Muhammad bin Ali Al-Wahaibi - Omani writer
Without warning, one day in 2017, the Islamic Library closed its doors to its visitors, and as I learned that the library’s contents of books and references were transferred and distributed to different places!!, and it was said at that time that the library building would be used for other purposes!! I said to myself, who had known this library since the beginning of its establishment in this place: What other purposes will be more important than these similar to the gardens of dreams?! What other purposes are more important than this cultural beacon and this museum that is open to all ages of the mind and thought, through which we look at the various arts, sciences and cultures, and for my life, how happy a person is while he spends his time among books where the pleasure is unmatched.
And these days, almost five years after the closure of the library, I decided to visit that place located on one side of Al-Nour Street in the city of Ruwi to see and discover what happened to the building!! All I saw and discovered was that the building remained as it was, but the library was gone and the street remained as a witness bearing the name of the light whose name and light was derived from that library!!
During my tour around this urban edifice, it became clear to me that there are people who care and take care of the building and its trees, as it seems to the viewer, but the door leading to the inside is locked with a lock topped with rust for the five years, and it became clear that the building was not used for other purposes, as was said at the time!!
How bitter I felt over the obliteration and closure of this cultural landmark, as this library remained faithful to its visitors for 42 years (1975-2017 AD), and throughout these decades it remained rich and shadowy with its jewels and precious books, which carried this name despite the diversity of its contents from various Types of knowledge such as poetry, literature, language, arts, chemistry, medicine, astronomy, history and geography due to its affiliation with the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs at the time of its establishment and beginnings, after which it was transferred to the Ministry of Heritage and Culture.
How many times did I happen to meet students from Sultan Qaboos University who were directed by the university’s academics to search in this library for some books and research, especially in the fields of arts and heritage, which are not available in the university’s library, which is classified as the latest, largest, and most advanced.
The question that comes to mind now is: Why was this library closed?! Noting that the building that housed the library was established and designated for this purpose, so the library was visited by seekers of knowledge since the early days of the renaissance of the modern country. From closing it, it has become completely silent, and there is no doubt that closing any library is a defeat for the soul, and a defeat for thought, which is something like a disaster.
Five years have passed since the library was closed and to date nothing has happened to the building; Neither the other objects we saw nor the library returned to bring back the light!!