Without a Country

by Ayşe Kulin

Do you remember what Heinrich Heine wrote a century ago in that scene where Christians burn the Koran? One of Heine’s characters, a Moor, says, “This is but the prologue. Where books are burnt, people in the end are burnt, too.”

‘obedience and discipline are not the same. Obedience is unquestioning submission to authority; discipline requires adherence to certain essential rules and duties, yes, but one is permitted—nay, encouraged—to question those very rules and duties.’

“Rituals and community can help people find their path. Most people adopt their parents’ religions without ever thinking about why.