19 Sep 2011 | no comments » people
The Shrine of Hazrat Ali, the Fourth Caliph of Islam is home to thousands of white pigeons considered to be sacred. The spot is said to be so holy if a gray pigeon should join the flock it will become white in 40 days. Feeding these birds brings good fortune. Afghan families are traveling from different part of the country to go to the Shrine of Hazrat Ali for pilgrimage. This photos is a Grand Prize Winner and was selected as one of the best photographs among other photos in a photo contest called “Why Afghanistan Matters” organized by NATO.
Click Image to Enlarge.
22 May 2010 | 1 comment » Children
“Early morning my mother gave me these eggs to sell them in the street in order to buy food. It was too cold to hold these in my frozen hands. The eggs were supposed to help us survive, but i am not to go back like this…” the child said.
Nowadays, many Afghan children are working and selling eggs, cigarettes, plastic bags, chewing gum, and lots of other cheap things in the streets. Many others lay naked on the streets to attract passionate people to give them money.
Many others have been taken from the streets and smuggled into Pakistan. A few smugglers have been arrested but they are still active.
08 Jan 2010 | no comments » people
This picture is taken in Balkh, (the birth place of Mawlana Jalalud-Din Balkhi) in Northern Afghanistan. I was assigned to photograph the birth place of Rumi and his school that had spent learning until he was 12 before he had left Afghanistan for Turkey. Donkey cart is used in rural areas normally by farmers where there is no proper road and transport system. Today, in major cities every type of car, bus, mini-van, horse cart and donkey cart can be found in the congested streets of Kabul.
09 May 2009 | no comments » historical
The main attraction of Mazar-e-Sharif is the Shrine of Hazrat Ali which sits in a large square in the center of town. Hazrat Ali, the son-in-law and cousin of the Prophet Mohammed, and founder of the Shi’a branch of Islam, assassinated in 661 AD, may or may not be buried here, most would say he is buried at Kufa, Iraq, near Baghdad. However there is a legend that says his body was transferred away from that location via camel and it was here, in present day Mazar-e-Sharif, where the camel dropped dead and the body buried. The site is so sacred that all pigeons that come to reside near the shrine will turn white within 40 days. Read more here…
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