Literature owes its pioneers for all inspirations
taken. It always remembers those architectural
experiments, which begin in delight and ends in
wisdom. Even the followers of a particular trait are
respected but the status of the inventors remains
supreme. The domain of poem saying gets similar
treatment in the Western, Chinese, Persian, Urdu and
Arabic languages and culture. Ironically the
pioneers of Nasari (prose) Poem have not been yet
accepted with open arms in Urdu literature.
Baudelaire (French), Mallarme, Hoshi ( Chinees) ,
Nima Yushig (Persian), Tagore (Bengali) , Mira Ji
(Pakistan) and Badar Shakir Alsiyab(Arabic) have
given respect to their poems in their respective
languages. Arabic Poems were born in Mesopotamia and
its style remained close to ‘Nazm e Aazad’ right
from the beginning. The students of literature and
history are aware that like Yellow River
Civilization, the poets used the metaphors of the
civilization close to Tigiris and Ephurates Rivers
reflecting fertility that exists in its agriculture.
Poet Badar Shakir Al-Siyaab was born in village
Jekore (Basra) near River Buwayb and poet of “Matan
Dar Matan Maut” (the title of the book under review)
was born in Babul City. The Arabic poetry therefore
encompasses this river-city culture and Arabic poets
discovered new symbols for their poetry that depicts
their psyche. They therefore did a dialogue with the
rivers in the poetry and created outstanding pieces
of poetry. This reviewer shall quote just one
example of such poetry. Its title is ‘Baaham Ik
Bister Par’ (together in bed) (Page 119). It says
‘Dhara Hei/Mere Dayen Haath Pei Ik Samunder/Bayein
Haath Pei Maut/Thak Jaaun Tau/Dayein Haath Pei
Maut/Samunder Bayein Pei Rakh Laita Hun/Jab Sota
Hun/Tau Bister Par Mere Hamrah Samunder Sota Hei/Par
Maut Nahi Hota/Woh Mere Saanson Ko Ginti Ginti/Pehra
Daiti Hei/Mere Janib Takde Chale Jaati Hei/Jab Mere
Bister Pei/Woh Laiti Hoti Hei’. (There is a sea/I
carry with my right hand/there is a death/I carry
with my left hand/when I get tired/I put the sea on
my left hand/and the death on my right hand/when I
sleep the sea sleeps restful beside me on the bed/
but the death remains pretending to sleep/
continuing my breaths/ looking at me with suspicion
and doubt/ lying beside me as well as the bed)
Al-Siyaab has used Buwayb River, Qabani has used
city Damascus, Adonis has used River Nile in their
dialogues. Adeeb Kamal was born in Babul City. Even
in Urdu Literature Babul City is a familiar metaphor
Here one issue needs to be laid
emphasis upon. That is independence of Urdu Nazm. It
is not obligated to Arabic or Ajami tradition. The
style of saying modern Urdu, Farsi and Arabic free
verse took birth almost simultaneously. The words
‘Azad Nazm’ took its name from the word ‘Azad’ from
Persian language and ‘Nazm’ from the Arabic
language. Urdu itself is outcome of a combination of
various cultures emanating from the sub-continent
soil. Modern Urdu Nazm has not followed the
traditional route that has been followed by Urdu
Ghazal. Its origin is different in the three
languages. That is why their respective styles are
different. Arabic poem holds a special place in all
the languages of the world because of its large
capacity of meanings, combination of vocabulary,
experiences and treatment. No other language has
been blessed with so many poets saying free verse as
is available to this language. This group is led by
Adonis, Adeeb Kamal Ad-Deen (Iraq), Muhammad Alfitory
(Sudan), Abdullah Alriyami (Oman), Riyan Alchakaki
(Syria), Wada Saadi (Lebanon), Khalid Mattawa
(Libya), Qasim Haddad (Bahrain), Alsadiq Alrazi
(Sudan), Fatima Naout (Egypt),
,
Another generation came into existence in 1990s.
Once Ali Ahmad Alseer Adonis (spending time in exile
in Paris) was asked as to why he did not write what
masses understood. He quoted the saying of Abu Tamam
“why don’t you understand what he said”. His thesis
was that the world was created to debate on an
issues and question them. That is why he asked the
readers in a poem ‘New York Ka Janaza’ (The funeral
of New York) as ‘Zameen Ki Tasveer/Nashpati Jaisi
Tasveer/Ya Aurat Kei Gol Paire Ki Tarha/Phalon Aur
Maut Kei Darmayan/New York/Engineering Ka Aik
Shoabda Hei/Usse Chaar Taangon Wala Sheher Kaho/Jo
Qatl Par Amada Hei’ (Earth’s picture is like a pear
or like a round wheat ball before flattened for
making a bread. Between fruits and death, New York
is an engineering feat, ready to kill).
The book titled ‘Matan Dar Matan Maut’ by
Iqtidar Javed is an attempt to introduce Arabic free
verse poets to Urdu literature readers. The
translation of poetry is the most difficult and
challenging task for every translator. Translation
is to make an art from art, maintaining the
aesthetic value of the work. Robert Frost once
described poetry as ‘what gets lost in translation’.
Its a process from translation skills to mastering
poetic structure, form, revising and editing.Keeing
in view the complexity of translation activity, one
can easily understand that only a poet can
accomplish this task. The claim of the Armenian
prominent writer and translator Eghishe charents is
widely accepted, who is sure that a poem is to be
translated by a poet.Iqtidar not only accepted this
challenge but proved to be a poet of diversified
experiences and expressions.
Its title takes inspiration from one of Adeeb
Kamal’s poem ‘Tum Kis Tarha Marna Chaho
Gei/Jaise/Parinda/Khuda Ki Zameenon Mein Gum Ho Jata
Hei/Jaise Machli Khuda Kei Samunder Main Gum Ho Jati
Hei/Aur Parinda/Khuda Kei Samunder Sei Machli Utha
Laita Hei’ (well how will you die/if the bird gets
lost in the hand of God/And?/ if the fish gets lost
in the sea of Gods/And?/ if the bird picks up the
fish/Amazing). Arabs are too familiar with deaths
due to internal turmoil and external invasions.
Iqtidar
chose the book titled ‘Tama Khata’ by Adeeb Kamal
which is prose poetry. Iqtidar has tried to convert
these poems in free verse, basically because of
least interest of Urdu poetry lovers for this domain
and secondly because of translator’s own choice to
do so. He is grateful to Muhammad Saleem ur Rehman
for his advice during translation and to Tauqir
Ahmad Faiq and Ali Shehzad Tauqir for their advice
too. The book contains forty one translated poems of
Adeeb Kamal Ad-Deen.
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