Timbuktu 1
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1) In that night before her disappearance, and in the midst of the darkness of the night, Jawhara, the black woman, saw all at once the whole bedroom full of light which was so intense and bright in its illumination that the wife of the farmer was obliged to put both of her tender and trembling hands on her eyes to prevent the light from causing blindness to her.
However, the light was growing stronger and stronger. The bedroom lost all its normal characteristics. The room has taken a completely new strange and bizarre shape. The room has become a place composed of light and nothing but light and illumination.
The black woman who was lying in her bed could not believe what was going on in front of her and in the midst of her room. As expected, Jawhara, kept calm and serene in her spacious bed. She was waiting for the further development of events in the bedroom. She was realizing that there was nothing in the room with the exception of illumination of the blinding light. Silence was dominating in the room, there was nothing but light as if the world was in its first day of creation.
Nevertheless, the black woman, lying in her bed, was actually hearing the perpetual beating of her heart and was hearing her suffocated breathing. Judging these two sources of sound and noise, the black woman thought that she was in good and normal condition. There was nothing wrong in her health. In other words, she was certain that she was not suffering from any kind of illness.
She was in a perfect health condition. This was her final conclusion at that critical moment of her life. The phenomenon she was witnessing in front of her was real and not the product of her fancy and imagination.
All at once, the black woman felt that she was not in the normal and ordinary world. She felt also that she was about to have an experience which she did not have in the past years of her life.
The mass of light in the bedroom kept its bright, shining, glowing, vivid and intense illumination. Nothing could be seen in the bedroom with the exception of this mass of light which looked to be like a miraculous event or incident. The black woman was really in the midst of the supernatural world and not in the world of everyday life.
There was nothing for her to do except to yield, to surrender and to give up to the invisible power that was in control at that particular important historical moment.
Time was passing in a rapid way and the woman lying in her bed was waiting the next step, the next development in this strange and puzzling situation. Then all of a sudden some kind of a noise took place in the bedroom. The noise was so strong that the black woman could not identify it and know its origin.
Gradually, the noise took a concrete and identifiable nature. It was the voice of a man, not a woman, or a child or any other creature. The voice said distinctly but harmoniously: "Be ready my dear Jawhara. You are going just now, and at this moment, to be carried on a carpet of light and you will be carried to a destination which you would immediately recognize and identify as soon as you arrive there."
The black woman could not recognize the source of the voice but she understood the message that was communicated to her by the invisible source of voice. The light was still filling the space of the bedroom to an extent that nothing else was visible, nothing.
Most important of all, the mirror of the left hand wall was not seen at all. The mirror was not there because the wall itself was not there. It was not visible to her. The favored chair on which she had the habit to sit when she was watching the mirror was not there too. It seemed that it was swallowed by the illuminating waves of light.
In this huge and limitless sea of light, there was only the black woman who was shining of light that was more illuminating than the light that was filling the room.
In a flash of an eye, Jawhara discovered that she was carried on a carpet of light. She was no more in her bedroom but in the space outside in a strange world. A more astounding and astonishing surprise was the fact that the black woman discovered herself dressed up in her snow white marriage robe, exactly as she was a bride when she was nineteen years old, or about eleven years ago.
How could this be possible? How was it possible to be carried back to the time when she was married to the farmer eleven years ago?
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The carpet of light was by now in the midst of heavens flying like a small white bird. However, this light in heavens did not last long. It lasted just for a wink of an eye. The carpet of light hovered for a while in the place in which it descended, went down.
The magic place was all full of the green color. It was all covered with all kinds of plants. Plantations of various kinds and sized were seen down there. Above all, it was not difficult at all to see the sinuous Holy River running calmly from the north to the Lake of Death. The water of the Holy River was used everywhere for purposes of irrigation of the gardens of fruits and the plantations of grains and cereals. Groves of date-trees, banana-trees and oranges were flourishing and blooming and were everlastingly ready to bear fruits.
The carpet of light passed in a wink of an eye over the whole place, the green and the blessed Valley of the Spirit. The cloud of light passed by some plantation settlements scattered here and there on both banks of the Holy River. There under the flying carpet of light, the small routes could be easily seen. Persons and animals were seen in these routes and narrow alleys. Some of the people were going up and some others going down.
Of course, animals, specially donkeys, mules and from time to time, camels, were used to carry passengers and were used to carry merchandise between the various parts of the Valley of the Spirit and some neighboring villages and towns.
In one spot of this valley there were the agricultural plantation settlements in which the house of the family of Jawhara was located. From up above in the flying carpet of light children like small chickens were seen playing, though it was almost late at night.
