In Prison
From 1947 to 1966 Dilan was arrested, tortured and imprisoned for 13 years for his involvement in Kurdish independence movements and at times for his art, many of his poems were written while he was in prison in 1963 for writing "Rez" (In Kurdish: ڕه‌ز, In English: Vineyard), he served one year in prison:
(In Kurdish)
ئای کێ بێ بانگ و هاوارو په‌یام
بگه‌یه‌نێته گوێ گۆڕی خه‌یام
بڵێ: هه‌ی سه‌رشێت، کووشته‌ی گڕی ته‌ڕ
گه‌ر تێتا ماوه یه‌ک تۆز نرخ و فه‌ڕ
تۆ له‌سه‌ر باکه‌ی شووشه‌که‌ی شکان
له‌گه‌ڵ خودادا کردت به زۆران
هه‌ڵسه به‌ره‌و ئه‌م ناوه هه‌ڵتووتێ
نه‌ک شووشه شکا، وا ڕه‌ز ئه‌سووتێ
سروشت به پێچه خوارو چه‌پ گه‌رده
له جێیه ئاو، بێ ڕه‌قه‌ن و به‌رده
له جێیه زه‌وی نه‌رم و هه‌ڵۆڵ بێ
ئه‌بێ خوڕه‌ی ئاو تۆزی ده‌هۆڵ بێ
ئه‌گینا شه‌راب له مامۆستای ماف
بۆ ئه‌گه‌یشته ئه‌وپه‌ڕ قوله‌ی قاف
قاتی شه‌رابه گیانی ئیفڵاتوون
سه‌ر ده‌رکه هه‌تا نه‌بووی به مه‌یموون
به‌ره‌و مه‌ڵبه‌نی کوردستان ڕه‌وتێ
نه‌ک کووپه شکا، وا ڕه‌ز ئه‌سووتێ
Ay kê bê bang u hawar u peyam
Bigeyenête gwê gorî Khayyám
Bilê: hey serşêt, kuştey giry ter
Ger têta mawe yek toz nirxu fer
To leser bakey şuşekey şikan
Legel xudada kirdit be zoran
Helse berew em nawe heltutê
Nek şuşe şika, wa rez esutê
Siruşt be pêçe xiwar u çep gerde
Le cêye aw, bê reqen u berde
Le cêye zewî nerm u helol bê
Ebê xureî aw tozî dehol bê
Egina şerab le mamostaî maf
Bo egeyşhte ewper quleî qaf
Qatî şerabe giyanî eflatoon
Ser derke heta nebuî be meymoon
Berew melbenî Kurdistan rewtê
Nek kupe şika, wa rez esutê
Here he recalls various events, Omar Kayyam's famous poem about the wind braking his glass of wine and the blaming of God by the poet, the other event being Plato's supposed hiding in the wine vessels before his writings occurred, then Dilan compares them with the burning of the villages and the vineyards in the early 1960s by the Iraqi government. The poem is a comparison between three events yet the only connection between them is grape, Kayyam drinking the wine, Plato thinking inside the wine vessel and the vineyards burning in Kurdistan, the poem's deep meaning and contrast shows why it's considered a masterpiece of Kurdish poetry.
Read more about this topic: Muhamad Salih Dilan
Famous quotes containing the word prison:
“Social questions are too sectional, too topical, too temporal to move a man to the mighty effort which is needed to produce great poetry. Prison reform may nerve Charles Reade to produce an effective and businesslike prose melodrama; but it could never produce Hamlet, Faust, or Peer Gynt.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“Whensoever any affliction assails me, mee thinks I have the keyes of my prison in mine owne hand, and no remedy presents it selfe so soone to my heart, as mine own sword. Often meditation of this hath wonne me to a charitable interpretation of their action, who dy so: and provoked me a little to watch and exagitate their reasons, which pronounce so peremptory judgements upon them.”
—John Donne (c. 1572–1631)