Xal Üstündə Yarana
Əyər nazlı yarın xalın deyirsən,
Bir xalı cümlə-cahanı bənd etmiş,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş güllü Aranı,
Bir xalı da sevəni bənd etmiş.
Bir xalı bənd etmiş dərin dəryanı,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş dünya binanı,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş Gümüşaxanı,
Bir xalı da mədənini bənd etmiş.
Bir xalı bənd etmiş haram-halalı,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş dağda maralı,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş yaqutu, ləhli,
Bir xalı cəvahir kanı bənd etmiş.
Bir xalı bənd etmiş gelən-gedəni,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş sövdə etdəni,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş Tiflis meydanı,
Bir xalı da, dost, dükanı bənd etmiş.
Bir xalı bənd etmiş göydə ildizi,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş çoxunan azı,
Bir xalı bənd etmiş, aşıqlar, sazı,
Bir xalı da Sayat-Novanı bənd etmiş.
Vücüdnamə
Şükür olsun yaranda, var edən pərvərdiğara,
Ab ikən, torpağ ikən, düşdüm qızıl səməndərə,
Vaxtı ki, bad alışdı qələmdən düşdüm dəftərə,
Həlbət, haqqın buyruğudur düşdüm laməkan şəhərə.
Üç ayım tamam oldu, xəbər oldu nurmadara,
Altı ayım tamam oldu, sığındım qızıl kəmərə,
Doqquz ayım tamam oldu, çağırım mövləm qurtara,
Cansat oldum, aldım qapaz, göz açdım, düşdüm bahara.
Bir ilim tamam oldu, o qüdrət [yağdan aldım],
İki ilim tamam oldu, anamın məməsin atdım,
Üç ilim tamam oldu, ağlayıb [beşikdə] qaldım,
Dörd ilim tamam oldu, gəzdim ayaq basdım yerə.
Beş ilim tamam oldu, dilə geldim həm dəhana,
Altı ilim tamam oldu, urusxat oldu dəndana,
Yeddi ilim tamam oldu, qəsd eylədim abu nana,
Səkkiz ilim tamam oldu, göz açdım düşdüm bahara.
Doqquz ilim tamam oldu, həm olmamışam belu,
On ilim tamam oldu, gəzərəm dəli-dolu,
On bir ilim tamam oldu, çünki olacağam əhlü,
On iki ilim tamam oldu, tapşırdılar ustakara.
On üç ilim tamam oldu, öyrəndim taman sənət,
On dörd ilim tamam oldu, ustama yetirdim xələt,
On beş ilim tamam oldu, mənşür etdim ağu-qara.
On yeddi ilim tamam oldu, helə olmamışam dastan,
On sekkiz ilim tamam oldu, gördüm gülü gülüstan,
On doqquz ilim tamam oldu, gəzdim həbəşü hindistan,
Yirmi ilim tamam oldu, ləhl sataram sövdədara.
Yirmi beşim tamam oldu, girib meydanda süzərəm,
Otuz ilim tamam oldu, əjdaha oldu gəzərəm,
Otuz beşim tamam oldu, hey yazaram hey pozaram,
Qırx ilim tamam oldu, hər şəyim çıxdı təyyara.
Qırx beşim tamam oldu, hər işə oldum xəbərdar,
Əlli ilim tamam oldu, üzümə bəsləndi ar,
Əlli beşim tamam oldu, çox çəkərəm ahu zar,
Altmış ilim tamam oldu, qafil oldu babalara.
Altmış beşim tamam oldu, çox çəkərəm ahu vax,
Yetmiş ilim tamam oldu, gözümdən getdi şəfəq,
Yetmiş beşim tamam oldu, dəliyəm həm də səfəh,
Seksən ilim tamam oldu, payım gətdi məzara.
Seksən beşim tamam oldu, canıma düşdü azar,
Doxsan ilim tamam oldu, özümdən öldüm bəzar,
Doxsan beşim tamam oldu, yetdim min illi kaftara.
