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Category:
Mainstream
Publisher: Authorhouse
Type: Fiction
Pages: 185
ISBN-13: 9781434326683
An allegory based on the Persian poet Rumi's concept of war, greed and corruption and its effect on the soul
The Nightingale Sings
The Nightingale Sings is an allegory set in Egypt during World War II and based on a Persian poet Rumi's Sufi philosophy about war, greed, and corruption and its resultant effect on the soul.
The protagonist is an English priest, John Wilson, born and raised in Egypt during his parent’s
assignment as archaeologists working at an excavation site in Giza, Egypt. John ends up pursuing the priesthood in England. Upon returning as a military chaplain to his homeland Egypt, which has been occupied by the British for over two centuries, he finds greed and corruption on the rise, along with the theft of valuable artifacts among a chain of antique dealers in Europe.
Having decided to make a stand in stopping the loss of these artifacts and in opposing the war, John readily becomes a thorn in the side of the occupying power. Assigned to a parish in Giza and to the army base, John discharges his duties as a priest and finds employment for his flock while attending to the wounded and the dying on the battlefield at El-Alamein. John's childhood friend from Giza, a man by the name of Mustapha, has now risen to the head of a Sufi whirling dervishes order in Cairo. John embarks to Cairo in search of his long lost companion. Having found him, Mustapha invites John to partake in a mystic dance ceremony, which John gladly accepts. The ceremony is conducted to raise one's soul to new spiritual heights, thus taking John to an entirely new realm of understanding.
John’s reward for his efforts in tracking the loss of antiquities and his pacifist attitude permits him entrance to the Garden of Bliss to meet his deceased mother. At the garden he encounters Noah's Ark, and he questions the purpose of the ark. On subsequent journeys, John is taken to various stations, including one where color is manufactured. All that John once perceived as truth is revealed as an illusion. He continued his journey to the station of balance, where he is taught the science of equilibrium and what happens when the human soul is not perfectly balanced. These journeys are remuneration for John's soul because of his contribution to humanity. In essence, John is the conscience of man.
Having attained the necessary powers at these stations, John becomes a conduit through whom the higher forces act in order to correct the chaos and disorder afflicting Egypt. Soon the trial begins and judgment falls. The court establishes a link with the king's cabinet in the corruption. However, this occurs through the direct influence of a greater power carried out through John. It is an inner subtle body, Latifa, who uses John to bring about the downfall and the subsequent exile of king from Egypt and the British troops soon depart from Egypt.
The story based in England and Egypt has the hallmark of all that is wrong with society today. The king, which is the soul of the land, reflects these qualities, including ego, corruption, and greed. Having been in such a company, the soul invites, through its own willfulness, other forces possessing moral and ethical values totally opposite to it. These negative values soon take over, thus pushing the soul further into despair. This is when the self wages war, and a downward spiral of moral and mental discord results. The internal conscience of the society, represented through Mustapha and the whirling dervishes, is made impotent by having most of their spiritual houses shut down. Thus an external conscience in the form of Reverend John Wilson is sent to reinvigorate it. Together they become a powerful force, exiling the king and thus freeing the soul from its unethical shackles and placing the spirit on its noble trajectory. For completing his mission John is assured a place in the divine Garden of Bliss.
The Nightingale Sings offers more than entertainment. It establishes a message of freedom from affliction through an allegory that incorporates history with a whirlwind of adventure. Prepare to be intrigued, enlightened, and inspired as you share John Wilson’s journey into a most promising destiny!
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