Night in Tunisia

Candy for Canadian Buddhists

Today I awoke with the same lame foot as I went to bed with last night. I'm not too surprised, I guess, ever since I pulled a tendon in the arch I've had to be careful with it and I've done more walking here than I ever did in Edmonton, even when I was walking to the Museum each day. It's a twenty minute walk up and down two steep hills to get to the gym in the morning, and while Loren and I both wanted to do a workout, it was obvious that I shouldn't be walking that distance today.

I was ready to give up, but very persistent Loren came up with another solution. The gym owner Mike (pronounced Mee-keh) attends the mosque every morning for prayers and had offered us a ride before. The mosque is only a few blocks from our house and I could easily walk there. We set out early to wait for Mike at the mosque.

When prayers were over, a few dozen men started filing out from many different entrances. We spotted Mike by his white fez, and he collected us with a smile and very little words. He also picked up another morning client at the corner and we all ended up at the gym.

It was good to get to the gym without the hard walk first, and we set to work at a leisurely pace because we had arrived so much earlier than usual. After a while Mike wandered in and checked to see if we needed a spot with any exercises. We didn't, but we started chatting between sets. He asked us if we minded the chanting on the overhead speakers. It is the Koran, several tracks of recitations that he plays every morning. We, in fact, enjoy working out to the sound of the foreign prayers. It is peaceful and imparts a certain focus to the hard work that techno and pop do not. He was glad for that, and started asking about our religion.

So far most people have assumed we must be catholic. There are really only two religions in Tunisia: Islam and Judaism. When we tell people that we are not catholic, nor even Christian, really, they are always surprised. It reminds me of Ian who told me they don't mind what religion you are providing you believe in God-Almighty, or as they say here the Good God. When he asked if we had no belief Loren tried to tell him about our affinity with Buddhism. At first he though we meant Hindu, and we all had a bit of a laugh as we set that straight. It was interesting to talk about the similarity between the two beliefs as we each saw them.

I get the impression that Islam is much like Buddhism in the search for self mastery, the respect of the body, and the valuation of all life. The messages, I'm sure, can be found in all religions, but somehow, where I felt they were buried beneath the fear of sin and guilt in the Christian doctrine, I feel they are closer to the surface in Islam. Mike was pleased to tell us that we were more like good Moslems than many Tunisians who owned the title by birthright, as we are helpful, compassionate, and good to our bodies the way many Moslems are not. We smiled and thought it kind but humorous that we should be taken for good Moslems.

Mike's belief is not complex, he told us. It is profound and deep with faith. He would like to share his passion, it comes across so clearly, but he doesn't think of himself as a master of the faith. He has asked if he may give us a copy of the Koran in English, so that we can read it and see if it inspires us. He looked like a child who asked if he could share his Halloween candy with someone who has never had sweets. We graciously accepted. It would be good to understand the foundations of the culture's sense of spirit, at the very least, and it's good to have someone to bounce questions off of. He was delighted.

posted by tiaraletourneau @ 8:54 a.m.