2015 "Longing for the Divine" Calendar

LONGING DIVINE 2015 for the

andalusian arts | award-winning calendar

ANDALUSIAN ARTS presents its award-winning 2015 Longing for the Divine calendar. In a world where change is the norm, these aphorism-photo pairings suggest that some things—like the quest for the Divine—are timeless. We hope that each month's display reflects this sense of the Sacred wherever the calendar is exhibited.

ANDALUSIAN ARTS is a producer of print and gift items for both the Islamic corporate and retail markets. Our product line includes calendars, premium greeting cards, and commissioned prints. We offer customized product designs to embassies, corporations, and non-profits; these have been successfully used as fundraisers, purchase incentives, patron appreciation for non-profits, corporate giveaways, and as a component of a larger company branding strategy.

Our clientele/partners/retailers include: Borders Bookstores Inc.; Calendars.com; Partners West; TNT; Guidance Residential; the Intercontinental Hotel (Middle East); Forum Against Islamophobia and Racism (London); UMMA Community Clinic (Los Angeles); Averroes Academy (Chicago); the Marriott Hotel (Middle East); Astrolabe Islamic Media (N. Virginia); Islamic Society of North America (ISNA); and the Unity Center (Greater Michigan).

Cover photo: Tunis © Lucie Debelkova• All photographs are protected by the indicated copyrights • “Longing for the Divine” © 2002–2014 Andalusian Arts, LLC Produced by Mohamed Marei • Designed by Sohail Nakhooda • Additional design by Maher Yusuf • Special thanks to Hani Samman, Omar Samman, Zeina Shahzada, Nidal Al-Qudairi, Imad Nimer, and Anaya and Nafisa Marei • Islamic dates used throughout the calendar are based on the Umm-ul-Qura calendar, which has been accepted by the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), and the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR) • Holidays are based on data provided by Khalid Shaukat’s moonsighting.com • Due to the nature of lunar calendars, actual dates may vary by one and, rarely, two days.

Longing for the Divine sunday

monday

“The blank space in the modern heart is a God-shaped blank” –Julian Huxley Within each of us is a faculty that quests for something beyond itself. A colorful gallery of psychiatrists, anthropologists, poets, and others have reflected on this insistent urge to grasp at something larger than our own identity. For Muslims well-versed in the letter and spirit of their tradition, this thirst has been identified as the desire to know our Creator, the Divine.

Allah—the Arabic word for God—hasn’t left us to our own devices in this lifelong journey.

The task of all prophetic messengers from Adam to Jesus to Muhammad (peace and blessings upon them all) was two-fold: first, to reveal or revive manners of conduct that would bring us in harmony with the universe, and second, to develop our hearts and souls so that we may fall in love with Him: “My servant approaches me with nothing more beloved to Me than what I have made obligatory on him, and My servant keeps drawing nearer to Me with voluntary works until I love him. And when I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes, and his foot with which he walks. If he asks Me, I will surely give to him, and if he seeks refuge in Me, I will surely protect him.”

Some reflection points to the value of this sacred tradition, words that convey an explicit methodology for traversing the path. This, among other things, underscores the Islamic worldview: a practical prescription of how to live a saintly life in the midst of a busy world, exemplified in the person of the Prophet (God bless him and give him pace). In a world gone mad with eighty-hour work weeks and always-

tuesday

wednesday

thursday

friday

saturday

on communication, it is this call to calm hearts and restore them to sanity that is most needed.

There is an old tale of the sun and the wind competing with one another as to who would succeed in getting a young man to remove his jacket. The wind blew and blew, all to no avail; each violent puff, more insistent than the one that preceded it, prompted the man to wrap himself ever more tightly. The sun, on the other hand, did what it does best: it simply smiled.

The coat came off immediately.

We are taught that Allah is beautiful, and that He loves beauty. Throughout the fourteen centuries of Islamic civilization, evidence of this beauty has been amply evident: the geometric pattern painted on the ceiling of a mosque, the rhythmic motions of prayer beads in saintly hands, or a lover absorbed in prostration, where nothing matters except his Beloved, his Lord.

The Prophet (God bless him and give him peace) supplicated, “I ask You for the longing to meet You,” and this singleminded determination to transcend a life of automation and routine is a high aspect of the Prophetic Way. A traditional saying approaches it from a slightly different angle: “I was a hidden treasure and I longed to be known, so I created the world that I may be known.”

We journey seeking the Divine for no purpose other than to fulfill destiny, for this longing is the very purpose of creation. The path has been paved and is well-worn. What remains is to travel.

“And I hastened to You, my Lord, to please You” (Qur’an 20:84).

