LAF

LAF may refer to:

Rebecca

Rebecca (also spelled Rebekah) (Hebrew: רִבְקָה, Modern Rivká, Tiberian Riḇqā ISO 259-3 Ribqa,(AssyrianːܪܲܦܩܵܐːRapqa) from the Hebrew ribhqeh (lit., "connection"), from Semitic root r-b-q, "to tie, couple or join", "to secure", or "to snare") appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. Rebecca and Isaac were one of the four couples believed to be buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs, the other three being Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, and Jacob and Leah.

Early life

The news of her birth was told to her uncle Abraham before Akeidat Yitzchak (the Binding of Isaac), the episode in which Abraham was told by God to bring Isaac as a sacrifice on a mountain.

Many years after the Binding of Isaac, Sarah, Abraham's wife, died. After taking care of her burial, Abraham went about finding a wife for his son Isaac, who was already 37 years old. He commanded his servant (whom the Torah commentators identify as Eliezer of Damascus) to journey to his birthplace of Aram Naharaim to select a bride from his own family, rather than engage Isaac to a local Canaanite girl. Abraham sent along expensive jewelry, clothing and dainties as gifts to the bride and her family. If the girl had refused to follow him, Abraham stated that Eliezer would be absolved of his responsibility.

Arash

Arash the Archer (Persian: آرش کمانگیر‎‎ Āraŝ-e Kamāngīr) is a heroic archer-figure of Iranian oral tradition and folklore.

Summary

The basic story of the bowman runs as follows: In a war between the Iranians and Turanians over the "royal glory" (khwarrah), the General Afrasiab has surrounded the forces of the righteous Manuchehr, and the two sides agree to make peace. Both reach an agreement that whatever land falls within the range of a bow-shot shall be returned to the Manuchehr and the Iranians, and the rest should then fall to Afrasiab and the Aniranians. An angel (in al-Biruni it is 'Esfandaramad', i.e. the Amesha Spenta Spenta Armaiti, in Middle Persian called Spendarmad) instructs Manuchehr to construct a special bow and arrow, and Arash is asked to be the archer. Arash then fires the specially-prepared arrow at dawn, which then traveled a great distance (see below) before finally landing and so marking the future border between the Iranians and the Aniranians.

In Talebi and Bal'ami, Arash is destroyed by the shot and disappears. In al-Tabari, he is exalted by the people, is appointed commander of the archers and lives out his life in great honor. The distance the arrow travels varies: in one it is thousand leagues (farsakhs), in another forty days walk. In several, the arrow traveled from dawn to noon, in others from dawn until sunset. A few sources specify a particular date for the event. The Middle Persian Mah i Frawardin notes the 6th day of the 1st month (i.e. Khordad of Frawardin); later sources associate the event with the name-day festivities of Tiregan (13th of Tir) "presumably" provoked by the homonymity with the Yazata Tir or tir "arrow." (Tafażżolī 1987, p. 266)

Bombay Dreams

Bombay Dreams is a Bollywood-themed musical, with music by A. R. Rahman, lyrics by Don Black and the book by Meera Syal and Thomas Meehan, and produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The London production opened in 2002 and ran for two years. The musical also was produced on Broadway in 2004.

Plot

The story centers around Akaash, a young man from the slums of Bombay who dreams of becoming the next big star in Bollywood. Fate steps in when a rich pro-bono lawyer and his fiancée, an aspiring documentary filmmaker, arrive to prevent the demolition of Akaash's slum. Akaash quickly falls in love with the lawyer's fiancée, Priya, who happens to be the daughter of a famous Bollywood director, and the ticket to the top that Akaash needs. Complications arise as Akaash faces the reality of show business, fame, his love for Priya, and his obligations to his family, friends, and his Paradise slum.

The plot includes frequent reference to the change of name from Bombay to Mumbai of the titular city and references the identity issues that this raises.