Moj Magazine: POSTCARD FROM WALKINGTON/SHAHNAMEH FERDOSI

ferdosi and shahnameh ferdosi

ferdosi mausoleum ,built for millennium of his birth in tus,khorasan,1313/1924

Walking in Washington , like in any other metropolis of the world,is soul searching of that city,to expedite and explore,to discover the discovered,and to landfall on a grand shore of art and culture.Also in this scene,if a beautiful fall day is wandering around with you,then there is no reason to whine,but have joy and jubilate on your trail,to be a good company...
It is all about seeking a surprise system,but so much so of daily routines are in abundance,rubbing on the tip of your toes that confuses your navigator and directions.
What we always do is moving the city with us,who is moving us with her,and we see her flirting from all dimensions,to be real and abstract.We build and rebuild her at present and in history.We make her naked in a new museum to walk around her,and then adorn and enjoy.
This behavior is painful too,when you are counting the urban blocks in numbers and letters and names,up and down and diagonal,and still going and going and going...
.....
November is the National Novel Writing Month.Now we are writing our own novel by foot,in streets of D.C.,our medium size metropolis with her extralarge generous museums,tout a gratuits,todos gratis!On this
our camears and sights are in good assistance.It is written by letters and light.It is a cirque du soleil in fall.And it falls.Like any other cirque or cirque players,it comes for setting up an it goes.It never settles down.If it does it is spoiled,and that is the end,without being the end!Gypsies are born gypsies.Gypsies are in and out of their own traelogues.
I grasped eternity by the tail of the words,like those monkeys in Dr Arthur Sackler,M.D.'s museum,who are grasping each others tail to reach moon.What a dreamy dramatic darn moon landing.Now FIRDOSI(but not Firdawsi) with his SHAHNAMEH(but not Shahnama)is waiting around the corner from Moon Gate Garden as an extension of eternity to give us a tour of unwritten novel,called history.
We start by Bazm and Razm,feasting and fighting,and by the end of the day,we still standing there in bazm and razm`.There are old books in the box under the light,illumination and double illumination,writings on the wall with maps,mostly very helpful,and the miniatures,great persian miniatures or classical paintings,with all those mongolian faces superimposed on Iranian mythological characters.If FERDOSI (but not Firdawsi)was here, he would have started writing his SHAHNAMEH(but not Shahnama)all over again,although when we were browsing books in the museum shop,we noticed Dick Davis did it beautifully for him,this time in english, this time already revived and popular around the world.
From Kyomars,the first man to Yazdgerd Sassani,all 50 kings,including 3 women are gathering here in razm and bazm.They came like the wind and departed like breath.By the way my great grandfather was there too.I am referring to DIV MAZANDARAN,a protector and symbol of Behdinan that Rostam was assigned by Zoroastrian to fight with,but he survived.He survived by leaving his spiritual heritage to all religions to come in the next 5-6 millennia,in the region or
faraways,including,Mitraism,Manichism,Zoroastrism,Buddhism,Brahmanism,Induism and so called light religions,all three of them.As you noticed DIV=Dieu or god never dies,contrary to Nietzshe and the rumors he scattered in tabloids.
SHAHNAMEH(not Shahnama) is not an aftermath.It is a beginning to dream big and drape the time,with the curtains torn repeatedly.Sackler Museum in a friendly environment tried to set all these in a small room,semi dark,with a lot of familiar faces ,but so untrustful to each other,they wouldn't look at you in the eyes,not to mention,wearing a pale smile.what you see in the book,you would experience in this humble room.
That how human relationships and bondage were practiced from prehistory and through history.And
that's how it goes in here and now.
It was a beatiful season with the sun all out,then overcast started to show up .Near Smithsonian red brick castle,we met this couple from Chicago,who were looking for gem stones.we guided them to Natural History Museum,for free,and then asked them how Rahm is doing?The lady said she cares more for Mayor Daley,and doesn't have much news on Mayor-to-be.Then on the gravel road,you tried to explain to me what the sculpture garden means ,and we thought Hirshhorn Museum is not only a COLOR FORM,or Argentinian artist Guillermo Kuitca's walk through show,with all his ripped out maps,although his 3D setting sat deep in our eyes and in Suaie's video.
It is a window you look at the world.
It is a window you are looked at.
We descended the triple cylindrical tower and looked at Hirshhorn mojistic Sculpture Garden, through the sky of autumn,with Marino Marini's celestial horseman and Henry Moore's women ,reclinining and crouching.
There were golden leaves and the sun.
There were herbs and plants,and then the National Gallery.s Sculpture Garden on our way with Juan Miro's bird ,Chinese Imperial soldiers ,and company.
We walked through the little European Quarter of 7th Street,then walked back in Walkington to complete our 6 miles trail,passing by Langston Hughes old house and reaching Langston Hughes Way, to drive back home,through the ever griddlocked Route 66,to and fro.This is our Route 66,different than your antique Route 66 of Chicago to Arizona and California.
There were clouds again gathering and scattering in skylane , and the sun saying farewell.
It's been a wonderfall day!