Whoever kindness graces is beautified by it prophetic tradition monday

sunday 6

28

7

tuesday

29

8

wednesday

30

9

31

thursday

1

10

friday

saturday

2

11

The Prophet’s Birthday (Milad al-Nabi)

New Year’s Day

13

4

14

5

20

11

21

12

27

18

28

19

15

22

29

6

16

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23

20

30

7 14 21

Martin Luther King Day

4

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25 1

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12

17

8

24

15

1

3

12

22

9

19

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25

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26

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2

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30

10

18

24

Rabi‘ II

26 2

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3

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Tunis © Lucie Debelkova

DE C EM B ER 2 0 1 4 S

FE B RUARY

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JANUARY 2015 Rabi‘ I/Rabi‘ II

31 S

When love touches down serenity unfolds boutchichi monday

sunday

tuesday

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25

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wednesday

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14

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28

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thursday

29

16

6

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7

12

23

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24

14

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1

20

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21

9

28

Presidents Day

Jumada I

22

4

23

10

1

11

2

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saturday

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15

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friday

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Meknes © Lucie Debelkova

February Rabi‘ II/Jumada I

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16

J ANUARY S

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You! Who was gifted with wings— Why crawl? rumi monday

sunday

tuesday

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wednesday

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thursday 14

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friday

saturday

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15

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29

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Daylight Savings Time begins

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28

Jumada II

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A P RI L

FE B RUARY

Marrakesh © Lucie Debelkova

March Jumada I/Jumada II

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Quieting the ego enlivens the heart imam ‘ali monday

sunday 9

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30

tuesday 11

wednesday

31

12

1

thursday

2

13

friday

saturday

14

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22

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Good Friday (UK/Canada)

16

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Easter

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25

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27

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Easter Monday

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15 22

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29

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25

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Rajab

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MAY

MAR C H

Souss-Massa-Draa © Lucie Debelkova

April Jumada II/Rajab

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When at the Beloved’s door bring your entirety sanai monday

sunday 7

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tuesday

26

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27

3

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4 11

wednesday

thursday

friday

saturday

28

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Early May Bank Holiday (UK)

21

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26

Night Journey (Al-Isra’ wal-Mi‘raj)

Mother’s Day

28

17

29

18

Victoria Day (Canada)

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24

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26

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28

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Sha‘ban

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Memorial Day Spring Bank Holiday (UK)

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Istanbul © Sohail Nakhooda / KRM

May Rajab/sha‘ban

J UNE

A P RI L S

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Most beloved to the Divine is granting relief to the distressed chisti monday

sunday 13

31

14

tuesday

1

wednesday

2

16

9

23

16

30

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thursday

3

17

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10

24

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1

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friday

saturday

5

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26

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27

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Night of Salvation (15th of Sha‘ban)

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Ramadan

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Father’s Day

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Borneo Island © Lucie Debelkova

sha‘ban/Ramadan

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June

J U LY

MAY S

Ennui pangs of quiet desperation lodged deep in my heart Only the Beloved is a cure rabi’a monday

sunday 11

28

12

tuesday

29

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wednesday

30

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1

thursday 15

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friday

saturday

3

16

Canada Day

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Independence Day

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15

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Night of Power (Laylat al-Qadr)

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24

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25

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31

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1 Shawwal ‘Eid al-Fitr

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Dana © Lucie Debelkova

July Ramadan/Shawwal

1 AU G UST

J UNE S

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1

No matter the drop’s belief— the Ocean remains forever as the Ocean attar monday

sunday

wednesday

thursday

friday

saturday

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tuesday

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27

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20

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27

29

Dhul Qa‘da

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30

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24

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26

31

17

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18

2

Cairo © Sohail Nakhooda / KRM

August Shawwal/Dhul Qa‘da

SE P TEM B ER

J U LY S

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Whoever beholds the Divine serves with brimming joy every created thing jilani monday

sunday

tuesday

wednesday

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30

16

31

17

1

22

6

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7

24

8

18

25

thursday

2

19

3

9

26

10

4

17

11

24

18

1

friday

saturday

4

21

5

11

28

12

5

18

6

19

12

25

13

26

19

2

20

3

20

27

Labor Day (US/Canada)

29

13

1

14

2

21

9

15

3

16

Dhul Hijja

7

20

8

22

Day of ‘Arafat

14

21

27 4

15

22

28 5

10

23

‘Eid al-Adha

16

29

23

6

17

30

24

7

Cappadocia © Lucie Debelkova

O C TO B ER

AU G UST S

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September Dhul Qa‘da/Dhul Hijja

Each of your breaths is accompanied by the Merciful ansari monday

sunday 14

27

15

tuesday

28

16

wednesday

30

18

1

19

2

20

3

24

7

25

8

26

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27

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24

30

18

31

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28

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30

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1

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Columbus Day

Muharram

Thanksgiving Day (Canada)

