Letter to Sufjian Madjara

Sent in the Year -378 I.A

I do not care what people might think of me, or what they might think of my work. My only audience are the Gods-Who-Rule-From-The-Horizon and myself, to hell with all of the others.

— Ulfat Ibish

Arguably one of the most controversial plays written by Ulfat Ibish, the Tale of Two Moons is a retelling of the death of Laykan the Child. The traditional story tells how the child-god was murdered by a monster or mortal, and how their mother Seûln the Brave went to fetch them from the depths of Almayot itself. However, in the Tale of Two Moons, the accidental death becomes a calculated murder, where the child is killed by the mother in a fit of terror and madness.

As soon as the play was published, audiences were divided. Some loved the complex approach to the mortal pysch through the lense of gods, while others thought it blasphemous to describe such things. One particularly loud voice against this new work of Ulfat, and a long time critic of the author, was Sufjian Madjara.

To have gods, not just any god even, but the Mother herself, kill her own child? For the sake of a dramatic work no one will bother to see? It is simply outrageous, the woman has to be stopped!

— Sufjian Madjara

While usually not one to care for the opinions of others, Ulfat had an old and bitter distate of Sufjian, and so she took to writing him a personal letter to answer his criticism. The letter was brief and insulting, and Ulfat also took the liberty of sending a few copies to various town cryers and personalities to seal his shame.

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Letter to Sufjian Madjara

To Sufjian Madjara, and others who are of the same mind,

It pleases me to hear my play can illicit such strong emotions, even among those who have yet to see it. As a writer of little reknown, it is humbling to see that my work escapes the reach of a few- proof that understanding of it requires some, albeit small, amount of reflexion.

I will do you a kindness and keep myself from answering your critics. You are after all a busy man- the little time and thought you have put into your disapproving commentary of my work shows as much, and I will save you the embarrassement of a lengthy and thoughtful answer that may well pass you as a fool.

I thank you for your interest in my work, and think you will find the play most intersting. Do let me know when you've seen it.

Best regards,

Ulfat Ibish

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Ulfat Ibish

Ulfat Ibish was a Danatelians playwriter most known for her work in the revival of Danatelian tragedy. Most of her works would base themselves on Saohri legends, though often with a cruel and violent turn. Never was the world of litterature as divided on an author as they were on Ulfat- some would call her a genius, while others sneered at the violence of her work and her unrespectful attitude.