Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy: Pakistan's Double Oscar Winning Star.

Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy was born in Karachi, Pakistan in 1978 to Saba Obaid and Sheikh Obaid. She completed her A Levels from Karachi Grammar School and became the first woman from her family to go abroad for studies when she left for the United States from where she completed her Bachelors of Arts in Economics and Government. She then completed her two Master degrees from Stanford University in Communication and International Policy Studies.

Her Documentary career in filmmaking began when she examined the plight of Afghani refugee children in Pakistan for one of her articles. Their situation was so dire, and their stories so compelling, that Sharmeen decided to return to Pakistan and create a film about them. She petitioned Smith College and New York Times Television production division for the grants that would allow her to accomplish her goals. Intrigued by her story, both organizations gave her the funds as well as production equipment and training.

Known for documentaries dealing with life in the Muslim world, Obaid became the first non-American to win the Livingston Award. Her films have aired on such networks as Channel 4, CNN, PBS, and Al-Jazeera. Obaid began her career with New York Times Television in 2002 where she produced Terror's Children, a film about Afghan refugee children, which won her the Overseas Press Club Award, the American Women and Radio and Television Award, and the South Asian Journalist Association Award. Since then, she has produced and reported on more than twelve films around the world. Obaid produced and reported on four multi-award winning documentary films for New York Times Television. In 2003, Reinventing the Taliban was awarded the Special Jury Award at the BANFF TV festival in Canada, the CINE Golden Eagle Award, the American Women in Radio and Television award, and the Livingston Award. In 2005, her film Women of the Holy Kingdom, which provided an inside look at the women's movement in Saudi Arabia, won the South Asian Journalist Association Award.

In 2005, Obaid began working with Channel 4 in the United Kingdom reporting on four films for their Unreported World series. Pakistan's Double Game looked at sectarian violence in Pakistan, City of Guilt explored the Catholic Church's pro-life movement in the Philippines, The New Apartheid looked into growing xenophobia in South Africa, and Birth of a Nation delved into the politics of East Timor. In 2007, Obaid was named "journalist of the year" by the One World Media awards for her work in the series. In 2007, Obaid travelled to Afghanistan and reported for Channel 4 and CNN. Her film, Afghanistan Unveiled/Lifting the Veil, focuses on stalled reconstruction and the repression of women in the country. In 2010, she won an emmy award for her documentary, Pakistan: Children of the Taliban, which explores Taliban recruitment strategies, their effect on the youth and their methods to radicalize the country’s young and often dejected populace. Children of the Taliban premiered FiLums (2011) - the largest film festival in Pakistan held annually at the University of Management Sciences.

On 23 March 2012, Pakistan's president conferred the highest civilian award, the Hilal-e-Imtiaz, on Obaid-Chinoy for bringing honor to Pakistan as a filmmaker and in the same year she won the academy award for Best Documentary by 'Saving Face' which made her the first Pakistani to win an Academy Award.

She then again won an Academy award for her documentary 'A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness' on 29th February 2016 and became the first Pakistani to win two Academy awards. 

Mechanical Properties of Metals

The mechanical properties of the metals are those which are associated with the ability of the material to resist mechanical forces and load. These mechanical properties of the metal include strength, stiffness, elasticity, plasticity, ductility, brittleness, malleability, toughness, resilience, creep and hardness. We shall now discuss these properties as follows:

Strength. It is the ability of a material to resist the externally applied forces without breaking or yielding. The internal resistance offered by a part to an externally applied force is called stress.

Stiffness. It is the ability of a material to resist deformation under stress. The modulus of elasticity is the measure of stiffness.

Elasticity. It is the property of a material to regain its original shape after deformation when the external forces are removed. This property is desirable for materials used in tools and machines. It may be noted that steel is more elastic than rubber.

Plasticity. It is property of a material which retains the deformation produced under load permanently. This property of the material is necessary for forgings, in stamping images on coins and in ornamental work.

Ductility. It is the property of a material enabling it to be drawn into wire with the application of a tensile force. A ductile material must be both strong and plastic. The ductility is usually measured by the terms, percentage elongation and percentage reduction in area. The ductile material commonly used in engineering practice (in order of diminishing ductility) are mild steel, copper, aluminium, nickel, zinc, tin and lead.

Brittleness. It is the property of a material opposite to ductility. It is the property of breaking of a material with little permanent distortion. Brittle materials when subjected to tensile loads, snap off without giving any sensible elongation. Cast iron is a brittle material.