Günahkaram həm bəndəyəm, qoyma uzaqlara məni,
Dünya günahsız dim qalır gözləyin Süləmani,
Divan vaxtı yetişəndə kim sovar Sayat-Novanı,
Bu dünya vaqiədir, nə baxırsan ehtibara.
İki Şeir
Sayat-Nova
Listen to "To What is Being Wrought because of a Beauty Mark" read in the original Azerbaijani by Peter Orte:
Sayat-Nova was an 18th century Armenian ashough, a “troubadour” from the Caucasus who took on the persona of the mad lover. Among ashoughs/ashygs, he is unique in that he composed songs in all three of the major languages of the South Caucasus (Armenian, Azerbaijani, and Georgian), a linguistic and cultural versatility that made him a symbol of internationalism in the Soviet Union. Beyond whatever ideology they have been used to buttress, however, his songs have unmistakably poetic virtues. They are full of playful wit, tension, resolve, and depth. It is for this reason that he should be read. For the translator, his work presents a number of challenges. First, the relevant manuscripts must be deciphered: Sayat-Nova recorded his Armenian poems in the Georgian alphabet and his Azerbaijani poems in the Armenian alphabet. Second, the poems contain ambiguities and grammatical irregularities that call for a translator’s interpretation. Finally, many effects are obtained by playing with the conventions of a distant tradition and by creating tension between the literal and the figurative, which calls for knowledge of cultural context. The Azerbaijani poems translated here come from the book Sayat-Nova (Azerneshr, 1963) edited by H. Arasly. The first poem praises a beloved’s beauty mark, which scholar Charles Dowsett, in Sayat-Nova: An 18th-Century Troubadour (Peeters, 1997), characterized as a piece of “hyperbolic jest.” To convey this sense of humor in English, we have departed from the literal text. Whereas Sayat-Nova uses only one verb (bend etmek—to capture or captivate) with an assortment of objects, we vary the actions accordingly, and translate the toponym Aran (now Azerbaijan, plain) as a pun. The second poem included here, “Poem of the Body,” contains a difficulty in its title. Working with the original manuscripts, Dowsett transcribes the title as Sujudname (poem of religious prostration), whereas Arasly titles the poem after a recognizable genre, Vujudname (poem of the body or existence), which chronicles the life of the body from conception to death, and in certain examples, up to the day of resurrection. If Dowsett is right, surely Sayat-Nova was playing on this tradition in a characteristically individual way. In addition, there are several places where the poem calls for interpretation, none more important than the final line. Dowsett has it as “A curse upon fidelity!” and explains: “there is no reward for good faith or honesty in this world.” Our version conveys an equally plausible meaning.
Sayat-Nova was an 18th century ashugh who continues to be a major figure in Armenia, where people still remember his songs. Much of his biography is speculative, having been inferred from his poetry. He was born around 1712 in the city of Tbilisi, prior to the Russian annexation of Georgia. A dyer by trade, he eventually became a master musician and poet attached to the court of Heraclius II. For unknown reasons—he may have fallen in love with the king’s sister—he was exiled from court and forced to join the holy orders. He married, became a priest, and, following the death of his wife, joined a monastery. His days as a minstrel were over, but he did not abandon poetry. Along with preserving works of classical Armenian literature, it was during these years that he recorded his own songs in a unique manuscript. He is thought to have died a martyr during the invasion of the Qajar emperor Agha-Mohammed Khan in 1795.
Peter Orte grew up in Minnesota and, having come by circuitous routes, currently lives in Massachusetts, where he teaches Russian language and literature. from 2012 to 2015 he lived and worked in Baku, where he first became acquainted with the work of Sayat-Nova. He has written several articles on Russian and Azeri literature and translates from the Russian and Azeri.
Murad Jalilov is a PhD student at the University of Kansas. He received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science and English from Emporia State University and Master’s Degrees in Slavic Studies from the University of Oregon and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on the literary relationship between the Russian Empire and its periphery, with a particular focus on Azerbaijani literature, film, and folklore.
