On the horsemen's steps...by Joseph Kessel.

The amazing story of an Afghan meeting between one photographer,Alain Buu, and one the greatest French novelist of the sixties : Joseph Kessel »

a Photo story by Alain Buu/Orizon/LightMediation

1293-04: "And the fastest thoroughbred can gallop until he falls from weariness, and the swiftest bird may fly until the moment its wings will no longer bear it. And still they will see nothing but grass, grass and grass."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takes the horses to Qantar (a period during which the animals are left outside day and night and receive little food. Qantar is destined to toughen the horses and make them more

combative).

Contact - Thierry Tinacci - LightMediation Photo Agency - email: thierry@lightmediation.com - mobile: +33.6.61.80.57.21

1291-01 : « His chest swelled; his eyes lit up. His nostrils trembled, like those of a wild beast."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takes the horses to Qantar (a period during which the animals are left

1291-02: « Uraz's fierce hand drove the bit into the corners of his mouth."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takes the horses to Qantar (a period during which the animals are left

1291-03: "Of all the yurts it is the best shielded from the wind. I have had three new carpets spreadbeneath the mattress... Outside, there will always be a man and a horse at thy service."

1291-04: "And the fastest thoroughbred can gallop until he falls from weariness, and the swiftest bird mayfly until the moment its wings will no longer bear it. And still they will see nothing but grass, grass and

1293-08: « For indeed all buzkashi horses had to possess the rarest and most contradictory qualities--high spirit and patience, the speed of the wind and the perseverance of a packorse, the dash of a lion and thecleverness of a performing dog."

March 2005. Stables belonging to Chamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi of the northern region.

1293-05: "But the wealthy lords of the north who are called khans or beys have horses bred and trainedsolely for the great game. Chargers as swift as arrows, as enduring as the fiercest wolf, as intelligent and

1293-06: « The horse felt this concentrated gaze, this communion. As he had been taught, he went onacting like a motionless statue beneath the sun, but in that marvelously smooth skin a muscle quivered,

1293-07: "Yes, here is the last mad horse."March 2005. Stables belonging to Chamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi of the northern region.

1293-08: « For indeed all buzkashi horses had to possess the rarest and most contradictory qualities--highspirit and patience, the speed of the wind and the perseverance of a packorse, the dash of a lion and the

1293-11: « He treated wounds and broken bones. And if a a noble animal was maimed in the contest, it was he who killed it with his own hand, respectfully."March 2005. Stables belonging to Chamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi of the northern region.

1293-09: "They went through the twelve enclosures one after another, yards with low walls of dried mud,linked by narrow gaps, all alike--rectangles of bare, cracked earth."

1293-10: "I am always here when they come to take a horse for training and when they bring it back."April 2004. Stables of Commander Kalil Rhalili.

1293-11:« He treated wounds and broken bones. And if a a noble animal was maimed in the contest, itwas he who killed it with his own hand, respectfully."

1293-12: « Had he forgotten how little rest and care a great buzkashi horse needed to recover itsstrength?

1293-16: « Each was the head of the buzkashi in his own region--Meimana, Mazar-i-Sharif, and Qataghan, the only provinces in Afghanistan where by immemorial tradition the horses had the speed, endurance andtraining, and the men the skill and vigor to compete before the king."

April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamian. Riders salute the dignitaries and the public before the game.

1293-13: « They were all of a dazzling and powerful beauty. Their long, thick, perfectly groomed manesand their coats--black, bay, chestnut, or gray--had the gleam of wild silk."

1293-14: « The chapandaz were waiting. It took some time to slit a fresh goat's throat and cut off itshead."

1293-15: « And others were perpetually arriving. As they traveled, so columns of dust, striped by thebeams of the sun, marched before them and behind."

1293-16: « Each was the head of the buzkashi in his own region--Meimana, Mazar-i-Sharif, and Qataghan,the only provinces in Afghanistan where by immemorial tradition the horses had the speed, endurance and

1293-20: « Lashing whips ripping into muzzles and faces... Ebb and flow... Horses rearing their full height above the entangled bodies and limbs..."March 2005. Great buzkashi (about 200 horses) in Mazar-i-Sharif.