Malleability. It is a special case of ductility which permits materials to be rolled or hammered into thin sheets. A malleable material should be plastic but it is not essential to be so strong. The malleable materials commonly used in engineering practice (in order of diminishing malleability) are lead, soft steel, wrought iron, copper and aluminium.

Toughness. It is the property of a material to resist fracture due to high impact loads like hammer blows. The toughness of the material decreases when it is heated. It is measured by the amount of energy that a unit volume of the material has absorbed after being stressed upto the point of fracture. This property is desirable in parts subjected to shock and impact loads.

Machinability. It is the property of a material which refers to a relative case with which a material can be cut. The machinability of a material can be measured in a number of ways such as comparing the tool life for cutting different materials or thrust required to remove the material at some given rate or the energy required to remove a unit volume of the material. It may be noted that brass can be easily machined than steel.

Resilience. It is the property of a material to absorb energy and to resist shock and impact loads. It is measured by the amount of energy absorbed per unit volume within elastic limit. This property is essential for spring materials.

Creep. When a part is subjected to a constant stress at high temperature for a long period of time, it will undergo a slow and permanent deformation called creep. This property is considered in designing internal combustion engines, boilers and turbines.

Fatigue. When a material is subjected to repeated stresses, it fails at stresses below the yield point stresses. Such type of failure of a material is known as fatigue. The failure is caused by means of a progressive crack formation which are usually fine and of microscopic size. This property is considered in designing shafts, connecting rods, springs, gears, etc.

Hardness. It is a very important property of the metals and has a wide variety of meanings. It embraces many different properties such as resistance to wear, scratching, deformation and machinability etc. It also means the ability of a metal to cut another metal. The hardness is usually expressed in numbers which are dependent on the method of making the test. The hardness of a metal may be determined by the following tests :
(a) Brinell hardness test,
(b) Rockwell hardness test,
(c) Vickers hardness (also called Diamond Pyramid) test, and
(d) Shore scleroscope.

How We Won the Pakistan Super League

Written By: Dean Jones.

Last Tuesday, the Pakistan Super League final was on the line. It was 9pm and I felt we were in trouble.

Quetta had set us a tough total of 174 and our team was quiet. Too quiet for my liking. As head coach of Islamabad United, I could feel the doubt within the team. I hate huge dressing rooms as players can hide when under pressure and I felt some were hiding.

The players had heard my voice too much. I wanted our captain Misbah-ul-Haq to make the sort of speech great AFL coaches like Ron Barassi or Allan Jeans would be proud of. I summoned the whole team to the middle of the room.

What a speech it was! I could really see the passion and emotion in Misbah's face and his voice. He reminded the team that we wanted a fight and we got one. He reminded them that the pitch was ready for us to play quality but smart cricket. He wanted our senior players to stand up and be counted. He reminded us that Quetta's death bowlers were questionable under pressure. Rotation of the strike was mandatory and more importantly, it was a time to believe.

Only hours before, Our West Indian leg-spinner Sam Badree addressed the group on how important "belief" was to him and the team. It made a huge impression on Misbah and the team. Brad Haddin also spoke, saying that no matter what the situation, this team had the players and tools to win. It was time for us to believe.

Pakistan Super League - A Dream Come True.

Written By: Rahat Dar.

It was a dream that took almost a decade to come true, initial idea being floated in 2007, there were several hurdles, several drawbacks and several postponements that made Pakistani cricket fans hopeless over the years.

Pakistan Super League came into existence at last, so did the long lost enthusiasm and love for cricket in the heart of Pakistanis and a dream came true.

There's just so much to be thankful for, so much to be proud of, and so much to look forward to.

Although the league couldn't be held in Pakistan and unfortunately, it might not, for a couple of years or more - but the happiness it's brought to people back home is so vibrant and visible.

People have started to acknowledge the long lost love for the game within themselves. They almost had forgotten what it was like to watch cricket other than India vs Pakistan. After having been convinced about the demise of interest in the sport within themselves, they've fallen back in love again with it.

All of us feel absolutely overwhelming to realize that we finally have a cricket league of our own, and it gives us immense pleasure to witness how well things have turned out to be even in the very first edition of the inaugural PSL. To think that it will grow only to be bigger and better in years to come, it makes the fans even rapturous.

Viv Richards and his Quetta Family

The evening after they won the opening night's clash against Islamabad United, Quetta Gladiators' owner Nadeem Omar hired a yacht in the Dubai Yacht Club. He hosted a strictly team-only party and as the evening rolled on, Omar asked Viv Richards, mentor of Quetta, to have a word with a few players.

