Heart of the Night Read online

  I was convinced, and said, “Anyhow, the monthly financial support which—”

  He interrupted me sharply. “I have made a decision regarding that!”

  “I don’t think you are serious about your decision.”

  “I am extremely serious,” he retorted.

  “Do you mean that you won’t write the petition?”

  “I certainly won’t!”

  “This is pure madness,” I said.

  “Call it whatever you like. Since al-Rawi deprived me of my inheritance, I refuse to beg for even one penny of it!”

  “Jaafar, you are old, weak, and poor, and the little money you have left will soon be spent.”

  “I know all that very, very well, but I am more stubborn than al-Rawi himself.”

  “Let me write the petition.”

  “I refuse,” he said.

  I protested, but he insisted, saying, “I will not discuss the subject anymore.”

  There was silence. He was a tired storyteller and I was a tired listener. I yawned.

  He laughed and said, “I do not yawn before dawn.”

  I mumbled listlessly, “Bravo.”

  “I am a roaming beggar. I leave al-Rawi’s wasteland to wander in the streets, from Margush to al-Khurunfish to al-Nahhasin and finally to Khan Jaafar. Everywhere I go I have a memory and a secret. There are memories in al-Hilmiya, and in Bab al-Khalq Square my heart beats. Everywhere I go I spread my doctrine. I invite humanity to save itself.”

  “Your doctrine?” I inquired.

  “Yes.”

  “You do that openly?”

  “Yes.”

  “You must be wary of troubles,” I warned.

  “I do not fear troubles.”

  I told myself that his appearance did not convey seriousness and he was not in any danger.

  We both fell silent, nearly lulled into an exhausted sleep.

  In that moment of inertia and sorrow, we heard the voice of the muezzin floating over the waves of obscurity. Jaafar stretched and said in his harsh voice, “It is time for us to go.”

  We walked side by side on our way to the square.

  Jaafar whispered, “Let life be filled with holy madness to the last breath.”

  My head was ringing with the talk of the night.

  Glossary

  Alamiya: diploma awarded by al-Azhar in Egypt at the end of the specified period of study.

  awalim: traditional women singers.

  fuul: cooked fava beans, usually eaten for breakfast.

  gallabiya: long loose garment worn by men in Egypt.

  gibba: long garment worn under the quftan by imams and students enrolled in al-Azhar, preparing them to assume the responsibility of imam.

  kawari: a dish consisting of sheep trotters.

  Laylat al-Qadr: the night that falls between the 26th and the 27th of Ramadan. It marks the night on which the Quran was revealed.

  mahmal: the litter once sent to Mecca by the Egyptian government during the Hajj (pilgrimage) carrying the covering for the Kaaba. The name is derived from the verb hamala, ‘to carry.’

  quftan: long outer coat worn by imams over the gibba.

  Salafi: follower of a reform movement in Islam launched by Muhammad Abduh in Egypt.

  salamlik: word of Turkish origin referring to a reception room.

  Samadiya: derived from al-Samad, one of God’s attributes and meaning ‘the master obeyed by all.’ The Samadiya is the chapter in the Quran entitled ‘Surat al-Ikhlas.’

  suradiq: a large tent erected to receive a large number of guests outside the house for either happy events or a death in the family.

  tawashih: a form of Arabic poetry consisting of stanzas, often set to music and sung.

  tuzz: expression used to mean ‘so what! I couldn’t care less.’

  waqf: plural awqaf; consists in endowing private property for charitable purposes. The income generated by awqaf or the services they provide (hospitals, schools, libraries) are aimed at the needy. In Egypt, where this novel takes place, awqaf are run by the Ministry of Awqaf, a government agency. The concept of the waqf dates back to the time of the Prophet Muhammad and has undergone transformations throughout history. The waqf par excellence is the Kaaba in Mecca.