Contemporary Azerbaijani Poetry. Mammad Araz. Poems
Mammad Araz
Azerbaijan
The Old Man and the Sea
To Ernest Hemingway"s death
His hairs look like his color,
His voice as well as his rhythm.
The old man made the sea
of which bed was his breast,
waves were his songs.
He sailed knowing no borders,
He sailed the world continents...
Fate stirred up a storm,
Paddle was blown down,
and the boat went down...
But there was a vestige
written on a rocky coast:
"The old man passed away,
There was only the Sea left..."
1961.
The Oak
My beloved, look at that old oak,
Its branch blooms once again,
Do you remember our first meeting -
Two years ago in the early spring?
We stood under that old oak tree,
There were many colorful flowers around.
Not only our hearts were throbbing,
but also the leaves of that oak were shaking.
That old oak has seen a lot of changes,
But it stands there like a memory.
Even as the oak changes its dresses,
Our first love will never change.
1955.
Sevgilim, o qoca palıda bir bax,
Yen; puçurlayıb onun budağı.
Yadına g;lirmi iki il qabaq
O ilk görüşümüz, o bahar çağı?
Durmuşduq dibind; o palıdın biz,
;trafda min r;ngli çiç;k var idi.
Çırpınan, titr;y;n bizim q;lbimiz,
Bir d; o palıdın yarpaqlarıydı.
Görüb neç; bahar, qış havasını,
Durur qoca palıd bir xatir; t;k.
Min yol d;yişs; d;, o libasını,
Bizim ilk sevgimiz d;yişm;y;c;k!
1955.
Translated by Kamran Nazirli
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