New Islamic Year 1437 ah

6

19

7

saturday

17

4

18

friday

29

21

5

thursday

20

8

21

2

15

9

22

3

10 Ashura

12

25

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26 2

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27

21

3

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28

22

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Muscat Š Lucie Debelkova

NO V EM B ER

SE P TEM B ER S

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October Dhul Hijja/muharram 1437

On the shore safety is assured But deep in the waters lie riches beyond compare saadi monday

sunday 19

1

20

2

tuesday 21

wednesday

3

22

4

Daylight Savings Time ends

26

8

thursday

5

23

friday

saturday

6

24

7

25

Guy Fawkes Day (UK)

27

9

28

10

29

11

30

12

Veterans Day

13

2

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20

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21

15

27

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28

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5

1 Safar

Remembrance Day (Canada)

3

15

10

22

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11

16

5

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12

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6

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13

18 25

7

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14

26

Thanksgiving

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29

24

6

18

30

25

7

19

1

26

8

20

2

27

9

21

3

O C TO B ER S

Mostar Š Lucie Debelkova

November muharram/safar

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DE C EM B ER

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Quiet reflection is the lantern of the heart

imam haddad monday

sunday

tuesday

wednesday

17

29

18

30

19

1

24

6

25

7

26

8

20

27

thursday

2

21

3

9

28

10

friday

saturday

4

22

11

29

Hanukkah

2

13

9

20

3

10

27

17

14

4

21

11

15

5

22

12

16 23

28

18

29

19

30

Bank Holiday (UK)

23

3

24

12

1 Rabi‘ I

6

17

13

24

4

7

18

8

19

14

25

15

26

Christmas

The Prophet’s Birthday (Milad al-Nabi)

16

5

23

20

31

Boxing Day (UK/Canada)

1

21

2

22

New Year’s Eve

25

5

26

6

Alexandria © Sohail Nakhooda / KRM

J ANUARY 2 0 1 6

NO V EM B ER S

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December safar/Rabi‘ I

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2003-2014 Calendar Marketing Association Awards for “Longing for the Divine” • Gold, Best Subject (Corporate) • Gold, Best Subject (Customized) • Gold (2x), Best Finishing Technical Achievement • Silver, Best Subject (Retail) • Silver, Best Non-Profit (Customized) • Bronze, Best Typography • Bronze, Best Color Separations • #1 Amazon best-seller (2014)

“beautifully designed and produced … visually compelling, and the quotes inspiring” — Rochelle Kessler, LA County Museum of Art

january • Tunis

february • Meknes

march • Marrakesh

“a calendar that will lift your heart and open your mind” — Robert Arndt, Editor, Aramco World “this exquisite and elegant calendar reminds us of the breathtaking beauty and tranquility that typifies traditional Islam” — S. A. Schleifer, Director, Adham Center, American University in Cairo “I am not a Muslim; but as I gaze on these beautiful photographs … peace comes to me” — Pamela Nice, Associate Director, Center for Faculty Development, University of St. Thomas

april • Souss-Massa-Draa

may • Istanbul

june • Borneo Island

Following its #1 Amazon best-selling 2014 calendar, Andalusian Arts presents the 2015 edition: Twelve stunning images captured by world-class photographers of the spiritual tapestry of the Muslim world, coupled with the wisdom-words of scholar-saints such as Attar, Rumi and Chisti… a colorful glimpse into the living universe of traditional Islamic spirituality.

Whoever kindness graces is beautified by it prophetic tradition monday

sunday 6

july • Dana

augusT • Cairo

28

7

tuesday

29

8

wednesday

30

9

31

thursday

1

10

september • Cappadocia

friday

13

4

14

5

20

11

21

12

27

18

28

19

15

22

29

6

16

13

23

20

30

7 14 21

Martin Luther King Day

4

11

25 1

5

12

17

8

24

15

1

22

9

19

10

25

16

26

17

2

23

3

9

30

10

18

Andalusian Arts

december • Alexandria

www.AndalusianArts.com • info@AndalusianArts.com © “Longing for the Divine” 2002-2015 Andalusian Arts US Tel: 310-694-3762

24

Rabi‘ II

26

6

27

7

28

2

13

3

14

4

8

29

Tunis © Lucie Debelkova

Rabi‘ I/Rabi‘ II

november • Mostar

3

12

The Prophet’s Birthday (Milad al-Nabi)

SAN 257-053X

Printed in Jordan

31

deCemBer 2014 s

m 1

t

w

t

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feBruary s

s 1

m

t

w

t

f

s

2

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JANUARY 2015

october • Muscat

saturday

2

11

New Year’s Day