SAMAA, Dance of Love

Sufis’ Dance or SAMAA is the ultimate excitement in sacred chant and provide some solitude for Sufis. “Solitude in the Crowd” is one of the basic principles of Sufism which means seclusion, both external and internal. External seclusion requires the seeker to be away from people, staying by himself and spending his time in the remembrance of God. This helps in gaining control over sensual perceptions and reaching the state of internal seclusion. The internal seclusion means whether amidst a crowd, walking or doing anything else, one should constantly have his mind attuned to the Almighty. This is the state of Sufi adept that they remain constantly in the Presence of the Almighty. To read more click here.
تنها در ميان جمع نشستن، اين تنها جمله‌اي است كه در مورد سماع مي‌توانم بگويم

Combined Drumming

The chant leads to its glorious moment by combined drumming. Usually the goblet drums which accompany Daf are twin drum (Dou Tabl) and Taas. These two drums are played by leather sticks and have plangent tone which usually played during the spiritual Sufi’s dance (SAMAA). Actually these two goblet drums are controlled the rhythms and synchronized the group of Daf players with the mentor while their players also maintain tuned with the mentor. In the picture above a person holding “Dou Table” while the other one playing and the Daf player is standing in background.
به نظر من نقطه اوج مراسم سماع زمانيست كه دف به همراه دوطبل و يا طاس نواخته مي‌شود. اين سازها داراي كاسه‌اي از جنس برنج هستند و با تسمه‌هايي از جنس چرم فشرده نواخته مي‌شوند و ازاين‌رو طنين بسيار زيادي دارند. در طول مراسم سماع اين سازها نقش هماهنگ كننده گروه دف نوازان را به عهده داشته و با فرمان شخص مياندار ريتم‌ را تغيير مي‌دهند. در عكس بالا فردي يك دو طبل را در دست دارد و ديگري مي‌نوازد، دف‌نوازان نيز در پشت ديده مي‌شوند

Group Drumming

Music is mixed with the Kurds’ daily life; most of them play Daf and nearly all of them can sing their special song classes (Hauoreh and Siyah Chamaneh). During the sacred chants many people played Daf together in great harmony. It is exciting to know that they just start playing together without prior group practicing and in many cases they barely know each other. They synchronized their heart with the rhythm and rest will be synchronized automatically. They also switch between rhythms as the mentor switches, because the rhythms should be played in a certain order during the chant. Time of passage between the rhythms is defined by the mentor based on the situation and based on the emotional feeling of the group.

Rhythm of Love

Although all of the people are very kind to me during my stay in the village but I was considered as a city boy from Tehran for the first hours. A boy with camera and tape recorder who wants to see the mad men of god and the sacred chant! After finishing the first round of the chant, my friend, Rahim asked me to play Daf with him. I started playing and tried to synchronize myself with him. We played for fifteen minutes switching between the Sufi rhythms. When we finished, my host asked me to play a solo and I played a combination of Sufi rhythms and some modern ones as smoothly as possible. During my performance, I tried to use their skills and also not to be bragged. After my solo has finished, Arash was not a city boy any more, I was one of them. Playing among them not only increased my knowledge about the rhythms and playing skills, but also helped me to get closed to whole community. In this picture, Rahim is playing and also singing in the chant. Click here if you wish to listen to some of these rhythms.
با وجود همه احترام و محبتي كه مردم در حق من روا مي‌داشتند ولي در ساعات اوليه ورودم به اين روستا همه به من به عنوان يك بچه شهري از تهران اومده نگاه مي‌كردند كه با دوربين و ضبط صوتش راه افتاده تا مراسم سماع دراويش را ببيند. بعد از اينكه دور اول دعا خواني و سماع تمام شد، دوستم رحيم از من خواست تا با او همنوازي كنم. من و رحيم حدود ١٥ دقيقه دف زديم و در تمام مدت من سعي مي‌كردم تا خودم را با او هماهنگ كنم به ويژه كه مجبور بودم به همراه او چندين بار ريتمهاي مختلف را اجرا كنم. پس از اينكه دف نوازي تمام شد، ميزبان ما از من خواست تا كمي تكنوازي كنم، من هم قطعه‌اي مركب از ريتمهاي خانقاهي و ريتمهاي نوين اجرا كردم و تلاش كردم تا علاوه بر استفاده از تكنيكهاي دف نوازي آنها از هر گونه خودنمايي نيز بپرهيزم. بعد از اينكه نواختنم تمام شد جمع براي من صلوات فرستاد. فهميدم كه ديگه آرش يك بچه شهري نيست و جزئي از آنها شده. همراهي در دف نوازي با ايشان نه تنها اطلاعات زيادي را در رابطه با ريتمهاي خانقاهي و تكنيكهاي مختلف دف نوازي در اختيار من قرار داد بلكه سبب هرچه نزديكتر شدن من به مردم اين خطه از كشورم شد. در تصوير بالا رحيم را در حين نواختن دف و اداي ذكر مي‌بينيد. در صورت تمايل به شنيدن برخي از اين ريتمها اينجا را كليك كنيد

