Solidarity with Iran · CHEATS AND GODS · Persian Salon in Hamburg

Arghavān!

What secret is it
that each time spring returns,
it lays sorrow in our hearts?

That year after year
the earth is stained
with the blood of swallows,
and upon the scarred
inflicts wound upon wound

 

Dear friends, 

 

The new year is not yet old and already drenched in blood. 

We Europeans, in the relative comfort of our simulated catastrophes of delusion, slowly shed a naïve and decadent lethargy, while Iranians take to the streets for the desire for a system that we here have long since realised and believed to be secure. 

Among many other gatherings, I would like to draw particular attention to the event “Solidarity with Iran” on 22 February at 3:00 pm at Restaurant PARS in Berlin-Charlottenburg [Grolmannstr. 53, 10623]. 

 

The lines that open this circular are by the exiled poet Hushang Ebtehaj (1928–2022). The artist and graphic designer Masoud Morgan selected them to animate them in the literal sense, to bring them to life and to give them a new look. He published his work yesterday. It can be found here.

 

Yes, social media is the cancer of our societies. They corrode democratic systems and neural networks. And yet one should—without missing the dialectical momentum—be grateful that they exist in a country such as Iran. Otherwise, everything would be completely dark. 

 

In Hamburg by the River 

 

By the river in Hamburg lies a place of hospitality.
A place for art and community, for music, dance, and yoga:
the project space Övelgönne 106. 

 

At this special location, the Persian musician and composer Elshan Ghasimi invites audiences four times this year to the Persian Salon.
The seated and reclining concert is free of charge; a reservation is recommended.

 

14 March 2026, 4:00 pm
2 May 2026, 4:00 pm
19 September 2026, 4:00 pm
7 November 2026, 4:00 pm

Elshan Ghasimi & Michael Kleeberg: Premiere on 20 February in Berlin 

Elshan Ghasimi and the author Michael Kleeberg present, on 20 February 2026, the fruits of their collaboration in a new format:
a reading with music, a concert with text, or something else – existing in the eye and ear of the viewer and the listener. 

“Where are we going? Always home.”
It is a poetic journey through the horrors of our time, toward harmony and a higher serenity of human hope. 

The event at the Humboldt Library [Karolinenstraße 19, 13507 Berlin] begins at 7:30 pm. Admission is free, and no registration is required.