Tanoura Show @Cairo

Written By: Nermine Sami Abd El Fattah.

20-10-2003.

While you are visiting the ancient part of Cairo city, you should not miss the chance of spending a pleasant evening at The El-Ghuri Wakala,Built in 1504 A.D. by Sultan Qunsuwah Al Ghouri, late during the reign of Mamelukes, Wakalat El-Ghouri was originally designed as an inn for accommodating traders coming from all parts of the globe as well as a marketplace for trading goods and a venue for making trade deals.now It is selected as the seat for reviving conventional handicrafts as well as housing ateliers of contemporary artists.

Attending one of the most amazing Egyptian Folk musical nights called ‘El Tanoura Show’,it's performed by ‘El Tanoura Troupe for the Cultural Heritage’; which has given varied performances in over 30 countries, there are no entry fees ,it’s a courtesy of The Egyptian ministry of Culture to Egypt's visitors.

The Show commences at 8:00 pm during the summer and early at 7:00 pm (winter time), for 3 days a week on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday.

The Show:
At the beginning , Selections of Folkloric music will be played by local Egyptian musicians, previewing The Egypt’s musical heritage.

Then comes ‘The Tanoura ‘Presentation Dance and lastly they end the show with the very special spiritual Whirling Dervish (Darawish) performing.

'Darawish' is a Turkish word to describe the Sufi person who is the one comes at doors to enlighten people and he is a member of a Muslim religious order noted for devotional exercises (as bodily movements leading to a trance)

The meaning of Dancer’s movements:-As the major Tanoura dancer moves himself around, the other dancers start to follow in his dancing steps by whirling around him in a great harmony,in order to act out the movement of the planets on space around the sun.

-The Tanoura dancer unties the four different skirts (Tanoura) to roll them round his moving body during the finale, their various rounds symbolize the succession of the four seasons, and their anti-clock wise movement is a symbol of the movement that the Muslims usually do around ‘The Kaaba’ (the holy shrine in Mecca) during the Pilgrimage.

The History of Sufism& Dervish:

Sufism is the faith of Spirituality in Islam Religion which accepts the concept that all Divine Religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam ) have one message ,Sufism is basically founded upon the universal and unconditional forgiveness.

The branch of Sufi Mysticism practised widely in Turkey where it was begun by a man called ‘Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi’ (Ottoman Empire -13th Century A.D.),this branch was famous for its Whirling Dervish Tradition ,and from here it came the relation between Sufism and Dervish.

With relation to this, certainly there is no comparison between the Egyptian Dervish show and The Sufi Whirling Dervish performing in Turkey, as each show has a different perspective on the music and art it presents,Moreover the Turkish Whirling Dervish is a kind of religious ceremony.

The beauty of the Egyptian Dervish performance is that you’ll completely interact emotionally & physically with the music and entertaining Melody.

Christmas in Egypt

My Original Article :
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/christmas.htm


The Nativity (Christmas)
you may think that there is no Christmas celebration in Egypt for considering Egypt as an Islamic country...but in Egypt there is amount of Christians who are living peacefully side by side with Egyptian Muslims.
Egyptian Orthodox Christians (or Coptic Christians) celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on January 7th, a date equivalent to the 29th day of the Coptic month of " Khiahk". Of course, in many other countries Christmas is celebrated on December 24th, The difference in the dates comes from the difference between the Coptic and Gregorian calendars. However, because of the time the Holy Family spent in Egypt with the infant Jesus.

Christmas is a very special celebration in Egypt, and it's more religious than in anywhere else cause the Coptic of Egypt are still so caring and stick to their religious rituals, therefore All Coptic feasts come after a period of fasting. A Coptic fast means going completely without food for a part of the day, according to one's strength. It is called "lent fasting", and formally lasts from November 25th until January 6th (Advent), though the majority of people only fast for the last week. For the rest of the day, only food which has no animal products in it may be eaten. Therefore, meat, fish, eggs and milk are forbidden This is of course a time of great celebration, and holiday season special choirs present concerts of Christmas carols with a mixed program of international and Coptic music.
Like in the west, homes are decorated with lights and Christmas trees. Some Christmas trees are real, but many are artificial....and you can find a lot of stores in Egypt are selling Christmas trees and its all decoration stuffs.
Nowadays, the Coptic Nativity is celebrated by a special midnight service in the church, followed by the ringing of the church's bells. The largest service is held by the Coptic pope in Saint Mark's cathedral in Cairo. This service, usually conducted by the Pope at the 11:00 PM services, is even broadcast on Egyptian TV. After the service, families go home to break their fast and children receive new clothes and gifts. The meal is called fatta, and usually consists of meat and rice.

Copts also make special sweet biscuits at Nativity that are decorated with a cross. In fact, it's the same "kahk" that Muslims make for Eid el fitr. Whether Egyptians are Muslims or Christians, their way in celebration is the same.

In the Egyptian Coptic church, a special bread called "Qurban" is given to people during the service in the church and it is also available outside the church after the service. It is made in very large quantities for the big festivals. Qurban bread is decorated with a cross in the middle, surrounded by twelve dots. Of course, those dots represent the twelve apostle of Jesus Christ.On Christmas morning people visit friends and neighbors.

The Nativity (Christmas) in Past:
Nothing has changed since Islam came to Egypt in 642. Coptics had and continue to have the freedom to practice their religion, including feasts. Even the Fatimid caliphs (who had several Coptic & Jewish palace officials) often encouraged non-Muslim festivals. In fact, the Nativity became one of the main festivals celebrated by both Christians and Muslims. The caliph once distributed special trays of food to princes and officials, especially including dishes of "bouri" (mullet fish) and "Zalabya" (doughnuts).

During the Nativity, churches have always been decorated with special candles and lamps. Copts also gave candles and lamps as gifts to their families, neighbors and friends, as well as to the poor. It is believed that the candles are in memory of Joseph the Carpenter, who lit lamps to protect Mary (The Virgin) from the cold on the night of the Nativity. For many centuries the Nativity was celebrated by performances in the streets and by fire-shows. In the Mamlouk times, lamps decorated the streets and candles were everywhere.
References:
*Festivals of Egypt(Book by Jailan Abbas) .
*Some information from christian colleagues.