Amal Abul-Qassem Dunqul who was born in El-Qala village in Qift, an administrative division of Qena Governorate on 23 June 1940 was part of what is known as the "sixties generation" of Egyptian poets and one of the most significant (political) poets of modern Arabic literature who remains largely untranslated. Dunqul was born in Upper Egypt, and like many writers, migrated to Cairo from the countryside.
Six poetry collections were published in his name, including Crying Between a Bird’s Hands, The Coming Era and Papers of Room No 8 which were collected in his Complete Works after he tragically died early on May 21, 1983, following a long struggle with cancer aged 42 .
He was raised in a very religious household, his father was a scholar at Al-Azhar and because of his position in society refused to allow Donqol to play in the streets. This forced him indoors and among books.
When his father passed away when Donqol was just 10, he ventured further into reading. He spent years memorising poetry by great poets of the old days, and started writing poetry himself. His first poem was about Palestine, refusing to write about love when the stories of people dying for Palestine were filling the news.
Jowever he later lost his deep devotion to religion and developed Marxist sympathies, reading the works of Marx, Engels, and Lenin, but never joined a political party due to his suspicion of all political organizations.
Dunqul's poetical style was influenced by Greek mythology as well as pre-Islamic and Islamic imagery. He wrote Arabic poetry mostly in free verse
He was most well-known for his political poems that drew upon ancient stories whether from pre-Islamic lore, or biblical legends from the old and new testaments to speak about the contemporary reality that he lived in.
Regarded as one of one of the most powerful poems in modern Arabic literature “لا تصالح” “Do Not Reconcile,” was written in December 1976 in the context of the Israeli-Arab conflict, and contains a refusal to reconcile with Israel, which earned him the moniker "Prince of Refusers" (Arabic: أمير شعراء الرفض).
The poem spread across the Arab world as a refusal of the Camp David peace treaty with Israel, signed by Egyptian President Sadat. More recently, as Arab regimes have cracked down on popular uprisings, people have come to relate to the piece in a different light, viewing it as a call to neither reconcile nor negotiate with their own tyrannical regimes.
Lines from poems written by Dunqul have been used in various artistic forms such as political street art (graffiti and murals), Arabic calligraphy designs, caricature and cartoons, and others.
“Do Not Reconcile,” - Amal Dunqul
1.
Do not reconcile
even if they give you gold
I wonder
if I were to gouge out your eyes
and replace them with two gems
would you see?
These things are priceless.
Childhood memories
between you and your brother
when you - suddenly - felt like men.
Bashfulness suppresses your yearning
when you embrace him
the silence with a smile
while your mother blames you
as if you’re still two kids.
Eternal comfort between the two of you
such that two swords are your sword
two voices are your voice
such that if you were to die
there is a guardian to the house
and a father for the child.
Would my blood turn to water in your eyes?
Would you forget my clothes covered in blood?
Would you wear - over my blood -
clothes adorned
with silver and gold?
This is war!
It may wear heavy on the heart
but behind you will be the shame of all the Arabs
Do not reconcile.
Do not reconcile.
Do not try to find ways to hide.
2
Do not reconcile over blood
even with blood.
Do not reconcile
even if they say a head for a head
Are all heads equal?
Is a stranger’s heart equal to your brother’s?
Are his eyes your brother’s eyes?
Is a hand whose sword was your sword
equal to a hand whose sword caused
you to mourn.
They will say we came to you to stop the bloodshed
we came to you, o’ prince, to mediate.
They will say
‘Here we are cousins’
so tell them they had no such consideration
for he who has perished.
Instill the sword into the forehead of the desert
until the nothingness tells you
that I was for you
a knight
a brother
a father and a king.
3.
Do not reconcile
even if they bestow leadership upon you.
How can you step over the corpse of your father’s son?
How can you become king with such phony joy?
How can you look at the hands of those who are
shaking your hands, and not see blood on them?
If it was one arrow that stabbed me in the back
for you it will be one thousand
because blood has become a decoration and a badge.
Do not reconcile
Do not reconcile
even if they bestow leadership upon you.
Indeed your throne is a sword
and your sword is a sham
unless it witnesses moments of honor.
