Dubai: The 12th edition of ‘The Poetic Heart – Connecting Humanity’, an annual poetic symposium organized by SGI-Gulf is taking place on February 9 & 10, 2023 in Dubai. Serving as a platform for eminent local and international poets to recite their poetry, this unique cultural event encourages the reading, writing, and teaching of poetry amongst students across schools in the UAE, while fostering the convergence of poetry and music. The theme for this year’s edition of the Poetic Heart is ‘Rekindling values and co-existence.’
On day one of the symposium, students from over 40 schools in the UAE will recite poems written by them on themes such as peace, hope, happiness, and friendship, amongst others. Some of the schools participating this year are The Amity School – Dubai, Credence High School, Diyafah International School – Abu Dhabi, Mayoor Private School, Abu Dhabi, The Indian International School (IIS) – DSO, American School of Creative Science, Gems Our Own English High School – Dubai, Global Indian International School, Al Ain Junior School, Millennium School, Westminster School, Woodlem Park School, and Oxford School, to name a few. Students will get to witness poetry recitations from renowned Emirati poets such as Wael Al Sayegh, Shaikha Mutairi, and Italian Poet Claudio Pozzani, amongst others.
Held in partnership with Emirates NBD’s CSR initiative, ‘Together Limitless’, a platform that commits to advocating for people of determination, the event will also have poetry, performances, and participation from students of centers such as Tender Hearts Arena, Manzil Centre, SNF Development Centre and Al Noor Center for Persons with Disabilities.
Day two of the symposium will witness recitations from internationally renowned poets such as Dr. Pushpa Satyasheil, a well-known Indian educationist; Claudio Pozzani, an Italian poet, narrator, and musician; Indian author Sony Velukkaran, contemporary Greek poet; Dimitris P. Kraniotis, Iranian poet residing in the UAE; Silvana Salmanpour, Mexican poet; Angelica Santa Olaya and eminent Emirati poet Dr. Shihab Ghanem. In addition, some of the other notable attendees will be Dr. Mohammed Abu Al Fadhl Badran from Egypt, Dr. Khalil Ailabouniae, and Mohammed Jelwah. Poems written by Dr. Daisaku Ikeda, Japanese Buddhist philosopher, educator, author, and nuclear disarmament advocate as well as the founding president of the Soka Gakkai International will be recited on both days of the symposium by Dr. Akash Ouchi. Over the course of two days, poems written in multiple languages such as Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Hindi, Japanese, English, and Malayalam will be read out at The Poetic Heart, 2023.
Poems and music go hand in hand and accompanying the poetry will be musical performances by Dr. Pushpa Satyasheil, Rami Farag, and SGI-Gulf’s in-house choir group ‘Naseem’. Naseem, meaning ‘Breeze’ in Arabic, is a chorus consisting of volunteers of SGI Gulf. Ever since its successful debut at the 3rd edition of The Poetic Heart – 2014, Naseem has sung songs on the themes of mother, peace, friendship, hope, happiness, and invincible humanity and become an integral part of this poetic symposium. Naseem was also invited to sing at EXPO 2020 last year.
A highlight of the event is the book launches that take place during the symposium. The 12th edition of The Poetic Heart will see the launch of the book titled Sin Tan Siquiera Un Sancho by Angelica Santa Olaya, who will join the proceedings via Zoom. The book is the Spanish translation of Dr. Ghanem’s collection of 20 Arabic and English poems, by Angelica Santa Olaya, Aurora Humaran, and Leticia Monga.
Speaking on the occasion, Soka Gakkai Gulf Chairperson Suresh Premkumar says “The Poetic Heart has been a twelve-year poetic and musical journey, that aims to rekindle humanistic values with the lofty vision of living in harmony with our surroundings. Co-existence teaches us to respect the sanctity of each life and to value and nurture it. This year at the Poetic Heart, 40 student poets from different schools in the UAE, and 13 international poets including some of UAE’s most eminent poets will be participating in the event. There will also be 3 poetry recitations and 2 musical performances by the determined ones. In addition, we have notable musicians and our in-house chorus group ‘Naseem’ taking us through a beautiful journey, that will refresh our vow of positively impacting the community and working in harmony, to make the world a better place.”
“Creative writing helps to manifest human experience. It helps an individual, especially a child to unleash her / his creative side and feel more comfortable writing from the perspective” says Daniel Alexander Dawes, Head of Studies at Crescent English High School, Dubai. “Creative writing improves English Language Communication, a key skill in the 21st century. I’ve been associated with Poetic Heart for close to five years now and am in awe of the numerous students who have come to the limelight for their creative work through this platform. I’m proud to share that three of my students have been selected to share their poems at the Poetic Heart this year. Appreciation is due to the organizers, who are committed to promoting the beautiful medium of poetry in the region. My wish is that Poetic Heart grows further in the coming years.”
The Poetic Heart 2023 is taking place on 9th February at the Emirates Institute of Banking and Financial Studies (EIBFS) auditorium, Dubai International Academic City, Al Ruwayyah 2, Opposite Zayed University, Dubai from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and on 10th February at Zabeel Ladies Club from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
About the Poetic Heart:
The Poetic Heart symposium was conceived in 2012 by SGI Gulf in collaboration with UAE’s well-known poet, Dr. Shihab Ghanem with the vision of becoming one of UAE’s, and subsequently, the region’s leading festivals that celebrate poetry and embrace different cultures. Every year the event comes together through an inspiring theme that focuses on building friendship and cultural ties in the communities. To know more log in to www.thepoeticheart.com
