Role: Author

Eliza MADA Dalian is a visionary change-maker. Separated from her mother at age seven and raised by her father and an abusive stepmother, she learned self-sufficiency and strengthening of spirit early on. Born in Armenia, she immigrated to Canada in 1976 (at age 24), where she soon came across the teachings of the twentieth-century mystics Georges Gurdjieff and Osho. Deeply affected by their words, she left behind her training in education and architecture and devoted herself to the search for truth and spiritual enlightenment. Years of focused and committed meditation blessed her with several profound experiences, which led to an ultimate awakening experience at age 33. At this time, she discovered first-hand the truth all \

Edward W. Said, a renowned cultural and literary critic, was born in Jerusalem, Palestine, and was educated there, in Egypt, and in the United States. His books include Orientalism, The Question of Palestine, Covering Islam, Culture and Imperialism, and The Politics of Dispossession. He has also published a memoir, Out of Place. Mr. Said is University Professor of English and Comparative Lit-erature at Columbia University. In October 2001, he received the $200,000 Lannan Literary Award for Lifetime Achievement.