4,
Do not reconcile
even if those who retreated during the fighting said,
'We don’t have the energy to wield our swords
’ when the truth fills your heart
you will breathe fire
and the tongue of betrayal will be silent.
Do not reconcile
regardless of how much they talk about peace.
How can you look into the eyes of a woman you know you cannot protect?
How can you become her lover?
How can you wish for tomorrow for a sleeping newborn?
How can you dream about the future of a young boy
while he’s growing up in your hands - with a broken heart.
Do not reconcile
and don’t share food with those who have killed you.
Water your heart with blood…
and water the sacred lands…
and water your ancestors who lie there…
until their bones respond back to you!
5.
Do not reconcile
even if your tribe calls upon you
to be deceptive and show acceptance
to those who came to you.
Your tribe will say
'You’re asking for vengeance
that is quite distant.
So take what you can right now.’
Let us be honest
in these few years t
his is not your vengeance
alone its generations’ after generations’
and tomorrow
there is one who will be born
who will wear full armor
who will kindle the fire fully
who will bring about truth
from ruptures in the impossible.
Do not reconcile
even if it is said that reconciliation is deceit.
It is vengeance.
The flames fade in the heart…
as the seasons pass…
the hand of shame will leave a mark
(with its five fingers)
on the humiliated foreheads.
6.
Do not reconcile
even if its written in the stars
and the astrologers break the news to you.
I would have forgiven if I died inadvertently.
I was not a conqueror. I
never snuck close to their trading post.
I never came close to the fruit of their grapevines.
I never came close to the fruit of their grapevines.
their verdant lands - I never came near them.
My killer never shouted 'Watch out!’ to me…
he was walking alongside me…
then he shook my hand..
then he walked ahead
into the bushes to hide.
Suddenly
a shiver punctured me between two ribs
my heart swelled then burst
I struggled until I could prop myself
on my forearm
and saw my vile cousin
rejoicing over my suffering with a cruel face.
I did not wield a dagger or even an old weapon
nothing but a rage borne of hunger.
7.
Do not reconcile
until existence returns to its moving cycle
the stars to orbit
the birds to their song
the sands to their grain
and the martyr to his awaiting daughter.
Everything was destroyed in a fleeting moment:
youth, the joy of family, the sounds of horses, getting to know a guest,
the humming of the heart upon seeing sprouts in the garden,
the prayer for seasonal rain,
the elusion of the heart when it sees the bird of death flying over
deathly duels.
Everything was destroyed upon a licentious whim
and the one who assassinated me was not a god
such that he could kill me with his will
he was not more noble than I
such that he could kill me with his knife
he was not more clever than me
such that he could kill me through deceit.
Do not reconcile
for reconciliation is nothing but a treaty
between two equals (by the honor of their hearts)
otherwise it cannot be true
the one who assassinated me was just a thief
who stole my land right in front of my eyes
as the silence was sarcastically laughing!
8.
Do not reconcile
even if all the sheiks stand against your sword
along with the men with no integrity
and those whose turbans dangle over their eyes and their Arabic swords have forgotten the years of glory.
Do not reconcile
for there should be nothing but what you want
you are the only knight of this time and the rest are 'Musookh’.*
Do not reconcile.
Do not reconcile.
9.
Do not reconcile
Even if all the sheikhs stand against your sword
Along with the men with no integrity
Those whose turbans dangle over their eyes
And their Arabic swords have forgotten the years of glory.
Do not reconcile
For there should be nothing but for you to want
You are the only knight of this time
And the rest are all monstrosities
10.
Do not reconcile.
Do not reconcile.
* For blood to turn to water: An Arabic saying referring to the impossibility of blood transforming into water, and the bonds of blood, family, and brotherhood being lost.
** Musookh (sing. Maskh): Creatures that are partially human, and part monster. Originally a term to describe creatures such as Dracula and Frankenstein,
Maskh is used as a derogatory term to describe people - rulers, "Uncle Toms,” etc. - who betray their own people and humanistic values in order to attain fame, fortune, notoriety, etc.
“Do not reconcile.. Even if they say a head for a head. Are all heads equal?" - Graffiti in the West Bank, Palestine
No comments:
Post a Comment