The carpet of light in a blink of an eye went down in the Valley of the Spirit, in a place full of trees and small rocks. The black woman was not surprised to see herself in a place which she knew very well. There in that place she spent almost twenty years of her life. She was born there and she spent the golden years of her life in and around the house that was visible from the place where she was brought by the flying carpet of light.
Abruptly, the carpet of light went up in heavens while the black woman was left down on the ground that seemed to be a small pathway that led in the final analysis to the house of the family of Jawhara.
It was not cold in the Valley although it was winter. It was not raining. Or in fact, it was more or less warm. The Valley of the Spirit was well known to many well-to-do families as being an ideal winter resort. Several rich families had a secondary residence in the Valley of the Spirit to which they came in winter and autumn seasons with their children and servants.
Jawhara was standing there and looking towards her family house. It seemed to her that all the members of the family were asleep with the exception of very few children who were playing in the backyard.
She saw a small candle light in the small kitchen of the house. She thought that her mother was there. Perhaps she was taking some water to give to one of her children who were all grown up with a minimum age of fifteen years or more.
Of course, several of the brothers and sisters of Jawhara were, like her, already married and have established their own families and houses either in the Valley of the Spirit or somewhere in the Fertile Crescent, or on the coast of the Red Sea or at the edge of the Empty Quarter.
2) Jawhara did not know why she was brought there by some unknown and invisible power. She did not choose to come to this place and she did not choose to travel on a carpet of light crossing a long distance in a blink of an eye.
The place to which she was brought by the flying carpet of light was an ordinary and a normal piece of agricultural land. Trees of various types and kinds could be seen here and there. There were no special characteristics that distinguished this place from any other locality in the Valley of the Spirit. The climate in that place of the Valley was becoming warmer and warmer. The wind that was blowing at that time was, in fact, overloaded with heat, warmth. The blowing wind at that moment was saturated, pervaded, with passion, excitement, eagerness and fervor.
All at once, thousands of torches of flames and light made their appearance carried by angels who were hovering in the Valley of the Spirit. With the appearance of the torches of light the whole valley was overwhelmed and submerged in light and brilliance. All the Valley looked to be like a world surrounded by light.
At the same time, the sky was all fully decorated with an uncountable number of twinkling stars. The sky of that night was all covered with sparkling and glittering small stars.
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Jawhara did not know why all her world was filled with light. What was going to take place to her in that night? What for was all of that light? Why was she taken from her bedroom in the farm-house and in the middle of the long night?
All of a sudden, the house of the family of Jawhara was also filled with light and illumination. From a distance, the black woman saw that her family house was full of people. Perhaps, some guests were spending their overnight there in the house. From a distance she saw in a clear and distinct way the presence of the members of her uncle's family. She saw amongst those present, some young men. Probably, two or three of them exceeded the age of thirty years.
Jawhara could remember the friend of her childhood, her cousin Amin, who was living in a house which was located in a place that was within a walking distance from her house.
As a small girl, Jawhara had the habit of seeing Amin at least once a week. Of course, that meeting between the two, Jawhara and
Amin took place in accordance with family arrangements and within regular and normal visits between the two families.
The two young children, the girl and the boy, who were both black, were meeting each other in large group meetings of children. The meeting of the two young children was becoming less and less frequent.
In fact, Jawhara was seeing her cousin after the age of twelve years only occasionally. It was just by chance that they could see each other.
Until one day and in the early morning of a summer season in the Valley of the Spirit, Jawhara was having an early morning walk, when all at once she discovered herself almost lost in the Eastern Bank of the Holy River.
At that time she was almost in her fifteenth year of age. She started to have her monthly period three years ago, at the age of twelve years.
While walking in the midst of a well grown bush, a shrub of uncultivated land, she could hear very clearly a noise a sound, which indicated that somebody was there in the Holy River having either an early morning swim or a regular morning bath.
The noise was becoming clear to her. Certainly, there was a person swimming in the Holy River. By advancing few more steps in the midst of the bush Jawhara saw the clothes of a person thrown on some grown and thick plants.
All at once a young man, or in fact a black boy of about fifteen years of age, was swimming naked in the River. He was her young cousin, Amin.
For a while, before escaping from that isolated place, Jawhara, the girl of fifteen years, stood surprised and at the same time satisfied, amazed and pleased and gratified. For the first time in her life she saw a naked male body, a black young man whose complexion was as black as hers.
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Jawhara was obliged to withdraw. She wished to have stayed more time there so as to see more the naked body of the young black man for more and more time. She withdrew without being noticed by her cousin Amin.