Two days before the PSL had started, Richards had put the players at ease by giving a short opening statement in Quetta's first team huddle. He asked them for one particular thing: to not refer to him as "sir". Call him plain "Viv".

At the yacht party, Richards sat down Ahmed Shehzad. He told the outspoken batsman that he was lacking in confidence. According to Omar, Shehzad had told Richards that he was insecure about his spot in the Pakistan team after having been dropped a few times. Richards asked him to stop worrying. "That was what Viv told him. He said stop being insecure," Omar recollects of that evening.

Poem: Feelings

I have never felt like this before.

These feelings I can't ignore.

Swaying like flowers on a tree.

You and me, we are poetry. 

The Floating Village of Thailand

Ko Panyi is a fishing village in Phang Nga Province, Thailand notable for being built on stilts by Indonesian fishermen and known as the floating village. The population consists of 360 families or 1,685 people descended from two seafaring Muslim families from Java.

The settlement at Ko Panyi was established at the end of the 18th century by nomadic Malay fisherman. Ko Panyi is known as Pulau Panji in Malay language. It was during this time that the law limited land ownership solely to people of Thai national origins, and due to this fact the settlement was, for the most part, built on stilts within the protection of the island's bay, providing easy access for the life of a fisherman. With the increase of wealth for the community, due to the growing tourism industry within Thailand, purchase of land on the island itself became a possibility, and the first structures of relevance were built; a mosque and a freshwater well.

The village has a Muslim school which is attended by both males and females in the mornings. Due to the informal nature of this education, many of the male children attend schools further afield in Phang Nga or in Phuket. Further emigration from the village is encouraged as the size of the settlement is restricted by dangerous water conditions in the rainy season.

A mosque based on the island adjacent to the settlement serves the predominantly Muslim population and is a focal point and meeting place for the community. A market stocked with goods from the mainland sells basic amenities such as medicine, clothes and toiletries.

Despite the recent rise in tourism, life in Ko Panyi is still primarily based around the fishing industry as tourists only visit in significant numbers during the dry season.

The village includes a floating football pitch. Inspired by the 1986 FIFA World Cup, children built the pitch from old scraps of wood and fishing rafts. After making it to the Semi-final on an inland tournament, all the village were inspired to take up the sport. They built a brand new pitch, although the wooden one still remains and is popular among tourists.

As of 2011, Panyee FC is one of the most successful youth soccer clubs in Southern Thailand, and the boys who built the pitch back in 1986 are now grown men. A 2011 brand campaign for TMB Bank includes a short film that tells the team's story. The film is based on interviews with the original team, and it stars local children rebuilding the field on location.

In the late 20th century, the community found it difficult to subsist solely on the fishing industry and the postman proposed to invite tourists to the village to benefit the residents. Nowadays this is one of the main attractions on tours of Phang Nga Bay from Phuket, often serving as a lunch stop. With the increasing number of tourists, a number of seafood restaurants are present on the island, as well as various stalls selling souvenirs. In addition, their legendary football team's old pitch serves as a major attraction. The village became a pit stop during a leg of the 19th season on the U.S. reality-competition show The Amazing Race.

Goodbye my Sister, Fatima Surayya Bajia.

Written by: Anwar Maqsood. 

What should I say about Bajiya? Usually it is difficult to praise the people within your own family but then when you like someone, you adore someone, you respect someone and you love someone, it becomes the easiest job in the world.

She wasn't just my sister, she was my everything. She brought us up like a big brother and a mother. When our father passed away she was 42 years old, she was the eldest among the 10 siblings so she took the responsibility of educating us. She educated us in so many things! How to talk to people, how to sit within a gathering, how to read and write. Bajiya did all this for us and when she was done, when we were able to live life on our own and went on our own ways, she started doing all this for others, these people not only were from Karachi, but they were from all over the country. If someone was facing a problem, they would come to her and always returned with a solution. That was her goodness, she wanted to help everyone in every way.

Our age difference was 11 years but she always talked as if she was a kid, maybe that is the reason everyone irrespective of age loved talking to her. If there was a wedding, if someone was having trouble at home, the first person you will see, the first person doing things here and there in a crowd would be her. She did not get much happiness in her life. Maybe God knew that she was born to make others happy. Such people would do anything to make others happy and that is the reason she gave happiness to everyone keeping her sorrows aside. Therefore, everyone including her friends and enemies have her name on their tongue these days. Yes, there were some people against her too, but they were the first ones who came to her for advice and she always advised them well.

