YAZD

God without demands

Architectural gem

04-Mar-2008 (26 comments)
On the chest of the central plateau of Iran since more than 3000 years before Christ has stood a defiant warrior called Yasatis. Yasatis or Yazd is an ancient Iranian city that has survived many terrible events amongst them the Mongolian aggression. Although Genghis Khan did tremendous damage to the city and its people, he was not the toughest enemy the city had to face. It was the harsh desert climate surrounding the city that constantly attacking from every direction for thousands of years. People of Yazd are renowned among Iranians as modest and humble people>>>

FASHION

Bold & beautiful

Bold & beautiful

Photo essay: Iranian fashion show near San Francisco

by Jahanshah Javid
02-Mar-2008 (40 comments)

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WOMEN

V for Voice

Community announcement: "The Vagina Monologues"

27-Feb-2008 (39 comments)
My unselfish and greater wish is to represent the voice of our repressed Iranian people, of the women of Iran who endure human rights abuses that should not even be occuring in this day and age... I would love to use our current production of "The Vagina Monologues" as a springboard for both a show in solidarity with women's and children's rights from you, my community, and as a compassionate vehicle of greater involvement of our Iranian community within the American community at large. This is a fabulous video where Jane Fonda and Eve Ensler, the playwright and women's rights activist extraordinaire, passionately and so eloquently explain our cause >>>

LIFE

The day love was born

The day love was born

Photo essay: Dedicated to my daughter Shailie

by Taz Ziba
26-Feb-2008 (3 comments)

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LETTER

For Abadan

Mr. Mayor, what have you done to rebuild my hometown?

26-Feb-2008 (32 comments)
Dear Mr. Mayor of Abadan, read this and do as I tell you. There is no trace of re-construction in Abadan. I went to visit some of my relatives there for a few days, a city with 40-year-old memories for me. The city whose girls were portrayed so beautifully in Aghassi’s songs, and whose boys spent their evenings standing by the palm trees in those girls’ neighborhoods. And now it is a city without a plan, without beauty, without vivacious boys, and full of walls where bullet wounds have not healed yet. But I have decided to return this city’s beauty to it. This city will have to become my country’s most beautiful, warmest, and most exciting city again>>>

IDENTITY

Hedayat's last message

The irony of culture is however that it never can be pure

26-Feb-2008 (13 comments)
While many nations nowadays are desperately searching for their own cultural roots, they tend to consider their cultural icons as ‘pure’ and undivided original. Apart from the fact that seeking cultural purification somewhat has its similarities with the original idea’s of Nazi philosophy and fascist nationalism, it also is quite useless. Whether it is a consequence of the social and economical pressures caused by migration, or a search for meaning and identity, certain nations - and especially weak states that need a new ‘social glue’ to have the support of the people - start this search of original identity >>>

EXPRESSIONS

کاسه داغ تر از آش

ضرب المثل هفتم و هشتم

25-Feb-2008 (15 comments)
خواهی نشوی رسوا همرنگ جماعت شو: ما ایرانیان اولین کسانی بودیم که این ضرب المثل را عمل کردیم. این داستان را یک هندی برایم تعریف کرد: بعد از حمله اعراب اولین مهاجران ایرانی به هند رفتند. اول استقبال خوبی دریافت نکردند. یک گروه برای مذاکره پیش هندیان رفتند. گفتند ما با صلح و دوستی آمدهیم. هندیها گفتند تعداد زیاد و تفاوت فرهنگی شما جامعه ما را متزلزل خواهد کرد. رهبر ایرانیان یک قند را در چائی انداخت و گفت ما مثل این قند در جامعه شما حل میشویم. >>>

STAR

Kosher meets Halal

Interview with Iranian American actress Shiva Rose

22-Feb-2008 (19 comments)
Shiva Rose Gharibafshar, daughter of Iran’s beloved talk show host, Parviz Gharibafshar with first wife Rose, is a fascinating Iranian American actress once married to Dylan McDermott. Shiva has prevailed as a devoted Mom, a fashion magnate, a die hard political activist (who’s even been arrested twice for anti war protests --once with her baby!) maintains a regular blog on the Huffington Post, and managed to squeeze out a movie recently in only 23 days! The movie, David and Layla, which opened in New York LAST WEEK (Feb. 15th) has already won 6 awards at various film festivals>>>

MUSIC

Reng

A piece for fun

20-Feb-2008 (9 comments)
Video>>>

CONCERT

Houmayoun Shajarian & Dastan Ensemble

Houmayoun Shajarian & Dastan Ensemble

Photo essay

by Pejman Akbarzadeh
18-Feb-2008 (2 comments)

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SHAJARIAN

Voice of Iran

Documentary on Iran's most prominent vocalist

18-Feb-2008 (11 comments)
Mohammad Reza Shajarian's voice streams out with such power and purity, embodying centuries of technique yet with such emotional texture as to leave the listener in absolute awe. It’s a voice hard yet clear like crystal, a crystal through which one can see three millennia of Iran’s history and culture, from Zarathustra at the dawn of spiritual man through to Baarbad in the Sassanid court, to Alexander’s sacking of Perspolise, to the invasion of the Arabs, to Rudaki and Avecina, to the Mongol plunder and Hafez’s great existential shrug, to Hasan Sabbah’s stubborn resistance at Alamut, the horse rides in the caucuses and the Shalimar gardens in Kashmir. It’s the voice of endurance in the face of pious repression and invaders’ brutality and regeneration through culture>>>

LANGUAGE

Save Persian

Introduce a language more Iranian, modern, precise and easier to learn

15-Feb-2008 (85 comments)
Today, our superseded Persian language still continues to be Arabo-Islamic (Farsi). Farsi is a hollow name; it does not fully represent our national identity or adapt to our future. Our culture along with our crippled Farsi is now constitutionally forced to take a further Arabo-Islamic allure, a project called “The Cultural Revolution”, planned since 1980 by the Mullahs’ regime. The long-term objective of The Cultural Revolution is to root out any aspect of non-Islamic identity from the society by introducing a greater portion of Arabo-islamisation in our culture and language. It is to promote the existing “Farsi” into a pure Arabo-Islamic language. >>>

MEANING

فرهنگ شخصی : ت

ایرانیان تصور میکنند که تجمل و تفاخرو تفاضل به آنها تشخص میدهد

15-Feb-2008 (one comment)
توت : میوه سفید خوشمزه و شیرین وضریف که تحمل مسافرت به خارج از ایران را ندارد

تفاهم : همدیگر را فهمیدن در اروپا و امریکا معمول است ولی تحمل مسافرت به ایران را ندارد

تفنگ : نوعی سلاح آتشی که امریکای ها آزادند با آن جان همدیگر را بگیرن >>>

BEAUTY

The Lost Legend in Pictures

The Lost Legend in Pictures

Photo essay & video: Life & times of ballet dancer Afshin Mofid

by Nazy Kaviani
14-Feb-2008 (37 comments)

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DANCER

The Lost Legend

Life & times of ballet dancer Afshin Mofid

14-Feb-2008 (20 comments)
Three thousand people watched the New York City Ballet performance every night, a performance which invariably ended in standing ovations and a crowd that simply did not want to leave the packed New York State Theater. The promising young ballet dancer took his bows, with each bow intensifying the crowd’s applause and noises of approval and adoration, singling him out as “The Star” of the show. He was born to a family of artists, poets and writers in 1961. Afshin Mofid was one of two children born to the legendary Bijan Mofid and his wife, Farideh Fardjam, the first female Iranian playwright, prize-winning author, poet, and director>>>