Hurriedly she went back to her house. Most of the members of her family were sleeping with the exception of her mother who was fully engaged in performing the early Morning Prayer of the dawn. Her father was still sleeping as well as her sisters and young brothers.
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After that morning incident in which she saw her cousin naked swimming in the Holy River, Jawhara never forgot that event throughout the next fifteen years of her life. She persisted between now and then to recall to her memory the naked black cousin. Probably she was perpetually fascinated by the captivating and the charming black color of the skin of her cousin, Amin.
The body of her young cousin was chasing her throughout her married life. During the eleven years of her married sterile life she used to get some news about the members of her family who were still living in the Valley of the Spirit.
During those years, the last eleven years of her life, she came to know that Amin, her cousin, who got married at the age of nineteen, had already six children, all boys with the exception of a girl, his beloved and adored daughter.
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Sometimes, Jawhara used to wonder what her life would be now if she married Amin, the charming and the handsome black cousin. No doubt she would have been the mother of at least five or six children, boys and girls.
Like all the other wives and concubines of her husband, the farmer of the quarter, Jawhara accepted to live and to exist in the farm-house without children. She was certain that the master of the house was sterile and that he did not have the power to give life to others, to engender children, posterity and above all an heir.
3) Jawhara, dressed in a snow white wedding robe and crowned on her head with a diadem of red rose, was surrounded by very illuminating and glittering light that was coming from everywhere in the Valley of the Spirit.
She was at that moment encircled in heavens by angels carrying torches of flames and twinkling light. She was also covered around her crowned head by a group of white birds with long undulating wings.
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Jawhara at that moment was caressed by the souvenirs of some sensational and innocent dreams of the far or the near past of her life in the Valley of the Spirit or in the farm-house. At last Jawhara was completely excited and amazed and was totally astounded and astonished.
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The house of her family in the Valley of the Spirit was all a mass of light. This house was in that night receiving, as guests for several days, the family of her uncle that was living within a walking distance from her family house where the immortal event took place.
More exciting than all of this was the fact that her young and handsome cousin, who was as old as herself and whom she saw fifteen years ago naked swimming in the Holey River, was also in the family house in that night.
It was very strange that most of the members of the family, including the guests, were still awake in spite of the fact that it was almost midnight. Some members of her family, adults and children, males and females, mothers and fathers were busy doing something which she could not recognize.
The family house, standing as a castle in the midst of a large plantation, was full of light. The activity in which the family members were engaged could not be identified and seen distinctly by the black wife of the farmer.
From a far distance and from the small place in the bush in which Jawhara was standing, a voice of a young woman was heard repeating the name of Amin. The melodious beautiful name was repeated several times. The name was repeated in the far horizon in a form of echoes. Amin, Amin, the voice was repeating the name of Amin.
However, the voice repeating the name of Amin stopped all at once. Silence was dominating in the whole Valley of the Spirit. Everything came to a standstill. Nothing was manifesting any sign of life.
Anyhow, light continued to fill the whole atmosphere, the whole environment. The house of the family of Jawhara was dominated by light and silence. It seemed that everything that was moving in the house came already to a stage of a standstill. Or actually, the house was full of light that did not disclose, reveal, any sign indicating that the people who were living in it were still there. They either disappeared or went to sleep in their proper sleeping places in the house that was located in the Valley of the Spirit.
Jawhara was somewhat worried and annoyed. Why was the house of her family fully deserted? Where did the members of her family disappear? No doubt they were sleeping in their bedrooms. It was the time to sleep. Probably, all of the members of the family were now in their beds. She convinced herself that her mother and her father and her sisters and brothers were all asleep.
But what happened to the guests of the family? As far as the black woman could remember there were at least six guests of the family of her uncle. One of these guests was her cousin Amin whom she could not forget, the one she saw fifteen years ago completely naked swimming in the water of the Holy River. Did he leave the house or what? Did he go somewhere outside the house?
Jawhara, who was dressed as a bride, looked for the friend of her days when she was a young girl in the Valley of the Spirit. She was looking for him, for Amin. She saw him in the family house few minutes back accompanied by his wife and children. Anyhow for sure, he, Amin, could not see her. He could not see Jawhara. Amin never knew that Jawhara, one day, early in the morning and fifteen years ago, saw him swimming naked in the water of the Holy River. He did not know how destiny gave Jawhara the chance to see him naked.