She was well educated. How to write the script, how to say something in front of a crowd, these are the things I have learnt from her. She was my best friend. There are things which you hide from your family, parents, even your kids and wife but always tell your best friend and that was the case with me, I told her everything, she used to help me and that's how even the biggest problems were solved without any fuss.

Bajiya was fond of dolls in her childhood. Her doll house was so big that even she could have lived in that doll house. I remember whenever a doll got married there were more than 200 people invited at the wedding, all the wedding traditions were followed, food was served. Therefore in her dramas the wedding ceremonies were so colorful. Before that wedding ceremony scenes were not that common in Pakistani dramas, it was she who started this tradition on the television.

There are some other things that were impressive about her. When she was 12 she wrote her first novel named 'Muslim Samaaj' and our grandfather was so happy that he made sure the novel was published. She was a very good singer and her voice was beautiful.

We all knew that she would end up becoming a famous personality. Although all other of her siblings including me do something or the other like writing, acting, painting, cooking or even working for the BBC but she ended up becoming the most famous. In my opinion becoming famous is not that difficult, it is maintaining that fame which is the most difficult part. The respect and the love she got from people is so much that it might never end.

She has done a lot for the Japanese community too. When she was awarded the biggest civilian prize of Japan I was really amazed because she was the first Pakistani to get that award. She had this habit of calling everyone 'son' even if that person was 20 years elder, interestingly no one ever minded that.

She used to scold me a lot even when I was a kid and even when I was old. In our family it is considered inappropriate if you write something with a dual meaning. Because Pakistani people are not that literate therefore it was always a worry that people might end up taking the wrong meaning of something we have written. She used to say that whatever you write, write carefully and whatever is the meaning in your mind should be the one conveyed to the public. I used to show her all my stories but she insisted on reading the whole script because she was worried that I must have written something against someone and she was of the view that writing negative about someone did not make them better. Whenever she used to watch my drama she used to call instantly saying the drama was good, if you cut this (a specific) scene it would have been better because it wasn't deep enough and so on. She always helped.

Actually her personality and artistry is so great that maybe we need binoculars to see her worth. It is impossible to see from the naked eye that how great she was in every possible way and it is impossible to realize how much I will miss her.

List of all the songs by Jawad Ahmad

Jawad Ahmad is one of the top singers of Pakistan who has ruled the music industry for over a decade now, here is a list of all his songs. 

Album: Bol tujhe kya chahye.

1. Allah meray dil kay andar.
2. Allah way Sohnya.
3. Lai main uchyan naal yaari.
4. Bol tujhe kya chahye.
5. Bhar de jholi.
6. Tu he dildaar hai.
7. Baaki sab theeek hai.
8. O kendi ae.
9. Kaali ankhain.
10. Main tujh se pyar karta hoon.
11. Bin tere kya hai jeena.
12. Zindagi meri zindagi.
13. Palko pe chamaktay
14. Chori se
15. Allah meray dil k andar (2).
16. Baaki sab theek hai (2)
17. Kaali Ankhain (2)

Album: Mehndi.

1. Mehndi ki ye raat.
2. Uchyan majajan wali.
3. Tu meri ki lagdi
4. Bando di jaan
5. Dholna
6. Dosti
7. Deewanay
8. Waikhi teray jai na koi
9. Samaa hai ye mastana
10. Sochun kabhi tu mil jay gi
11. Ae hawa k raahio
12. Wo hai tera khuda.

Album: Jind Jaan Sohniye.

1. Kikli
2. Apna Pan
3. Jind Jan Sohniye.
4. Tum abhi tow aa k 
5. Tak dhin dhina
6. Taray dub gaey
7. Aao dharti ko rang dain
8. Aa ja ho bailiya
9. Kasay kahun
10. Chalyan ae pardes
11. Hamain tum se pyar hai
12. Naat

Album: Love and Revolution

1. Neendran
2. Dildar sadkay
3. Rabba ho
4. Teray naal naal
5. Kuriye
6. Saray jahan k mehnat kasho
7. Sun lo k hum mazdoor hain
8. Jeet ki lagan
9. Hum dekhain ge
10. Rabba ho (remix)
11. Teray naal naal (remix)

Movie Songs.