Calling and Gathering

To visit my friend and also to buy a DAF (Persian frame drum) I planed to spend one day and one night in Sanandaj (capital of Kurdistan province). When I got there, I called my friend and asked him if he knows someone to help me buying high quality Daf. He introduced me to a person called Rahim, who is playing Daf and conducting the sacred chants. We went to couples of music shops and he was looking for a well made Daf with great sound, at that time he didn’t know that I was playing this instrument for many years. Finally we came out with four hand-made Daf with great sound, which have been signed by the artist who made them. In the way home I asked Rahim if there is any chant in the hermitage that I can join. He replied, since our doyen (they call it Sheikh) has just returned, after living outside the country for a long period, we are about to go to visit him and there is no chant in Sanandaj, but if you like, you can join us. I was like WOOW, what a great chance. We went to the small village near Sanandaj and this was the beginning of my adventure. I spent nearly a week among them (totally forget about my job and research project in Tehran) and each night I was hosted by different people who didn’t even know my name. Actually this is quite normal in Iran, especially when you visiting suburbs and countryside. Each time Rahim and I walked to the house of our host, he start playing Daf and welcoming us by singing songs.
The sacred chants are starting by singing some poems from Rumi and the person who is singing the poem, calls the other to join the chant (first photo), actually this is some kind of announcement for the others to know the chant is about to start. The group that I’ve met is practicing the specific training line in Sufism which is called Tariqat-e Qaderi. Each person who joins the chant start singing poems in harmony with the one is currently singing by the other person (second picture). After a while you are surrounded by the great music and the most amazing thing is they are all ordinary people, but they do know music by their hearts and have a great feeling about music and literature.

Journey to Beyond

Five years a go I had a wonderful trip to the western part of Iran, namely Kurdestan, to buy a couple of Persian frame drums (DAF) and also to got familiar with some sacred sufi rhythms. Unexpectedly, an ordinary trip to Kurdestan turned to one of the most valuable experience that one can have had in his life. I will talk more about it later.

پنج سال پيش براي خريد دف و همچنين آشنايي با شيوه دف نوازي در خانقاه به كردستان سفر كردم. هرگز تصور نمي‌كردم يك سفر معمولي به كردستان به يكي از با ارزش ترين تجربيات زندگي من بدل بشه. بعداً در اين رابطه بيشتر صحبت خواهم كرد

The Vehemency باز اين چه شورش است

It's hard for me to write about the mourners' feeling during the Ashoora, actually if I was a good writer, I never took photograph.

اين عكس رو ظهر عاشورا در تكيه پايين تجريش گرفتم. راستش رو بخواهيد برام خيلي سخته راجع به حس و حال عزادارها بنويسم و اگر اين توانايي رو داشتم هيچوقت عكاسي نمي‌كردم

Through the Generations

As I mentioned before, the Ashoora mourning ceremony is a cultural event, which is transferring through the generations for more than 1400 years. I took this one from a group of mourners in Tehran’s Bazaar. To show their deepest sorrow, this group covers their faces and cloths with mud.
In this picture, I enjoyed the way that different generations are felt about this ceremony.
اين عكس رو روز عاشورا در بازار تهران از هيأت سقاهاي همداني گرفتم. نكته جالب در اين عكس احساسيه كه نسل‌هاي مختلف از اين مراسم دارند

Sorrow of The Player

Ta'zieh or Shabih-Khani is one of the oldest and most authentic traditions of theater in Iran. It is a kind of theater is based on agonizing life stories and fables of Islam's prophet, Muhammad. Essentially, they are the events and atrocities that confront Imam Hossein and his apostles in the Karbala desert during the Muharram of '61 Hijri (Lunar Calendar).
In this theater, all of the players are ordinary people who are not trained to be an actor, but they are very well in singing song about the prophet and his family. One of the casts in this traditional theater should play as a person who killed Imam Hossien, and in my opinion this role is the hardest you can find in the whole program. Although they should act as a cruel person but in most cases they are crying during their play. This is the photo of the person who is playing this role.
صرفنظر از تاريخچه مراسم عزاداري امام حسين، شيوه ورود آن به جامعه ايران و بهره برداري‌هاي سياسي كه از اين واقعه شده است، شبيه‌خواني يا به عبارتي تعزيه هميشه براي من جالب بوده. به ويژه افرادي كه در اين نمايش ايفاي نقش ميكنند. از ميان همه بازيگران تعزيه، كساني كه نقش شمر را بازي مي‌كنند از همه جالبتر و به عقيده من از همه قابل احترام‌تر هستند. كساني كه در نهايت دلسوختگي در نقش آدمي بي‌رحم ظاهر مي‌شوند، نكته جالبتر گريستن شمرخوانها در طول تعزيه است. اين عكس رو از يك شمر خوان در ميدان تجريش گرفتم

