Les deux paradis d'Abd-Er-Rhaman

In the misty December streets of Constantine, the old quarter hums with a strange mix of North African grit and almost European gloom. Fog curls around narrow alleys, blackened stone walls and the occasional white burnous moving like ghosts against the cold. Amid this chill, a frail figure named Abd‑er‑Rhaman, bent and wrapped in his cloak, wanders alone, his steps echoing the weight of many years.

He pauses before a whitewashed house that once housed the modest school where, as a blond‑haired boy with bright eyes, he first learned the words of the Prophet. Now a prosperous gentleman, he has spent decades in study, but the arrival of French rule disturbed the quiet of his mind, forcing him to confront the clash of traditions, language, and belief. The old cleric rereads passages that link Mary and the divine, and the questions they raise stir a deep, unresolved doubt. As night deepens, his reflections turn inward, hinting at a journey that may lead him beyond the familiar walls of his childhood.