Sidi Ouasmine  :  The Sultan of Regraga

Sidi Ouasmine : The Sultan of Regraga

The annual pilgrimage around the locality of Essaouira every spring is called ‘ Regraga’,  a name which also describes the group of Chorfa ( a darija word denoting noble religious leaders descending from the Prophet Mohamed otherwise known as Sharif )  who...
I Am He Who I Love

I Am He Who I Love

I Am He Whom I Love  I am He whom I love, and He whom I love is I:  We are two spirits dwelling in one body.  If thou seest me,  thou seest Him,  And if thou seest Him, thou seest us both.   Hussein Ibn Mansur Al Hallaj On the bus recently from Casablanca I was...
Pilgrimage : Moulay Brahim and the Gnaoua

Pilgrimage : Moulay Brahim and the Gnaoua

“You will fly over the ocean,” he continued, “by the power of baraka, the blessing of Sidi Moulay Brahim,  tair lajbal, indicating the spirit bird that flies over the Atlas Mountains” Memoir of a Berber by Hassan Ouakrim The young girl got up from the cushion...