1. Yaadan
2. Hua hua
3. Nainaan
4. Vaisakhi
5. Main ik din laut k aaon ga
6. Chehray badal jatay hain
7. Chehray badal jatay hain (2)
8. Main tenu samjhawan ki

Random Songs

1. Suno bachon
2. Bas Yehi Kehna Hai
3. Meri Maa
4. Aasma se uncha
5. Bhola kya karay
6. Chinese song
7. Chu lain ge ham
8. Diye jaltay hain
9. Ho laal meri
10. Hum matwale
11. Jeet hai apna junoon
12. Khol aankh zameen dekh
13. Main pal do pal
14. Tu abhi rehguzar
15. Tum tanha nahi pyaro
16. Yaraana (Pashto)

Promotional Songs.

1. Taleem sab k liye
2. Han tum he Pakistan ho
3. Teri surat teri masti
4. Mitti da pehlwaan
5. Khushi ho teray char su

Motivational Songs.

1. Tera na mera hai
2. Mera haq mujhe do
3. Sarfaroshi k tamanna

Magical Night

Written By: Maham Shahbaz.

Last night I thought of a thought so beautiful, it was me, you, fireworks, night stars, approval and only happiness. I felt so content like I belonged. It made me so happy. A thing that has never happened made me happy.

Then I thought about reality and I came back to the ground, night with no stars or glitter.

Maybe magic is actually just a person who makes you see beautiful things that you can not see alone. And you can never be your own magic.

Silhouette

Written By: Maham Shahbaz. 

Remember that thread she told me of? The one that connects me to my body, I think it broke. She said it could and I think it did.

I feel nothing, not alive, not dead, no regret about how I ignored my morals for that one person, no will to carry on. I’m okay now but I’m not okay. She said it would be like this, it was “part of the symptoms,” she said, “part of the process.”

I woke up in the middle of the night, screaming, just like the night before, and the night before that. I can’t remember when it began, or why. What was it they told me? Depression, guilt, stress… Don’t remember any of it, just darkness, and someone screaming for help. I run towards the sound. There, in the corner, I cant see their face, I move towards them, I want to comfort them, tell them that its okay, that I'm there now. Something about that scream makes me want to run towards it and calm it down but as I get closer I notice that the person screaming has my face and my body...is it me? As I get closer I begin to scream and I become that person.

But when they wake me up I see his silhouette in a corner, like always he stays and I feel calm and comforted... but he isn't real.

...but then the only time I felt connected to myself was during that dream and that wasn’t real either.

IELTS Teaching Procedure

The primary focus of teaching stays on the student to access their English skills by an individual assignment or interview and then planning their module based on that assessment.

Introduction to IELTS:

• ·         What is IELTS?
• ·         Why should you take IELTS?
• ·         What are the types of IELTS?
• ·         Which type of IELTS suits you?

Teaching Methodologies:

• ·         Easy use of communication language for better understanding of students.
• ·         Keeping track of progress and providing Individual feedback on all the activities.
• ·         Practical and interactive lectures.
• ·         Personalized speaking tasks along with group activities.
• ·         Audio and visual usage.
• ·         Keeping the student involved by asking and letting them ask questions.

She was not the One.

Written by: Midhat Amna.

And no one’s really sure who’s letting go today, walking away’

It kept playing through her mind as she lumbered down the corridor, until she realized the instrumental was already echoing in the ballroom.

She had it figured since a long time. The coming in late each night, Bryan growing nervous every time the phone beeped in her presence. The excuses, rather the plain refusals he’d pass each time she would suggest going out. Moreover, it was the raging silence that spoke all along. It was the strangeness between them,that stole the place of love and contentment they shared.His eyes were daggers, slowly stabbing her each time he looked into hers. With emptiness. With unreasoned hatred.It was also the hushed greetings they exchanged, the empty hugs and the vacuous kisses only she prompted. It wasn’t her high school sweetheart anymore she’d seldom talk to. And every time they were together, Julie realized that the man beside her wasn’t the one who proposed her twelve years back on the deck of Monarch, no, she failed to recognize this man.

It’s funny,isn’t it? How your entire world is dependent on just a step ahead,one glimpse.He was there,alright,one hand resting on the woman’s bare shoulder,his fingers laced into hers.They were dancing under the dimly lit chandelier,oblivious to the presence of a third person.A third person.Julie stood there completely bewildered.She had an expression on her face you can’t really put a name to,but one you could only feel.And although she knew this was coming,she never imagined this moment to be so excruciating.This was the kind of moment she’d give up anything to just have it erased form her memory.She kept staring at them until the image blurred.This image,so disturbing yet undeniably beautiful…and then it finally hit her,she was not the one embracing a twirl,slowly being wrapped up in Bryan’s solid arms.She was not the one.

