life in the coffins of the memory

 Romantic poem

poem’s name: life in the coffins of the memory 

(الحياة في توابيت الذكرى)

عبد الستار سليم Poet's name: Abdul Sattar Salim

Date of writing the poem:  1 august 1983 

 →  listen to the poem

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تجيئين ليلا

You came in night

على قهقهات الشموس الغريبة 

to the laughter of the strange suns

تجيئين ليلا

You came in night

تهزين هذا الفضاء 

You shook this space

فتعبر وجهي ابتسامات عشقك 

So, the smiles of your love passed my face

ويبحر بي.. عبق..

And a fragrance sails with me

من زهور الإياب المفاجئ..

From the flowers of the sudden return

وعبر الصقيع..

And through the frost

تجيء إلي الرياح بكل أريج الطفولة..

The winds came to me with all the fragrance of childhood

تنير ليلي

It enlightens my night

لتوقظ شهوته من جديد 

To wake up its desire again

تباركني الشمس 

The sun blessed me 

حين تجيئيني ليلا

When you came in night

****

وحين أراك أراني أعصر خمرا 

And when I saw you, I saw myself pressing wine

أعيشك في لحظة العشق دهرا 

This moment of love was like an era

وأجوس خلال المفاوز 

Then I roam through the deserts

ألثم قاع المحيط 

I kiss the bottom of the ocean

أضم دثار جناحات غيمك

I hug the stole of your cloud’s wings

يهدهدني خدر مطمئن..

A reassured tranquility calms me down

من الأمسيات القديمة..

From the old nights

فتنبت في الصدر.. سبع سنابل خضراء..

So, seven green ears are planted in the chest

وتصبح أعمدة المعبد الأزلي.. 

...And the columns of the eternal temple

نخيل حنين على ضفتي..

become palm trees of longing by my bank

فأضنو الثياب عن الجسد المهترئ 

So, I fold the clothes from the worn body

ألبس طيفك

I wear your shadow

كيما أسافر – عبر الفضاء – إليك

To travel through space to you 

وأحمل حلما من الزمان المستباح 

And to carry a dream from the permissible time

An explanation of this piece from the arabic poems:

Abdul Sattar Salim expresses his suffering from his past with these beautiful and sensual words. This longing to the past is expressed very well here: “A reassured tranquility calms me down, from the old nights”. 

The reader can easily find that the poet can hardly find happiness now, so he goes to the past with great nostalgia. The address of this poem: life in the coffins of the” is quite bleak. But we can find beauty in some great and magical expressions like: “the fragrance of childhood”, the poet also suffers from his lost love. 

the poet finishes the poem with “wearing the shadow of his lover” which is a strong and touching poetry image. The effect of the Quran, the holy book of Muslims, is clear. We can find it in this part:”seven green ears” which is a well-known expression from the famous story of the profit youssef.