Poetry Festivals are occasions where the performers and the audience feast on different ideas – like they are cakes and honey!
“The Poetic Heart: Connecting Humanity” was one such occasion enjoyed by one and all – on 20th February 2014. SGI in association with Dubai Knowledge Village and Dubai International Academic City hosted a full-day-event, which attracted a huge crowd. Amazingly, the auditorium was full in the first half of the programme – though it was a working day. 20 poets and musicians of different nationalities recited and performed in 11 different languages – expressing their views on peace, friendship, harmony. There was an active participation from a segment of students from Japan and various local schools. The topic of emphasis chosen by the organizers was:
Mother.
The first symposium of “The Poetic Heart: Connecting Humanity” was held in 2012. Dr. Shihab Ghanem and Dr. Ayoub Kazim were awarded the ‘Soka Gakkai Peace’ Award (SGI) in the same year. In 2013, international singer, Sami Yousuf was the guest star, and the video of his song “Ala bi Dhikriba” based on Dr. Shihab Ghanem’s poem was screened for the audience.
To know more about the “The Poetic Heart: Connecting Humanity”, kindly click on the link below:
http://www.sgigulf.org/initiatives/the-poetic-heart.
The founder of SGI Gulf is Dr. Daisaku Ikeda who resides in Japan. He has travelled widely to spread the message of peace and harmony. He has many books to his credit; he is a meaningful poet and an amazing photographer – who has tirelessly worked to build the true essence of human-connectivity for decades.
Geeta Chhabra