The wedding ring caught her brim eyes.This very souvenir of their ‘commitment’ that had kept her believing in something that no longer existed. Aren’t wedding bands so ridiculously deceiving? This so gold a ring that held all the vows,promises and memories,this oh-so-solid form of their love,correction;her love,yet ironically gifted by him.It lay there as it was the day it was slided on to her finger.How can an ornament not tarnish when a relationship entirely based upon it can,and did. Did none of it matter anymore? Did it ever matter? Is love that temporary,that weak? She stood there shuddering at the thought.Although she had prepared her confrontation;rehearsing it over a thousand times,shifting words,trying to sound simple yet effective,but she’d forgotten all of it at this moment,she was blank.Every fibre of her body recoiled in indignant horror.She stood their caught between denial and acceptance,until a jolt of realisation shook her.She needed to get out of here.She didn’t belong here,anywhere,because she was not the one.

‘If we could take the time
To lay it on the line
I could rest my head
Just knowin’ that you were mine’

She stole a glance at herself into the rear view mirror. How flawless.She was reminded of all the struggle she put herself through;from endless appointments with dermatologists to the countless collections of anti-aging creams,the best make-up brands in the state,all those days she starved herself just to fit in a dress which caught Bryan’s attention, all the changes she made to her personality just to suit her husband.How she left every one and every thing just to be with him.And how she finally lost herself in the process.Carving herself into someone her husband had desired,just to be left like an old,chipped cup in the darkest corner of a cupboard.

She drove as fast as she could.She had to get away.She lost grip of the emotions cascading through her.It wasn’t just anger,it was grief.It was the agony searing through her.She was not the one.”I AM NOT THE ONE,” she finally broke the silence that had consumed her for so long.

Why does love have to be so all-consuming? Why is it supposed to either make you,or break you? Why does it have to be so strong to shatter you in pieces,and at the same time so weak to never even hold on for much long? Why? She was going 90 mph.The sky mocked her,lightening from black to violet to mauve,the rain drops beat the windscreen.And then it happened.The Camry plunged off the viaduct,crashing into the waterbody beneath.

‘So never mind the darkness
We still can find a way
Cause nothing lasts forever
Even cold November rain’

She hummed the lyrics until her voice cracked.And then darkness followed,first filling her eyes,and then her entire world-forever.Don’t you see how strong true love is? How merciless? Never does it die,however,it’s victims often do.

The Sultan Ahmet Mosque

Written By: Maham Shahbaz

The Sultan Ahmet Mosque, popularly known as the Blue Mosque was built in the period from 1609 to 1616.  The construction of the mosque lasted for seven years. It was completed in 1617 just prior to the untimely death of its then 27-year old patron, Sultan Ahmet I. The mosque dominates Istanbul’s majestic skyline with its elegant composition of ascending domes and six slender soaring minarets. Although considered one of the last classical Ottoman structures, the combination of new architectural and decorative elements in the mosque’s building program and its symbolic placement at the imperial center of the city point to a departure from the classical tradition innovated under the famous 16th-century master architect, Mimar Sinan.  The architect, Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa, synthesized the ideas of his master Sinan, aiming for overwhelming size, majesty and magnificence.

A Symbolic location.

Majestic mosques of Ottoman  were placed far from the city to encourage urban development and to take advantage of Istanbul’s hilly topography, the Sultan Ahmet mosque is nestled in between the Hagia Sophia and the Byzantine Hippodrome near the Ottoman royal residence, Topkapı Palace.  In fact, the choice of location caused some concern since it required the demolition of quite a few established palaces owned by Ottoman ministers. But prestige outweighed the enormous cost in coin and real estate. Constructing large mosque complexes for the benefit of the public was part of the imperial tradition denoting a pious and benevolent ruler. Placing the mosque adjacent to the Hagia Sophia also signified the triumph of an Islamic monument over a converted Christian church, a matter of great concern even 150 years after the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul in 1453.

This mosque has received in Europe, the name "Blue Mosque" because it’s interior is formed of tiles in blue and blue colors in organic combination with a white background. Total used for decoration over 20,000 tiles. Iznikskie ceramic tiles hand-made, which were used in the interior decoration of the mosque at the time is particularly famous for their quality.

Architecture.

The Main Gate of the Mosque is at the side of the ‘Hippodrome’ where the obelisks are. When you approach the main gate you see two Arabic verses to the visitors. The first one on top is called Shahadah (Declaration of Faith) and means:

I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and Muhammad(PBUH) is His Messenger.

