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Etymologies

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Examples

  • These range from the ashurkhana and zawiya to the khanqah and tekke.

    Ismaili Mail 2008

Comments

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  • "When asked 'What is worship?,' Muinuddin Chishti, founder of the Chishti Order, responded,

    'To listen to the plight of the oppressed, to help the needy, and to fill the stomachs of the hungry. The man who does these three things may consider himself a friend of Allah. First he should have generosity like a river; secondly, kindness like the sun and, thirdly, humility like the earth. The man who is blessed is the man who is generous.'

    Muinuddin became legendary for his embodiment of this philosophy. It is said that so many meals were cooked every day in his kitchen that every impoverished person in the whole city could eat until satisfied. His custom was continued by his successors — any surplus at Chishti khanqahs was distributed to visitors and the needy."

    - Neshamah Emi Miller, 30 March 2008.

    March 31, 2008

  • Does this rhyme with wanker?

    March 31, 2008

  • No. Banker rhymes with wanker.

    March 31, 2008

  • Thanks. So how is it pronounced?

    March 31, 2008

  • I've always heard khan- of South Asian languages pronounced as a British person might pronounce the first bit of carnation. ie, not as in can. The Aga Khan would be most displeased.

    March 31, 2008

  • Aga Khan, but Immanuel Kant.

    Not perfect then, but it still sounds like a pretty close rhyme. Close enough to use in a poem about a wanker.

    March 31, 2008

  • Close enough :-) Some of my favourite poems have this kind of rhyme. I used to think it was a bit of a cop out but it's a very sophisticated thing if done well.

    April 1, 2008