Girls with Candle

In the Islamic calendar, 10th day of the month of Muharram is the day of 'Ashoora, a day of mourning for all feeling Muslims. It is the day on which, in the year of 61 Hijri (680 AD), in a place called Karbala, in Iraq, Imam Hussain, the grandson of the Prophet of Islam, sacrificed his life and the lives of many of his family members and friends, in order to save the teachings of Islam from utter distortion and destruction. From the first day of Muharram until the day of Ashoora, you can see mourning ceremonies in all cities in Iran. I used to take photographs from this event for more than seven years continuously. I took this one in front of my house in Tehran at the night after Ashoore, when people carrying candles and singing songs about Imam Hussain. I had 50mm Nikkor 1.8 on my camera and used ILFOD PAN 400 and pushed the negative to ASA 800. Negative printed on ILFORD paper (grade 3). No tripod used!
حدود هفت سالي مي‌شد كه به‌طور مداوم از مراسم دهه عاشورا عكاسي مي‌كردم. اين عكس رو از مراسم شام غريبان در تهران(به طور مشخص جلوي خونمون در شمرون) گرفتم. براي عكاسي از لنز ٥٠ ميليمتري نيكون (٨/١) و نگاتيو ايلفورد پان ٤٠٠ استفاده كردم وبراي اينكه بتونم روي دست عكاسي كنم نگاتيو رو به ٨٠٠ پوش دادم. بعد از ظهور، نگاتيو را روي كاغذ شماره ٣ ايلفورد چاپ كردم

The Look

I used to work on the geology of the Sistan & Balouchestan coastline for couple of months and had the opportunity to visit one of the greatest places on earth. Despite of the harsh environmental condition of this area, Sistan & Balouchestan is full of surprises and contrasts. It has a very active geology with volcanic belts, faults and uplifting coastline along with the unique geomorphological features. It is the habitat of some unique reptiles, birds and mammals and gives you the opportunity to walk from the barren desert to the blue ocean in less than fifteen minutes. Although the people of this area suffers from the lack of infrastructure and bad economical condition but they are full of hope and hospitality.
I was heading back to my camp in Chabahar when I saw this little girl playing in front of her house. I took the camera and wish she doesn’t run away and let me to shoot some pictures. Since I had my 50 mm lens on my camera, I have to get close and surprisingly she just sat there and watched me. Maybe she was thinking, what the hell he wants from me? Couldn’t he just let me play? I took several shots and then back to the car and took my other camera with 100mm lens and B&W negative. She was still there and let me to shoot some B&Ws. Her eyes had a very strange look; maybe she tried to read my mind or wanted to tell me something. Maybe she was hoping for the bright future and wanted to ask me “Are you the one who tries to make a better future for me?” This was happened ten years ago but I still feel the lightness of her look.
چند ماهي كه روي زمين‌شناسي خط ساحلي استان سيستان و بلوچستان كار مي‌كردم اين فرصت رو به من داد تا از سرزميني بسيار عجيب ديدن كنم. سرزميني پر ازاسرار با مردماني اسرار آميزتر. يك روز كه داشتم به اقامتگاهم در چابهار بر مي‌گشتم از روستاايي عبور كردم و اين دختر را در حال بازي كردن ديدم. دوربينم رو برداشتم و خدا خدا ميكردم تا قبل ازاينكه فرار كنه بتونم ازش چندتايي عكس بگيرم. چون لنز نرمال روي دوربينم بود مجبور بودم خيلي بهش نزديك بشم و در كمال تعجب ديدم كه نه تنها فرار نكرد بلكه همينطور نشسته بود و به من نگاه مي‌كرد. شايد به خودش مي‌گفت اين ديگه از جون من چي مي‌خواد؟ چرا من رو ول نمي‌كنه تا بازيم رو بكنم؟ چندتايي عكس گرفتم و برگشتم توي ماشين و دوربين ديگرم رو كه لنز تله ١٠٠ ميليمتري و نگاتيو سياه و سفيد داشت برداشتم. دخترك هنوز همونجا نشسته بود و با چشماني زيبا و نگاهي عجيب به من ظل زده بود. شايد داشت فكر من رو مي‌خوند يا اينكه مي‌خواست چيزي به من بگه. شايد آرزوي دنيايي بهتر رو مي‌كرد و مي‌خواست از من بپرسه كه ”آيا تو همون كسي هستي كه مي‌خواهي آينده بهتري براي من بسازي؟“ از اون وقت حدود ده سالي ميگذره ولي هنوز بار نگاه اين دختر روي دوشم سنگيني ميكنه