The second is placed just above the arch and is a quotation from the Qur’an. This also explains the purpose of the building. It means:

“Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers at specified times.”Qur’an 4:103

The mosque features two main sections: a large unified prayer hall crowned by the main dome and an equally spacious courtyard. In contrast to earlier imperial mosques in Istanbul, the monotony of the exterior stone walls is relieved through numerous windows and a blind arcade. Huge elevated and recessed entrances penetrate three sides to provide access to the sacred core. The courtyard’s inner frame is a domed arcade, which is uniform on all sides except for the prayer hall entrance where the arches expand.

       

Dome and Pendentives.

Inside, the central dome rests on pendentives (triangular segments of a spherical surface) with its weight supported on four massive columns. In order to extend the prayer space and to structurally support the centeral dome, a series of half-domes cascade outwards from the center to ultimately join the exterior walls of the mosque. The central stone was called ‘kilit taşı’ which literally means ‘locking stone’. This is a huge stone carefully carved and placed so that it pushes all the smaller stones to the sides with its size and weight (locking them in a way). On the central stone there is a quotation from the Qur’an provoking thought again.

“Indeed, Allah holds the heavens and the earth, lest they cease. And if they should cease, no one could hold them [in place] after Him. Indeed, He is Forbearing and Forgiving.”Qur’an 35:41

Minarets.

There are a total of six minarets. four are positioned on the corners of the mosque’s prayer hall while the other two are on the external corners of the courtyard. All of these "pencil" minarets have a series of balconies beautifying its lean form.

The number of minarets caused a little unrest among the population because an imperial mosque had the same number of minarets as that of the mosque of mecca. To symbolize superiority of mosque in mecca, a seventh minaret was added to it. evidence to support this claim are thin since some believe the seventh minaret already existed prior to the Blue Mosque’s construction while others cite a much later date for the seventh minaret’s addition.

The area of courtyard is almost the same as that of the mosque. At the center of the courtyard there is a hexagonal fountain, surrounded by 6 columns. Courtyard of the Blue Mosque is the same size as the mosque itself. The walls are decorated with arcaded courtyard.

The interior.

The prayer hall itself is punctuated with several architectural features including the sultan’s platform and an arcaded gallery running along the interior walls except on the qibla wall. A carved marble niche set into the center of this wall guides the faithful to the correct direction for prayer, this niche is known as mihrab. On top of the mihrab there are two verses from the Qur’an which mention the names of some holy people mentioned in relation to a special praying place (mihrab).

On top: Whenever Zachariah entered the Mihrab, he found provision (food) with her (Mary). Qur’an 3:37

Second one: So the angels called him while he was standing in prayer in the Mihrab, ("Indeed, Allah gives you good tidings of John…) Qur’an 3:39

To its right is a tall and thin marble podium (mimbar) covered with an ornamental turret. It looks like a staircase however it’s used as a raised platform to deliver a sermon on congregational prayer days

Tilework and stained glass.

Upper sections of the mosque are painted in geometric bands and organic medallions of bright reds and blues, but much of this is not original. Rather, the careful choreography of more than 20,000 Iznik tiles rise from the mid-sections of the mosque and dazzle the visitor with their brilliant blue, green, and turquoise hues, and lend the mosque its popular name the blue mosque. 

Symbolisation.

Traditional motifs on the tiles such as cypress trees, tulips, roses, and fruits evoke visions of a bountiful paradise. Sultan Ahmet demanded these specifically for the building. The lavish use of tile decoration on the interior was a first in Imperial Ottoman mosque architecture. The intensity of the tiles is highlighted by the play of natural light from more than 200 windows that pierce the drums of the central dome, each of the half-domes, and the side walls. These windows originally contained Venetian stained glass. 

Dimensions for the Sultan Ahmed Mosque.

• 6 minarets altogether. 4 of them have 3 balconies and their size is 73m and 2 have 2 balconies and 60m high.
• The size of the prayer hall is 53.50 x 49.47 (2646 m2).
• The inner courtyard has about 30 domes seated on 26 separate columns.
• The dome is about 43 metres high and is a diameter of 23.5 metres.
• Main prayer hall can accommodate up to 10.000 worshippers at a time. 
• It has 260 windows.

Skies and Beyond.

Written By: Midhat Amna.

