Have you ever wondered what gives you strength? There’s a philosophical air to the question which seems simple at first, but the more you think about it, the more avenues open up for you to explore. Bahareh Khoshooe, an Iranian artist living in Brooklyn, tell us about the Farsi word قوّت (ghovvat). She says,
“I like how the word means strength and what gives you strength. There is a self-referentiality to the meaning of the word that makes it both poetic and cyclical.”
The duality of ghovvat allows us to think about strength a bit differently than we may be used to. The circular connection between the source of strength, both physical and emotional, and the resulting power, reminds us to be present, patient, and grateful. For example, we can appreciate food while remembering that it will give us strength, while also being grateful for it. Strength and power can be collaborative and gentle, and ghovvat will immediately remind you of that.
Bahareh offers us بخور قوت بگیری — a sentence that translates to eat this to gain strength and power. Armed with this holistic way of thinking, it becomes easier to honor the people who create, cook, plant, or provide for us. If we can see the end result, full bellies and nourished hearts, as clearly as we see the source of our strength, we can become graced with a nearly holy point of view.
This article is part of DIMMI Digest: Nourishment. Nourishment is about the moments we take for ourselves to refill what has been expended. More than just nutrients, nourishment can be the rest that we give ourselves, the shared joy that we experience, or the love that brings us together at the end of a hard day. It is also nourishment that gives us strength to rise above like Bahareh explains.
