"THE ISLAMIC BREAKTHROUGH:" MUSLIM LITERATURE IN SEARCH OF IDEOLOGY, in The Caucasus & Globalization (2007), Vol. 1 (2), Pp. 80-88.

The pleasure afforded by a deft turn of phrase was valued so highly that when Mecca was destroyed by a flood in 823 and the caliph sent money and a letter of consolation, it was given to understand that the "people of Mecca appreciated the letter more than the money."

A. Mets,The Islamic Renaissance

ABSTRACT

The next season of the literary prize "The Islamic Breakthrough" was announced in October 2006. This is the second year a contest has been held for this prize, after it arose on the basis of a web poetry competition called "Reading the Sweet Koran" held with the support of the Federal Press and Mass Media Agency. The main goal of the award is to ignite Russian society’s interest in the Muslim culture. Last season, the journalDruzhba narodov (Friendship of Nations),the Ummah Publishing House, and the Sobranie Association of Public Organizations acted as the founders of the award. Original (untranslated) works by currently living authors in the Russian language competed for the prize. There were three categories: "Poetry," "Prose," and "Journalism."....................