Kayan 24 exclusive
It is the story of Hassan Hamza, known as “Akhout Chanieh.” Chanieh is a town in the Aley district of the Mount Lebanon Governorate. It is said that a man lived there who was so intelligent that he feigned madness to avoid the oppression of the authorities and their henchmen, due to the opinions he expressed that contradicted the state's policies at the time. He was known as “Akhout Chanieh.”
In that era, Prince Bashir Shihab II was the ruler of the country. He had enlisted the most famous European engineers and builders from Aleppo, Damascus, and various parts of Lebanon to build him the most beautiful palace in the Middle East in Beiteddine, to serve as a residence for him and his retinue. However, there was a problem that no one could solve: how to get water to the palace for drinking and for watering the plants and horses. That was until the “Madman” came along one day and presented his plan to the Prince to bring water to the palace: that the men and workers should stand in a single line, and each of them would dig to the length of his own height. In this way, they would create a canal suitable for transporting water from the spring to the palace.
Prince Bashir and his retinue were amazed by the wit and intelligence of the one they called mad. The Prince gave his orders and instructions, the project was successfully executed, and water reached the palace in abundance. It is said that Prince Bashir exempted the town of Chanieh from water tax fees thereafter.
However, the story of “Akhout Chanieh” did not end there. He later became a hero in one of the series by Nabih Abu Al-Hosn, who embodied the role of “Akhout Chanieh,” and the name stuck to him throughout his creative artistic career. The series was a resounding success and is still well-known to this day.
