Although seemingly unrelated, the three Arabic articles in this book focus on one major theme: they relate the journey of the Lebanese hero in diaspora and at home, his quest for a permanent peace, and his ongoing saga that chronicles the legend of his unreachable dream and promised victory. This book takes you on a journey from the bitter, but enduring experience, of spreading the Arabic alphabet in New York to the inevitability of baptism, sacrifice and total redemption in the "River of Ashes" where a new civilization is expected to be born, and ultimately, to the final triumph embodied in the dignity of the human voice, the sacredness of the eternal oral word, and the power of the holy vision that can recreate a country that knows how to love, persevere, give and create. These articles narrate the epic of suffering, redemption and triumph of four men (Mirshid Masoud of Arsoun, Khalil Hawi of Shouwair, Joseph al Hashim of Damour, and Mousa Zughaib of Kesirwan), all of whom were endowed with genius and exceptional gifts and who accepted the mission of transforming their country and its history through the medium of language into an odyssey of mythical wonders and realistic dreams. These are their tales that bespeak of their deep and eternal connection to Kahlil Gibran who inspired them and brought them together in this book, and to Said Akl, who embarked them on an unexpected journey and an historic encounter of unparalleled dimensions.
About the Author: George Nicolas El-Hage, Ph.D. is a Lebanese-American poet, professor, linguist, administrator and writer. He was born in Mansourieh El-Metn, Lebanon in 1952. His father was Nicolas Iskandar El-Hage and his mother was Martha Abounader El-Hage. Dr. El-Hage completed his elementary and secondary school education in Lebanon. He acquired his B.A. in Arabic Literature from the Lebanese University in Beirut, Lebanon. While in Beirut, El-Hage studied with and was influenced by poets like Buland al-Haidari and Khalil Hawi. He then emigrated to the United States where he completed both his Master of Arts and Ph.D. in Arabic and Comparative Literature at the State University of New York in Binghamton. His dissertation (later published into a book by NDU Press, Lebanon) was on William Blake and Kahlil Gibran: Poets of Prophetic Vision. He has taught at Yale University, Binghamton University, The Lebanese University, Columbia University, the Monterey Institute of International Studies (a graduate school of Middlebury College) and the Defense Language Institute. His academic career has been equally spent between teaching, authoring, lecturing and administration. Dr. El-Hage is a prolific writer with a perfect command of both English and Arabic languages. His training and expertise in the field of Arabic and Comparative Literature has enabled him to delve into a wide range of topics and areas covering literature, mythology, mysticism, language acquisition, criticism, theology and art. He is a published poet in Arabic, both in Modern Standard and in spoken Levantine Dialect as well as in Lebanese Zajal. He also writes poetry in English and is an accomplished translator. Dr. El-Hage has published seven volumes of poetry, numerous research articles, books on language pedagogy and poetry in Lebanese Dialect and Zajal. His poetry betrays a marked fluctuation between a deep romantic sensitivity and a tragic existential awareness which colors his reading of current universal and regional events. The tragedy of his embattled country constitutes a dominant theme in his writings. El-Hage is a supporter of the free verse movement in Modern Arabic Poetry. Nevertheless, he still appreciates the Qasida 'Amudiyya, the classical form of traditional Arabic Poetry. He always chooses short meters, and his poetry is characterized by its musical effects.