Live Encounters Poetry & Writing Volume Six November-December 2024.
Arab Poets & Writers
The Idea of the River, poem by Hassan Najmi.
Translated from Arabic by Dr. Salwa Gouda.
The Idea of the River
Name this river after me
For I am drowned and my hand is pure like a poet’s hand
The river’s water in my palm
A bed of greenery dreaming, here on my balcony.
On the balcony
I look at the river passing there
My feet touch the water.
On the balcony I look towards the river—
And Sarkon* asks me, is this the river of your forefathers?
I say: perhaps—
And I do not know if my ancestors had a river!
(The desert was their profession and life)
I know you, river, you were a drop—
Then you burst into tears.
Here near the river
I water my eyes every morning and renew my gaze
Come let us love, my house is not far from the water
Next to the grass and the trees and the bleating
Our hearts are fierce in secret
We thirst for the distant spring
To this stream towards us
Come let us sing the world with kisses.
Here are your waters gently caressing the banks
Getting closer to the edges to lean on the color of the soil.
I gaze today as well—
The river is there between two greens
Between two cities
Between two lives
Like time that ages
Ferments
Delights like wine
Has its narrative about the history of kings
And soldiers
And the dead
It has unforgettable tales with the rain, the flood, and the grass
And it does not forget –
But it does not speak.
I look today as well—
I do not know how to exit from myself
I know it is going there
(I must be pointing with my finger) –
To drown.
From here—my eyes on the river
Every day they swim in this line of lead
Every day this sun is new.
Stay calm
Do not be fooled by the shadows of the sparrows
Rivers do not fly
Be wise
Wave your hand and move on
And quench your desire to stand like a willow tree
Rivers, only, run
Enjoy the journey
Listen to the whisper of the butterflies
To the heartbeat from the balcony
And in the metaphor
Do not trust your rustle
It will hide from you the bracelets of the girls
And the lovers’ laughter by the banks
And you will miss the moment of joy in the songs
Walk alone
Like a free line in a poem
Like a faint echo on the edge of a map in students’ notebooks
Pass by the bends of the reeds in my dream
And do not forget me.
* Sargon Boulus was an Iraqi poet, journalist and writer.
Born in 1944, he died on 22 October 2007.
© Hassan Najmi
Hassan Najmi (1960, Ibn Ahmed, Settat province) is a Moroccan poet, author, and journalist. He was The President of the Union of Writers of Morocco between 1998 and 2005 and the former head of the House of Poetry in Morocco. He is also the President of the Moroccan Center for the International PEN Club and the Secretary General of the Argana Prize for Poetry. Furthermore, he founded the House of Poetry in Morocco with a group of Moroccan poets (December 1995) and was elected vice-president and spokesperson for the House. He received many Arab and international awards, and his works have been translated into more than ten languages. He has also translated into Arabic the poetic works of several of the world’s leading poets.
Salwa Gouda is an Egyptian literary translator, critic, and academic at the English Language and Literature Department at Ain-Shams University. She holds a PhD in English literature and criticism. She received her education at Ain-Shams University and California State University in San Bernardino. Furthermore, she has published several academic books, including Lectures in English Poetry and introduction to Modern Literary Criticism, and others. She has also contributed to the translation of “The Arab Encyclopedia for Pioneers,” which includes poets, philosophers, historians, and men of letters, under the supervision of UNESCO. Also, her translated poetry anthology, entitled Dogs Pass Through My Fingers, was published recently through Alien Buddha Press in Arizona, USA. Additionally, her literary translations have been published in various international magazines.