Zaabalawi

“Zaabalawi” is a 1961 short story by writer Naguib Mahfouz, who in 1988 became the first Arab writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. Like his father, an Egyptian civil servant, Mahfouz dedicated his life to serving his country, exploring Cairo’s rich culture in over thirty novels, hundreds of short stories, and several stage plays. His prolific body of work made him a pioneer of existentialist, religious, and political thought but also stirred controversy, as it often recontextualized Islamic teachings and criticized organized religion. Mahfouz’s novel Children of Gebelawi, which reimagined central figures of Abrahamic tradition as ordinary men, garnered so much backlash that President Nasser had to intervene to secure its publication. In 1994, Mahfouz also survived an assassination attempt by a religious extremist; nevertheless, he continued to publish novels and speak out against radical religious censorship, which he referred to as “ideological censorship.” “Zaabalawi” reflects this interest in and willingness to interrogate Islamic tradition and practice. This summary references the 2021 Kindle edition of The Time and the Place: and Other Stories.

“Zaabalawi” begins when the story’s unnamed narrator falls ill with an incurable disease. Recalling the lyrics to a popular song from his youth, the narrator remembers Zaabalawi, a holy man who had healed his father from a terrible affliction.