Jawhara rubbed her eyes several times because she felt that she was about to sleep. She rubbed her eyes. Still the place was full of light and illumination and the angels continued to carry torches that were giving fire and light. In spite of the light that was spreading everywhere, Jawhara at last closed her eyes. She was overcome by some somnolence. She was sleeping on a sea of light. Her white wedding robe was moving the moment it was touched gently by the wind of the night.
All the night was calm and serene. All the stars stopped for a while twinkling while they were waiting for the miraculous event. The moon in the sky stopped also moving in heavens waiting also for the important episode. From afar in the universe illuminating creatures were also waiting for the coming of the event.
Long ago, these suspended creatures were promised that in a specific time in history an event would take place which most people thought that it would be a miracle, a wonder and a unique phenomenon. Just behind the shining horizon many eyes were looking at the Valley of the Spirit to see whether the time was ripe for the Earth to receive the seeds of life and eternity, whether the hungry and the thirsty human body was ready for receiving the fluid of the seeds of life.
The totality of the universe was carrying in its hand an ever illuminating torch so as to pave the way for the penetration of the ray of light bearing the fluid of the sperms of life in the depth of the infinite small world of conception, regeneration and production.
Jawhara was sleeping in a bed of light and brilliance, luster and splendor. She was having on her body the white wedding robe. The lively, animated and the spirited world all around her was in an absolute excitement and thrill. Her eyes were closed. She was in a dream. At that moment she opened her mouth with the intention of saying something. She could not utter a single word because her mouth was closed and she could not open it. For a while she attempted to open her mouth. But she could not.
Jawhara had the feeling, though fully asleep, that somebody was touching her mouth by the tips of fingers, and then she felt that she was touched by two lips, by a mouth of a man with a mustache. The mouth of Jawhara remained closed for a while. Then a voice came from a far distance proclaiming the coming in a short period of time, the moment of creation and the fulfillment of joy and happiness.
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The young black woman, who was in fact in a world of dream, a reverie and imagination, opened her eyes and saw in front of her cousin Amin standing in the sky, in heavens, and engulfed by light, completely naked as she saw him fifteen years ago swimming in the water of Holy River. But now she found him to be in the early thirties of his age.
Amin was standing in the midst of a mass of light. The blackness of his skin was sending rays of glittering light. The young black man smiled to the young black woman who was floating in the light of the night. The young handsome black man, with his perfect body advanced for few steps towards the black woman.
At that instant, the young black man was almost near the mass of light where the young black woman was sleeping. He came nearer to her bed and touched gently her breast. Then he moved his hand and touched gently every sensitive part of the body of the sleeping black woman. Amin was in fact at the maximum of his excitement. He never saw in his life a more beautiful woman than Jawhara who was there in front of him offering herself to him. He put again his hands on the breast and bent himself on her and whispered to her ears that he was ready, that his body was ready to be united with her body.
Of course, Jawhara did not say anything. In her turn she smiled and she discovered herself and all of a sudden, totally naked without her wedding robe and without her underwear. It was by magic that all her clothes disappeared somewhere in the universe.
Amin was completely ready to penetrate his beautiful black cousin. The black woman moved apart her two thighs and was ready to receive life in her hungry and thirsty body. All at once lightening illuminated in a world that was already filled with light.
The woman cried and cried because of the joy and the satisfaction she was experiencing. The black woman felt as if she was given a new life, a new eternity and a new world, a new universe. She felt that very soon, perhaps in nine months time or less than that, she would have a child in her arms. She hoped that this child would be a boy and not a girl, and for sure the child would be black.
With a glimpse of an eye, Amin, the handsome and charming young black man, her cousin, disappeared from the whole milieu, from the whole surrounding environment, from the scene. There was no trace of him anywhere. Even more than that, Jawhara was dressed again in all her clothes including her underwear.
Jawhara was worried a little bit. Was she not penetrated? Was she not given the fluid full of seeds of life? Was her body not touched at all?
Jawhara all at once realized that she was living in a fancy, in a dream. How was she able to come from the farm-house down to the Valley of the Spirit? How was that possible? How could her cousin come to her and in a fantastic manner to offer her the sperms bearing fluid so as to enable her to bear a child?
Most probably, in nine months time, she would give birth to a child, and most probably to a son and perhaps an heir to the farmer of the quarter. Jawhara put her hand, the right hand, on the sensitive part of her body to be sure that a new life has been started in her few minutes ago. How could she know whether she would be pregnant or not?