1293-17: « One single horseman alone was unaffected by the madness; on his back he bore the whiteastrakhan badge of Meimana. He stood just at the edge of the fray..."

1293-18: « Many hours had passed, many leagues been covered, and any horses whose riders laybroken on the steppe were gallopping free, when the oldest of the chapandaz won possession of the

1293-19: « And as his horse was the fastest and the strongest of them all, he led the whole bandgalloping across the endless plain."

1293-20: « Lashing whips ripping into muzzles and faces... Ebb and flow... Horses rearing their full heightabove the entangled bodies and limbs..."

1293-18: « Many hours had passed, many leagues been covered, and any horses whose riders lay broken on the steppe were gallopping free, when the oldest of the chapandaz won possession of the goat."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.

1293-21: « And now the horde that had seemed hopelessly tangled and turned in upon itself suddenly splitopen and a chapandaz appeared in the path he was cutting for himself by flinging his horse to the right

1293-22: "When a judge gives the signal all of them fling themselves upon the headless body. One graspsit and gets away."

1293-23: « The horsemen could not escape to disappear for hours in the remoteness of unboundedspace as they were wont to do in their native steppes. Here the watchers could be sure they would never

1293-24: « He returned thanks, and, sitting on his crossed legs in the hollow of the cotton mattress, noisilysipped the tea that had been made for him."

1293-24: « He returned thanks, and, sitting on his crossed legs in the hollow of the cotton mattress, noisily sipped the tea that had been made for him.""What set each of them above the ordinary run of mortals was his bruises and his scars. And also--and this was so even with the slimmest--the massive wrists, the hands made to snatch the goat's body, prize of the

buzkashi, from the opponent and to hold on to it afterwards."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan. The chapandaz quench their thirst after the game.

1293-25: "There thou wilt see a steeply mounting track. Follow it as far as the old caravanserai that standsat the top. And hurry. Thou must be there before nightfall. If not, may the Prophet watch over thee."

1293-26: « It was an immense rocky table, closed to the west by the mountain and cut on the east by agorge with a torrent roaring through it. In this predetermined place halted all the convoys which carried the

1293-27: « He passed in front of the place prepared for the horses--full and busy now-- and plunged intoone of the alleys that led through the high walls of trees to the lawn of the Lake of Honors."

1293-28: « The impulse of their thighs and loins shot them forward with such fury that the spectatorsscarcely saw them cross the intervening space. it was as though they heard the crash of heads the

1293-45: « The air of the high plateaus was all freshness, strength and purity. The syce washed in one of the countless irrigation canals through which the river fertilized the oasis, then said his prayer with a direct andeasy faith."

April 2004. Prayer at Band-e Amir Lake, altitude 3200 meters.

1293-29: « Then, as gently as a lamb, it laid its head with its coiled horns on the man's shoulder like atender pledge, and kept it there all the time the skillfull fingers massaged its flesh and sinews."

1293-30: « In one chaotic stream, bearing the different clothes, headdresses, gear and features of allthese races, flowed trade, the search for work, the return of flocks to their winter grazing and men to the

1293-31: The mud-walled huts had no more than a single dark room within. Outside there was a coveredterrace. This is where the travelers gathered.

1293-32: "May the gods watch over thee, O Ancestor of All Men."April 2004. In Bamiyan.

1293-34: « That was why his heavy, thick, cracked fingers, in spite of the torture of his shoulders, neck, and wrists, tied, untied, re-tied the cloth of the turban as often as was needed to give it the splendid dash of adiadem."

March 2005. A camel merchant at the bazaar.

1293-33: « The gray mule snorted. Mukhi soothed him with a caress whose kindness was merelyautomatic. A poor man's beast... »

1293-34: « That was why his heavy, thick, cracked fingers, in spite of the torture of his shoulders, neck,and wrists, tied, untied, re-tied the cloth of the turban as often as was needed to give it the splendid dash

1293-35: "I do not care for useless words. So listen well, for I shall be brief. I have a new stallion ready forthe buzkashi; he is called the Mad Horse. At Kabul, the capital, Uraz, my son, shall have him as his

1293-36: « Then in their turn the two men hard the rumbling din. They understood.Immediately before them, still hidden by a dip but very close at hand, ran the great road to the north."

