Catherine5 wrote:
That figures into the next question. I did apply for a Saudi visa to visit those two - heh heh, holy cities - but was rejected owing to the requirement that single women have, or be, * 3 * M's:
Mahram, Married, Muslim
ME-"Don't be discouraged Catherine, you still have time to fulfil the requirments of the 3 M's and visit your dream cities someday."
I still, however, do qualify for the honorific title. I have made epic trips into dangerous lands order to see the following shirins: Jerusalem 2 Dome of the Rock, al-Aqsa - these are regarded as the third holiest because they were where the prayers were first directed; Samarra [tomb of Imams including the special place where the last Imam is believed to have disappeared- shh don't tell Prav!], Najaf, Karbala [important Imams both of these too], Kufa, Kazimiya [7th and 9th Imams there, in Baghdad], Mashhad [8th Imam- I will post a couple videos so you can see visually how extraordinary that place is. It may stop even you from complaints ! If nothing else, it will expand your horizons to see marvels of other cultures], Qom [shrine of sister of 8th Imam, Fatima Zahra = Fatima the Immaculate]. They are ALL stupendous, beyond words!
ME-"I'll take your word about this since you seem to have given a balanced and intelligent account of these places'
There are also what are called Imamzadehs [sons and daughters and descendants of Imams and Saints] all over Iran, such as the one in Ray - yes that's the name of city, a great one in earlier times - where the shrine of the daughter of the final Shah of the Sassanian dynasty, Yazdigerd III, is buried. Her name was Shahbanou I think and she is much loved by Iranians because they believe that she married Imam Hussein, thus uniting the highly advanced civilization of Persia under its Kings with the new lineage of the Imams. I missed that one unfortunately.
Then of course, I have traveled far out of my way to visit every Sufi Saint imaginable from Turkey to Pakistan to Central Asia. Have any questions about any of them, I can answer - IF asked even semi-politely
ME-'With all due respect, I have no questions about these "saints," I'm really not interested."
Yes! The evil eyes, they ARE so helpful. I always carry one around me, in car, yes, to ward off that jealous instinct which turns immediately to black magic if not averted. I'm serious! Older cultures know! They put evil eye beads around the newborn's crib, and do not permit neighbors or stray people to see the child for something like 40 days. To this day, they are VERY conscious of the damage caused by the bad thoughts directed at a good person by another human. Partly this practice reflects how children are so sought after that one must be vigilant to protect because others will be envious. In the Western world, it seems almost opposite these days. People are not envious, prefer not to have children. But even here, it's so much better to be on the safe side. There is a nice selection of anti-evil eyes available online. It's funny to see advertisements : "What's new in our evil eyes" - I browse through anti-evil eyes occasionally, as you can see.
ME-" I do believe some people can harm others with their eyes under the proper circumstances but don't believe these blue eye trinkets can protect anyone from anything.I have a couple of these blue evil eye beads in a drawer somewhere where I keep useless stuff. I probably should look for them and throw them in the trash. If you want them you can have them. Orthodox Christians really aren't suppose to put faith in amulets to protect themselves from the evil eye, better to use a Cross."
