Mira Nair Quotes
In Uganda, I am surrounded, unfortunately, by evangelicals; I can't bear it. Every night I hear the chants of Baptists urging people to be born again.
Nair, Mira. Interview by Elizabeth Day. "Mira Nair: 'I have never not made a film'." The Observer, Guardian News and Media, 12 May 2013.
It was uttered in the King’s name by soldiers and officials throughout the land. It is not certain that the exact words of choice were created by Louis but they were uttered in his name. Protestants had been given the right to practice their religion in France by the King’s grandfather (the Edict of Nantes {617664}), but Louis XIV rescinded that {617765} and gave Protestants this choice. Some converted. Some were murdered. Some escaped to other countries.
Damn this world, Damn this time. Damn this fate That uncivilized Arabs have come to make me a Moslem
This is a huge epic poem that he wrote over several years. At the time, the Persians considered themselves far more civilized and sophisticated than the Arabs who were but tribesmen. They really resented the fact that it was the Arabs that brought Islam. And before, most of the Persians worshipped Zoroaster. Although Islam spread faster and further than any religion in history, it was not always easily accepted as this stanza of the poem indicates. There is to this day a superiority that the Iranians perceive over the Arabs. And to this day, many Arabs resent the Iranians for this attitude.
He was referring to President George W. Bush, who was not only a fundamentalist, born again Christian himself, but included people in his administration and as beneficiaries of his administration specifically because they were religious fundamentalists and in some cases kept other out even filtering for religious belief in the civil service jobs of the Justice Department itself.
See {586039} for a quotation that goes further and seeks to punish and humiliate the non believers. This sura is often used by those wishing to illustrate the intolerance of Islam—especially of other religions. They fail to put this into the context of the Old Testament which proscribed death for heretics or the history of Christianity regarding the murder of nonbelievers. The difference is however, that a very small proportion of Jews or Christians today believe in following Biblical instructions in this respect while the proportion of Muslims who believe in the literal interpretation of scripture on these points is much larger. However there are Islamic modernists and moderates throughout the world who reject this notion of warring on all other religions and there is a struggle going on within Islam itself.
He reversed the Spanish policy of keeping guns from the American Indians. He provided arms with the express intention that they destroy each other. This policy almost worked for the Indians of California but several Indian tribes were exterminated.
These Christians are hard-line missionaries who have inserted themselves into Islam like a parasite.
This is an important quotation because it reflects the extreme Muslim antipathy toward non Islamic missionaries. An Islamic theocracy like Iran gets itself in a bind over missionaries because Islamic law (Sharia) which they follow requires the Death Penalty for ANY Muslim who converts to another religion. There is no opportunity for repentance; death is required. Of course, modern and reformist Muslims do not follow this Koranic requirement any more than Christians and Jews today will execute for Heresy or Adultery as is required in their Bible. The lack of balance illustrates a very difficult problem other religions have in dealing with Muslims. Christian missionaries who convert Muslims are “parasites.” Muslim missionaries who convert Christians are doing the will of God.
Mira Nair is an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City. Her production company, Mirabai Films, specializes in films for international audiences on Indian society, whether in the economic, social or cultural spheres. Among her best known films are Mississippi Masala, Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, The Namesake, the Golden Lion winning Monsoon Wedding, and Salaam Bombay!, which received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language.