1293-50: « And this girl at his feet, so small, so weak, poorer than the poorest since her birth cry, this girl to whom everything had been refused, always??he, Mukhi could fulfill her most impossible wishes, satisfy all herhopes at once."

May 2004. A dweller of the caves of Bamiyan. The site formerly occupied by the giant Buddhas of Bamiyan before their destruction in 2001.

1293-37: « Uraz, Mukhi, even Zereh had never seen an animal deluge like it. It was as though animmense river in spate were rolling its wooly flood toward them."

1293-38: Mukhi had the feeling that everything around him was taking on life again, meaning, sense, truth.Once more he knew what he had to do and in what order he had to do it.

1293-39: "A child could not mistake the road," Uljan had said. "After the bridge there is one track and onetrack alone that runs across the valley. After it comes one path and one only, going easily up the

1293-40: « And now Gardi Gaj, who in the extreme frailty of his bones was virtually disembodied, andwhose wonderful length of years had dried up his whole capacity for emotion, Gardi Gaj began to tremble

1293-37: « Uraz, Mukhi, even Zereh had never seen an animal deluge like it. It was as though an immense river in spate were rolling its wooly flood toward them."May 2004. Kuchi nomads move to the province of Faryab at the end of winter.

1293-41: « And most terrible of all, the faceless horseman who rides day and night, night and day, throughwaste and sand and thorns and stones, through time and through time again, going nowhere."

1293-42: « The height, immensity, and nakedness of the plateau, its granite walls, and the mineral silencethat hung over its limitless space, gave this relentless, unceasing ululation a quality that went beyond

1293-43: "A glow that had both the shining brilliance of glaciers and the delicacy of springtime flowersrose from the chasm with its liquid terraces. The sun had reached their level. Its rays, skimming the

1293-44: « This huge rift belonged in its entirety to the kingdom of the water. And so strange was thatkingdom that reason could not encompass its existence."

1293-52: « Before him lay a plateau, stretching out forever. There was a powdering on its surface, as of a coarse, harsh kind of ash. Over it all reigned the resplendent death of ice-cold suns. This plain, lying here atfifteen thousand feet, so dazzling that it made all light seem thick and sightless, this plain more barren than the nakedness of black lava flows, sadder than angels' tears and lovelier than beauty, was no longer part of a

man's universe. "March 2005. Between Bamiyan and Band-e Amir, altitude 3600 meters.

1293-45: « The air of the high plateaus was all freshness, strength and purity. The syce washed in one ofthe countless irrigation canals through which the river fertilized the oasis, then said his prayer with a direct

1293-46: "They call them lakes," thought Uraz. "But a lake is a thing to itself. It does not run and overflowand beget others without end... A waterfall? But in falls the water comes down foaming and leaping in

1293-47: "Bacha... black tea... very strong... very sweet... at once." The little servant left at a run.May 2004. Chaikhana (tea house, restaurant).

1293-48: « In the towering wall under which they were making their way--a sheer, smooth rock the color ofclearest blood--they found an enormous opening. This cleft was no chance natural formation, but the work

1293-54: "Like a torrent... like the lightning... like an eagle... like youth, thought Tursen, one cheek pressed against the stallion's neck and his face wet with the foam that was whitening the animal's muzzle and lips."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.

1293-49: « To the north of the road lined that particular morning with market stalls soared up the cliffsoared up the cliff of the Buddhas. To the other side a gentle slope led down tot the river. Close to it,

1293-51: "It is long, long and broad, the Afghan land," went on Zereh. "And every valley is a country toitself... Come, tall syce, we can go from one to the other until the end of our days without anyone ever

1293-53: « The road ran along the foot of a red cliff, so hollowed out with thousands of caves cut by theBuddhist monks long ago that it looked like an enormous hive; and now the light of the setting sun made

1293-54: "Like a torrent... like the lightning... like an eagle... like youth,thought Tursen, one cheek pressed against the stallion's neck and his face wet with the foam that was