I stare into the sky. I can feel the ciliary muscles relax and my suspensory ligaments tighten as my eyes penetrate their way into the extremities.And then comes the furthest boundary,beyond which my eyes fail to grasp any further vision. The Sun continues fading into the golden sky,while the white beads of cotton nestle atop the atmosphere.The view is interrupted as a flock of nightingales weave across the sky,waltzing and gliding,the sound of their wings beating simultaneously reaches my ears in the form of a melody.Watching them soar in the air,envy engulfs me.

I can feel my heart fluttering…and for a moment,everything goes blank.All I could imagine is my body floating in this very sky,the breeze rushing over my face,tickling my bare skin.I can almost feel two delicate wings fixed to my shoulders instead of these bunch of creaky,in-efficacious bones attached to my scapula.My mind starts traveling back in time.I see a little girl,a pink cape draping over her back.She raises her arm and positions it in the air,almost as perfectly as Christopher Reeve.She takes in a deep breath and jumps high in the air,excepts of course,landing on the mattress double quick.She swears at the laws of gravity,yet never gives up.”Gravity can’t always win,” I mutter these words as a pang of familiarity grasps me.

I lay there as more memories race through my mind. That one time I attempted to break the plane window just with the intention of feeling the -60 C temperature with the tip of my pinky.The day I almost jumped off the roof,certain that a flying carpet would arrive in time.Today,when I reflect back on these memories,it hits me hard…I’m no longer the person I was before.The person I was supposed to become.Lying here,I could literally feel my innocence slipping away,yet again.Guilt,regret and misery clawing me from the inside.And then the strangest sensation overwhelms me.Sharp thorns seem to be digging deep inside my body,cleaving me to the bare soil.I make no effort to relieve myself.It doesn’t hurt anyway.I’m numb,I realize.Powerless.I lay there still,screaming silence. My hair,more like octopus tentacles,freely brush past my face.It’s funny,I think to myself,how a single sight can rekindle so many feelings,so many memories.How I can feel so much,all at the same time.I have this “quality” of feeling everything so very deeply.Whether it’s a blessing or a curse,I do not know yet.

It continues to get dark and brisk.The whistling wind and my wild thoughts make the perfect rhythm.I realize I have grown so strangely comfortable with my state of trance.Is it that I’ve accepted the change? The new me? Miserable me? Me? I continue with my perplexed mind state.I can see darkness prevailed among all the realms.Is it too soon to swallow it? I look around myself.No one.Is it always going to be this way? A voice roars from within.”Yes!” I must rid myself of self deception that lies within my cores,I realize,I must never hope.I sometimes wish I could take this deceitful word far from this world,and well,go missing with it.I have realized how fond I have grown of loneliness.How comfortable reclusion is becoming,though in a very strange way.I am starting to discover myself.Apprehension of one-self is the most important thing that could happen to us.It comes in handy at times like these.And if I’m not wrong…though as much as I hope I am,I have discovered the three words that define me.Wretched.Demented.Defeated.

Three has always been a very important number to me.How three words can change our entire lives,for better or for worse.How three steps can take us to a whole new world.The first step to risk taking,the second to delusion,and the third step,or rather a gateway to the land of self-destruction,or post self-destruction.Not two,but three faces that everyone possesses. The typical three chances.The three stages of life,although some of us skip stage 2. Sublimation? Knowing who I finally am,I wish to peek in further.But I guess I’m like the horizon,we have our boundaries.And if I try to push past my limits,I wont explode,instead I will simply cease to exist.

I am reminded of how I wake up every day,reminded of a million things all at the same time.And how each day,I drag myself to face the piercing heat of this desert world.I am confused,am I the alien or is this world alien to me? I keep distracting myself with this rather very hurtful,self-questioning.I am reminded how every day,I try to pick up pieces of me,trying to glue them back.And when I finally manage to get them together,I acknowledge there is still a piece missing.A piece I will never be returned.

I am like the shore at night.The serene twilight above the raging destructive ocean.I am the bitter wind on a typical December night.I radiate anything but light.Darkness resides deep within me.I’m a mystery no Sherlock can solve,I’m an unsolved case put far from reach.I’m the melody no instrument-no voice,can produce.I am so me.I let this sink in,and I get up.The sky is now dark,the Sun has long set.I free myself of these thorns,as ironic as that sounds.It leaves no marks anyhow.That’s what hurts most of all.The world is blind to your scars,especially scars they’ve caused.Anyhow,I realize I have a Science test the next day.Angle of incidence=sin i/sin r.Total internal reflection? Oh screw it.I make my way back to the world,wearing the ornament I’ve worn forever,a smile. :)