Tahir Shah Quotes

In Morocco," said Osman, "word spreads like a fire tearing through the depths of Hell.

The first few hours in the cell were quite stimulating. I'd never been in a prison cell before and was quite enjoying the experience.

During the days I felt myself slipping into a kind of madness. Solitary confinement has an astonishing effect on the mind. The trip was to stay calm and keep myself occupied. I spent hours working out how to break free. But trying to escape would have been instant suicide.

These days no one challenges us,' he said. 'And because there is no challenge, there is no reason to work hard. And with no reason to work hard, we have all become lazy.

Explorers like to pretend that they are a select breed of people with iron nerve and an ability to endure terrible hardship.

Bombay is a city where gossip is treated as a commodity.

At the last moment, the fish and I exchange a troubled glance. The murrel seems to be demanding an explanation. Alas, I am in no position to start justifying the unusual treatment. What comes next is a new experience for both the fish and me.

It is almost impossible to overemphasize the importance with which ancestry is held in the Middle East and North Africa.