On the «Bushkhashi »horsemen'ssteps

When Alain BUU , at the time being staffphotographer of the French agencyGamma, was assigned by Time magazineto cover the research of Ben Laden inSeptember 2001 in the mountains ofTora Bora in Afghanistan , he didn't meetwith the Al Quaïda leader but with thehistorical witness and « héritage » of thegreatest journalist as well as novelist ofthe French littérature : Joseph Kessel . Despite nearly 30 years of civil wars afterthe Soviet invasion in 1979 , someparticular spots of the unchangingAfghanistan anchored in the collectivememory immediately fascinated AlainBUU .He was so much amazed that he fellin love at first sight with the beauty of thelandscapes, part of his imaginationbetween the « Silk road » legend and thebirthplace of the « Great Game »described by Rudyard Kipling from thefamous Khyber pass up to Tora-Borahighlands.Alain Buu put a lot of energy withoutfurther delay into the reading of JosephKessel ' novel the « Cavaliers » ( TheHorsemen) published in 1967 . Very moved by the the narrative and thevisual acuteness of Kessel , spiritual father of several journalistic generationsall over the world , Alain decided to goback in 2004 in Afghanistan to look forthe roots and practice of the « Bushkashi» .This real « Big game » of the

horsemen - was made famous by both the success of the novel as well as theeponymic film in 1971 by JohnFrankenheimer, starring Omar Sharif andJack Palance...

It was going to be for Alain Buu the topdiscovery - for one and a half month ofthe Afghan soul hidden in the heart of themyth, that resisted in all the lived wars.The choice of the photographer to workonly in black and white allows him tobetter transcribe the unlimitedmagnificence of the deep valleys wherehe met with the ancestral power of thesehard farmers - riders as knights of thenational sport . Alain Buu and his driver had to scheduleall their journeys with real care as it wasno question to stop wherever to avoidbandits or Afghans not supporting thepresence of the foreigners.And they learnor feel how to make the difference withTaliban. Once they drove to duringnon-stop 16 hours fromof Mazar -y -Sharifto Bamiyan, using a shortcut which madethem win two days of journey. They crossed desert landscapes with nobodythere. « It was rather scaring »remembered Alain Buu.We were in Kabul once when we heardthat there would be Bouskashi the nextday in the Bamiyan valley quite wellknown since the destruction of thefamous hudge Boudhas by the Talibanshelling. Alain Buu took the roadimmediatly in the afternoon. But at themiddle way one shock absorber of the4x4 had broken. And they drove on themountainous roads on 3 wheels unless 10km an hour. « I was not very worriedbecause on this road there were severalsmall villages. But we never stopped as most of the population belonged to thePatchoun tribe - closed to Taliban or

supporting them » told Alain .With adriver and a Tajik guide working for aforeigner i twas too dangerous to stop .For Alain Buu it's still yesterday tour « We had run during 6 long hours inmountains with a moonless night. Weimagined in the space, we saw the bendsand the ravines only when they weresome meters in front of us, enlightened bythe lighthouses of the 4x4. Six hours laterwe have been crossing crossed theBamiyan pass and arrived at the firstHazara village towards midnight. We wererelieved and happy, because during thePashtun crossing of villages, the fear inthe stomach of the guide shared by Zaherthe driver hung on his steering wheel hadinfluenced me to make me realize thetraditionnal hate between ethnic groups inthis country in spite the legendaryhospitality »« We were to stop in the Dowlatabad village for a small break. Just time toorder teas in the « tchaikana » ,onetea-house along the road, when theguide asked me suddenly to jump back inthe car. I obeyed and we left at once.Then in the car the guide explained me ashe heard men to call for other to intend tokidnap me ». Alain Buu knew they werealways border line.Alain Buu had to face a lot of handicapscompromising the success of thisparticular trip through afghan history .Attending his first Bouskashi Alain Buu understood the afghan pride when heobserved in the sight of his camera body a rider after marking a point rushing withhis galloping horse to just stop just with « panache » in front of his companions « tchopendoz » . He stroke his convextrunk to greet them with a shout whileraising the arm. It was a marvellousglance to the noble and beautiful attitudeof the afghan horse-riders as in an Ucelloor Delacroix painting .

