QUR'AN AND CRICKET - Travels Throught the Madrasahs of Asia and Other Stories

THE NOMAD’S PRAYER

Dear God,

I thank you for these feet, these eyes, these hands;

I pray that wherever I go I will be able to see you in the

world around me,

and to always see honestly; let no sight be too terrible to bear;

let nothing and no one be ugly;

I pray that whatever I touch will remind me of your eternal

presence in all things;

Let nothing be repugnant to me;

And I pray that every step I take I will be getting closer

to you;

God, take me home. And let my home be everywhere.

Farish A Noor

I was attracted to the book because of the above prayer, found in Chapter One. I said to myself, “Hey, when Muslims pray in English, they sound like me when I pray.” And I just had to read it! The book became my constant companion during the first three days of Chinese New Year.

I have always enjoyed reading Farish Noor’s travelogues. My admiration for him grew as I followed his journeys through the madrasahs of Asia where he lived, prayed and interviewed people – locals,students, ustazs, professors, etc. He even managed to interview Ustaz Abu Bakar Ba’ashir, the man described by the Western press as the ‘monster’ behind the Bali bombing.

There are other stories, travelogues to be exact, in Qur’an and Cricket. For example, he wrote about his experience in Kashmir , where he helped with post-earthquake relief efforts. Forgotten Nation (Kashmir 2006). Why, Farish even wrote a chapter on our March 2008 election. Another Country, Another Election (Kelantan and Terengganu, March 2008).

Qur’an and Cricket is the second non-fiction book I have read about madrasahs of Asia, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson was the first. This book is about the author, a mountaineer, who got lost in the Himalayas and ended up dedicating himself to build schools in the most dangerous, remote and anti-American parts of Asia, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

By the way, have you read the two novels written by Afghan writer Khaled Hosseini? The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns are must-read books!