It's not only Abu Nawas' rhapsody, it is also my rhapsody. Maybe it is yours too. It's about mysticism, sexuality, spirituality, and more than anything, love. History repeats itself through our personalities, and as an Arab sometimes I feel that I belong to Abu Nawas's time, or perhaps he to mine. How surprisingly real can the sensitivity of poets be, like that of Abu Nawas and Ibn Fared - their thoughts, their approach to life or their way of approaching life.
What interests me most is the idea of longing, of yearning and desire in my own universe as well as in the people around me. In the end, what I seek is the Tajalli: the dream, the ecstasy, call it spiritual lust. Beauty is a real, sensual and simple concept: what we see, hear, taste and feel, guided by desire and inspired by love. (Dhafer Youssef)