The report makes a success of the perfectsymbiosis more than literal - becausedeeply authentic - between every capturedpicture during his trip and the extracts ofthe masterpiece of Kessel.Joseph Kessel came to Afghanistan forthe first time in 1956. His purpose was toshoot a movie about the afghan horsemenwith the French director PierreSchondorfer. The movie eventually cameout under the title La Passe du Diable(The Devil's Pass Kessel became atttracted by the wildness of the countryand by the bold spirit of its people. Forthe next ten years he matured a book,which was published in 1967 under thetitle Les Cavaliers.??It tells the story ofOuroz, a tchopendoz from Maimana, whotravels to Kabul to compete in a buzkashi.During the tournament, he breaks a legand awakens in hospital. Out of shameand outrage, he escapes and sets off for ajourney accross the mountains to return tohis village. On his way, he has to fight withfever from sepsis from the leg, atreacherous seravant, and the unfriendlyenvironment of the central highlands... Alain Buu was following his steps andgrab a lot of poetic pictures.In which « Men and horses merge in thetenderness as in the violence to make sayto André Velter* who introduced Alain'book " On the steps of the Riders " *Like masterpieces of phototography AlainBuu ' pictures are at the right place at theright time of this particular roughcompétition . Closed to Ucello' ,orDelacroix' paintings all his images «breath » the magic power of all the « tchopendoz « as if they were fighting forthe award of their life .The riders will carry a whip, often in theirteeth, to fend off opposing horses andriders.Towards the middle of the setting in Alain'eye , which establish the nostrils of both

snouts muddled one to another by therake of the fight, the lines of compositionconverge all in the perfect balanceBuzkashi is often compared to polo. Bothgames are played between people onhorseback, both involve propelling anobject toward a goal, and both get fairlyrough. However, polo is played with a ball,while Buzkashi is played with a deadanimal. Polo matches are played for fixedperiods totaling about an hour. Traditionalbushkashi may continue for days, but in itsmore regulated tournament version alsohas a limited match time. The calf in aBuzkashi game is normally beheaded anddisemboweled and has its limbs cut off atthe knees. It is then soaked in cold waterfor 24 hours before play to toughen it.Occasionally sand is packed into thecarcass to give it extra weight. Playersmay not strap the calf to their bodies orsaddles. Though a goat is used when nocalf is available, a calf is less likely todisintegrate during the game. SeriousBuzkashi players train intensively foryears, and many of the masters (calledTchopendoz) are over forty years old.Playing well also requires specially trainedhorses that know to stop still when a rideris thrown and to gallop forcefully whennecessary .

Alain Buu 'report and book are, maybe, today part of the most important and lasttributes to this unique tradition inAfghanhistory . The howling of tanks, thedeaf noise of the shellings,the thunder from airfighters and helicopters whichagain lead fight against the return of theTaliban, become blurred in the desertplains at the bottom of the mountains ofHindu Kush. Last Kingdom of silence for

horses offering themselves a gallop offreedom. At the end of their long ropes Gengis Khan' descendant try to retain their proud horses to keep the narrow linkwith the tradition to avoid the définitivereturn of war .Alain Buu ' report is one of the mostinteresting and beautiful work to defend one strong symbol of a past that mightdisappear tomorrow In Afghanistan . Alain MINGAM Former President of the World PressPhoto Contest jury .

Captions andExtracts of «the horsemen »by JosephKessel .

1291-01 : « His chest swelled; his eyes litup. His nostrils trembled, like those of awild beast."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takesthe horses to Qantar (a period duringwhich the animals are left outside day andnight and receive little food.Qantar is destined to toughen the horsesand make them more combative).

1291-02: « Uraz's fierce hand drove thebit into the corners of his mouth."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takesthe horses to Qantar (a period duringwhich the animals are left outside day andnight and receive little food.Qantar is destined to toughen the horsesand make them more combative).

1291-03: "Of all the yurts it is the bestshielded from the wind. I have had threenew carpets spread beneath themattress... Outside, there will always be aman and a horse at thy service."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takesthe horses to Qantar (a period duringwhich the animals are left outside day andnight and receive little food.Qantar is destined to toughen the horsesand make them more combative).

1291-04: "And the fastest thoroughbredcan gallop until he falls from weariness,and the swiftest bird may fly until themoment its wings will no longer bear it.And still they will see nothing but grass,grass and grass."May 2004. Chapandaz Morad Khan takesthe horses to Qantar (a period duringwhich the animals are left outside day andnight and receive little food.Qantar is destined to toughen the horsesand make them more combative).