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4) As in a dream, Jawhara was again lying on the carpet of the illuminating light ready to be taken somewhere or anywhere. She was no more dressed in a white wedding robe. Nowhere could be seen this robe. It disappeared somewhere or was taken by an invisible hand. Instead of the white robe, the black woman realized that she was dressed by a somewhat colored robe which was large in size and long reaching down to her knees. Probably, the end of the robe touched both of her ankles. In fact, the robe she was wearing was not sophisticated. It had a somewhat short sleeves and it seemed that the robe was made at home by some members of the family.
Jawhara felt that she had some kind of a white head-cover which was hiding all her frizzy black hair. More important of all she remarked that her neck and her breast were decorated with a golden necklace fully and richly encrusted with a number of the most precious stones. Also, her hands were carrying golden made bracelets, each hand with at least five to six bracelets. The fingers of the young black woman were covered by rings of pure gold. Furthermore, the ears of the young woman were decorated with beautifully gold made ear-rings.
Of course, Jawhara was not surprised to find herself in this new form of dress and jewelry. In summary, she found herself to be a completely new woman belonging to a community other than the one she was living in.
She remembered how once her mother used to describe to her the African women who were living long ago in the Grand Sahara specially in the City of Timbuktu. Her mother told her how the description of old customs and traditions were passed from one generation to another up to the present time.
The carpet of light crossed thousands and thousands of miles in the sky. In a flash of an eye the carpet of light arrived at a place where all the landscape was covered by sand. The carpet of light continued flying in the sky without landing anywhere yet.
It was still the night and the sun was hiding behind the horizon. Probably, the sun was still sleeping. The dawn had to wait for few hours before it would be allowed to show itself in the horizon.
Jawhara, who was all alone on the carpet of light, was really sleeping, completely relaxed and at ease and was having a deep sleep without dreams or nightmares. The carpet of light was hovering up high in the sky. It was not yet decided where to land and when. From a far distance, the candles of light of a city began appearing in the horizon.
A voice coming from above told the only traveler of the carpet that the light of candles was coming from the Immortal City of Timbuktu. The gentle and soft voice said that it was the 12th Century and that this was the beginning of the second century for the establishment of the City of enlightenment and scholarship. The carpet of light traveled in fact in space and in time. Timbuktu was established in the 11th Century. In one hundred years time Timbuktu became a city of learning and it was well known everywhere in the civilized world at that time.
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5) The sun was about to awake from its night sleep and to commence a new day in its immortal life. The black woman got up and was not surprised to see herself flying on the carpet of light. She saw from a far distance the immortal city of Timbuktu with its mosques and beautifully built minarets.
At that moment, Jawhara heard a voice telling the following Thus spoke the voice.
This is the City of Timbuktu, a place where learning, scholarship and the pursuit of knowledge flourished for centuries. Here took place the development of all kinds of disciplines, not only in the field of spiritual pursuit, philosophy and religion, but also in all other fields of scientific and mathematical disciplines. Look around you the, City, and do not forget that we are now in the beginning of the second century of its ling intellectual life. Here, this City of learning could be considered as the only intellectual center of learning in the Middle East, North Africa and the Iberian peninsula that was not invaded and devastated by waves of conquerors and invaders coming from Asia and Europe.
Timbuktu was a refuge for scholars. It was also a place where precious manuscripts were brought so as to be kept in peace and in security for a number of centuries. Everywhere in the City there is a center of learning. Everywhere new manuscripts are written in all the fields of learning by famous scholars of these times.
I brought you here so as you stay for two nights, practically for two complete days. Your stay here starts from the 12th Century and will continue for so many centuries till the 17th Century, the time when your great grandfather left Timbuktu in a pilgrimage journey to the Holy City of Mecca.
During these two days you will learn by the way of a miracle all the knowledge produced during the six centuries from the 12th till the 17th Century. Also, by a miracle, all the wisdom and knowledge which was produced in Timbuktu for several centuries would be presented to you. Also your son during these two nights would have the opportunity to see what the black scholars of Timbuktu have contributed to human knowledge and human wisdom.
Do not forget that you are now in the 12th Century and in two nights you would in fact spend more six centuries here, just by a miracle, and you will discover how much your black people contributed to human knowledge. Your son, who is now in your womb being created, could see the wonders which his people have created. By the way, I propose to you to call your son, Amir, that is the Prince.
For sure your son will be welcomed by all the members of the family of the farmer of the quarter. Your son will be respected by all because he would be considered a Miracle.
The voice stopped coming to Jawhara. The carpet was already on the ground. Jawhara left the carpet of light and she began her visit to the immortal city. In two days she was able to live for six hundred years. All the centers of learning that were flourishing and prospering during these six hundred years were visited by the young black woman. She could realize the immensity and the value of her people to the development of human knowledge.
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