1291-05: "But the wealthy lords of thenorth who are called khans or beys havehorses bred and trained solely for thegreat game. Chargers as swift as arrows,as enduring as the fiercest wolf, asintelligent and obedient as the mostfaithful dog, and handsome as princes."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region.

1291-06: « The horse felt thisconcentrated gaze, this communion. Ashe had been taught, he went on acting likea motionless statue beneath the sun, butin that marvelously smooth skin a musclequivered, then gradually another andanother."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region.

1291-07: "Yes, here is the last madhorse."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region.

1291-08: « For indeed all buzkashi horseshad to possess the rarest and mostcontradictory qualities--high spirit andpatience, the speed of the wind and theperseverance of a packorse, the dash of a

lion and the cleverness of a performingdog."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region.

1291-09: "They went through the twelveenclosures one after another, yards withlow walls of dried mud, linked by narrowgaps, all alike--rectangles of bare, crackedearth."April 2004. Stables of Commander KalilRhalili.

1291-10: "I am always here when theycome to take a horse for training andwhen they bring it back."April 2004. Stables of Commander KalilRhalili.

1291-11: « He treated wounds and brokenbones. And if a a noble animal wasmaimed in the contest, it was he whokilled it with his own hand, respectfully."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region.

1291-12: « Had he forgotten how little restand care a great buzkashi horse neededto recover its strength" March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region. On the eve of a gameof buzkashi, stable lads prevent horsesfrom sleeping to make them morenervous.

1291-13: « They were all of a dazzling andpowerful beauty. Their long, thick,perfectly groomed manes and theircoats--black, bay, chestnut, or gray--hadthe gleam of wild silk." March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region. Waiting before the

game of buzkashi.

1291-14: « The chapandaz were waiting.It took some time to slit a fresh goat'sthroat and cut off its head."March 2005. Stables belonging toChamsul Ak Nosiri, head of buzkashi ofthe northern region. A calf has its throatcut for the game of buzkashi to be heldthe next day.

1291-15: « And others were perpetuallyarriving. As they traveled, so columns ofdust, striped by the beams of the sun,marched before them and behind."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamian. Chairsare brought in for the dignitaries.

1291-16: « Each was the head of thebuzkashi in his own region--Meimana,Mazar-i-Sharif, and Qataghan, the onlyprovinces in Afghanistan where byimmemorial tradition the horses had thespeed, endurance and training, and themen the skill and vigor to compete beforethe king."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamian. Riderssalute the dignitaries and the public beforethe game.

1291-17: « One single horseman alonewas unaffected by the madness; on hisback he bore the white astrakhan badgeof Meimana. He stood just at the edge ofthe fray..."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.

1291-18: « Many hours had passed, manyleagues been covered, and any horseswhose riders lay broken on the steppewere gallopping free, when the oldest ofthe chapandaz won possession of thegoat."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.

1291-19: « And as his horse was the

fastest and the strongest of them all, heled the whole band galloping across theendless plain."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.

1291-20: « Lashing whips ripping intomuzzles and faces... Ebb and flow...Horses rearing their full height above theentangled bodies and limbs..."March 2005. Great buzkashi (about 200horses) in Mazar-i-Sharif.

1291-21: « And now the horde that hadseemed hopelessly tangled and turned inupon itself suddenly split open and achapandaz appeared in the path he wascutting for himself by flinging his horse tothe right and the left, striking out on everyside with all his strength."March 2005. Buzkashi in Kabul.

1291-22: "When a judge gives the signalall of them fling themselves upon theheadless body. One grasps it and getsaway."March 2005. Great buzkashi (about 200horses) in Mazar-i-Sharif.

1291-23: « The horsemen could notescape to disappear for hours in theremoteness of unbounded space as theywere wont to do in their native steppes.Here the watchers could be sure theywould never lose sight of the galloping orthe battles."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan. Riderssalute the dignitaries and the public afterthe game.

1291-24: « He returned thanks, and,sitting on his crossed legs in the hollow ofthe cotton mattress, noisily sipped the tea

that had been made for him.""What set each of them above theordinary run of mortals was his bruisesand his scars. And also--and this was soeven with the slimmest--the massivewrists, the hands made to snatch thegoat's body, prize of the buzkashi, fromthe opponent and to hold on to itafterwards."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan. Thechapandaz quench their thirst after thegame.

1291-25: "There thou wilt see a steeplymounting track. Follow it as far as the oldcaravanserai that stands at the top. Andhurry. Thou must be there before nightfall.If not, may the Prophet watch over thee."April. On the road, near the Buddhas ofBamiyan.

1291-26: « It was an immense rocky table,closed to the west by the mountain andcut on the east by a gorge with a torrentroaring through it. In this predeterminedplace halted all the convoys which carriedthe trade between the two halves ofAfghanistan, separated by the HinduKush."March 2005. Market day in Meimana,livestock market.

1291-27: « He passed in front of the placeprepared for the horses--full and busynow-- and plunged into one of the alleysthat led through the high walls of trees tothe lawn of the Lake of Honors."March 2005. Market day in Meimana,livestock market, here donkeys. In thispassage, Kessel mentions mounts, thetranslator has chosen horses.

1291-28: « The impulse of their thighs andloins shot them forward with such fury thatthe spectators scarcely saw them crossthe intervening space. it was as though

they heard the crash of heads the momentthe rams began their charge."March 2005. Ram fight in a suburb ofKabul.

1291-29: « Then, as gently as a lamb, itlaid its head with its coiled horns on theman's shoulder like a tender pledge, andkept it there all the time the skillfull fingersmassaged its flesh and sinews."March 2005. Ram fight in a suburb ofKabul.

1291-30: « In one chaotic stream, bearingthe different clothes, headdresses, gearand features of all these races, flowedtrade, the search for work, the return offlocks to their winter grazing and men tothe tribe, the quest for adventure..." May 2004. Kabul bazaar.

1291-31: The mud-walled huts had nomore than a single dark room within.Outside there was a covered terrace. Thisis where the travelers gathered.May 2004. Chaikhana (tea house,restaurant) in the town of Dowlatabad.

1291-32: "May the gods watch over thee,O Ancestor of All Men."April 2004. In Bamiyan.

1291-33: « The gray mule snorted. Mukhisoothed him with a caress whosekindness was merely automatic. A poorman's beast... »March 2005. A father and his son on theirway to Bamiyan.

1291-34: « That was why his heavy, thick,cracked fingers, in spite of the torture ofhis shoulders, neck, and wrists, tied,untied, re-tied the cloth of the turban asoften as was needed to give it thesplendid dash of a diadem."March 2005. A camel merchant at the

bazaar.

1291-35: "I do not care for useless words.So listen well, for I shall be brief. I have anew stallion ready for the buzkashi; he iscalled the Mad Horse. At Kabul, thecapital, Uraz, my son, shall have him ashis mount."May 2004. The donkeys enclosure at thebazaar.

1291-36: « Then in their turn the two menhard the rumbling din. They understood.Immediately before them, still hidden by adip but very close at hand, ran the greatroad to the north."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan. Achapandaz and his lad.

1291-37: « Uraz, Mukhi, even Zereh hadnever seen an animal deluge like it. It wasas though an immense river in spate wererolling its wooly flood toward them."May 2004. Kuchi nomads move to theprovince of Faryab at the end of winter.

1291-38: Mukhi had the feeling thateverything around him was taking on lifeagain, meaning, sense, truth. Once morehe knew what he had to do and in whatorder he had to do it.May 2004. Kuchi nomads move to theprovince of Faryab at the end of winter.

1291-39: "A child could not mistake theroad," Uljan had said. "After the bridgethere is one track and one track alone thatruns across the valley. After it comes onepath and one only, going easily up themountain. And it comes down directly ontothe old Bamian road. Two days' march atthe most to reach that town."May 2004. Kuchi nomads move to theprovince of Faryab at the end of winter.

1291-40: « And now Gardi Gaj, who in the

extreme frailty of his bones was virtuallydisembodied, and whose wonderful lengthof years had dried up his whole capacityfor emotion, Gardi Gaj began to tremblewith anxiety and tenderness."May 2004. Old wise man begging on theroad between Meimana and Qeysar.

1291-41: « And most terrible of all, thefaceless horseman who rides day andnight, night and day, through waste andsand and thorns and stones, through timeand through time again, going nowhere."April 2004. Between Bamiyan and Band-eAmir. Near Yakawlang.

1291-42: « The height, immensity, andnakedness of the plateau, its granite walls,and the mineral silence that hung over itslimitless space, gave this relentless,unceasing ululation a quality that wentbeyond nature's most mysterious powers."April 2004. Band-e Amir Lake, altitude3200 meters.

1291-43: "A glow that had both the shiningbrilliance of glaciers and the delicacy ofspringtime flowers rose from the chasmwith its liquid terraces. The sun hadreached their level. Its rays, skimming theground, set the motionless silk on fire."April 2004. Band-e Amir Lake, altitude3200 meters.

1291-44: « This huge rift belonged in itsentirety to the kingdom of the water. Andso strange was that kingdom that reasoncould not encompass its existence."April 2004. Band-e Amir Lake, altitude3200 meters.

1291-45: « The air of the high plateaus

was all freshness, strength and purity. Thesyce washed in one of the countlessirrigation canals through which the riverfertilized the oasis, then said his prayerwith a direct and easy faith."April 2004. Prayer at Band-e Amir Lake,altitude 3200 meters.

1291-46: "They call them lakes," thoughtUraz. "But a lake is a thing to itself. It doesnot run and overflow and beget otherswithout end... A waterfall? But in falls thewater comes down foaming and leaping insprays. These have never a hollow, neverso much as a ripple. Truly, truly, herenature is outdone, put down and turnedabout by the Workers of the Earth andSky."April 2004. Band-e Amir Lake, altitude3200 meters.

1291-47: "Bacha... black tea... verystrong... very sweet... at once." The littleservant left at a run.May 2004. Chaikhana (tea house,restaurant).

1291-48: « In the towering wall underwhich they were making their way--asheer, smooth rock the color of clearestblood--they found an enormous opening.This cleft was no chance naturalformation, but the work of men. Its shapewas that of a cube with a kind of cupolaabove it."March 2005. Caves of Bamiyan. The siteformerly occupied by the giant Buddhas ofBamiyan before their destruction in 2001.

1291-49: « To the north of the road linedthat particular morning with market stallssoared up the cliff soared up the cliff of theBuddhas. To the other side a gentle slopeled down tot the river. Close to it, wherethe ground was flat, a primitive kind ofsemicircular arena had been laid out."

May 2004. Caves of Bamiyan. The siteformerly occupied by the giant Buddhas ofBamiyan before their destruction in 2001.

1291-50: « And this girl at his feet, sosmall, so weak, poorer than the poorestsince her birth cry, this girl to whomeverything had been refused, always??he,Mukhi could fulfill her most impossiblewishes, satisfy all her hopes at once."May 2004. A dweller of the caves ofBamiyan. The site formerly occupied bythe giant Buddhas of Bamiyan before theirdestruction in 2001.

1291-51: "It is long, long and broad, theAfghan land," went on Zereh. "And everyvalley is a country to itself... Come, tallsyce, we can go from one to the other untilthe end of our days without anyone everrecognizing thee or the stallion."May 2004. A couple on the road betweenBamiyan and Yakawlang.

1291-52: « Before him lay a plateau,stretching out forever. There was apowdering on its surface, as of a coarse,harsh kind of ash. Over it all reigned theresplendent death of ice-cold suns. Thisplain, lying here at fifteen thousand feet,so dazzling that it made all light seemthick and sightless, this plain more barrenthan the nakedness of black lava flows,sadder than angels' tears and lovelier thanbeauty, was no longer part of a man'suniverse. "March 2005. Between Bamiyan andBand-e Amir, altitude 3600 meters.

1291-53: « The road ran along the foot ofa red cliff, so hollowed out with thousandsof caves cut by the Buddhist monks longago that it looked like an enormous hive;and now the light of the setting sun madethe whole face glow."May 2005. Near the caves of Bamiyan.

1291-54: "Like a torrent... like thelightning... like an eagle... like youth,thought Tursen, one cheek pressedagainst the stallion's neck and his face wetwith the foam that was whitening theanimal's muzzle and lips."April 2004. Buzkashi in Bamiyan.