Ashraf Fayadh's "Disputed" Poems, in English Translation

1

petroleum is harmless, except for the trace of poverty it leaves behind 

on that day, when the faces of those who discover another oil well go dark, 

when life is blown into your heart to extract more oil off your soul 

for public use.. 

That.. is.. the promise of oil, a true promise. 

the end.. 

2

it was said: settle there..

but some of you are enemies for all 

so leave it now

look up to yourselves from the bottom of the river; 

those of you on top should provide some pity for those underneath.. 

the displaced is helpless, 

like blood that no one wants to buy in the oil market! 

3

pardon me, forgive me

for not being able to pump more tears for you

for not mumbling your name in nostalgia. 

I directed my face at the warmth of your arms 

I got no love but you, you alone, and am the first of your seekers. 

4

night, 

you are inexperienced with Time

lacking rain drops

that could wash away all the remains of your past

and liberate you of what you had called piety..

of that heart.. capable of love, 

of play, 

and of intersecting with your obscene withdrawal from that flabby religion 

from that fake Tanzeel 

from gods that had lost their pride..

5

you burp, more than you used to.. 

as the bars bless their visitors 

with recitations and seductive dancers.. 

accompanied with the DJ 

you recite your hallucinations 

and speak your praise for these bodies swinging to the verses of exile.

6

he’s got no right to walk however 

or to swing however or to cry however. 

he’s got no right to open the window of his soul,

to renew his air, his waste, and his tears.. 

you too tend to forget that you are 

a piece of bread

7

on the day of banishment, they stand naked, 

while you swim in the rusty pipes of sewage, barefoot.. 

this could be healthy for the feet

 but not for earth 

8 

prophets have retired

so do not wait for yours to come to you

and for you, 

for you the monitors bring their daily reports

and get their high salaries.. 

how important money is

for a life of dignity

9

my grandfather stands naked everyday, 

without banishment, without divine creation.. 

I have already been resuscitated without a godly blow in my image. 

I am the experience of hell on earth..

earth

is the hell prepared for refugees. 

10

your mute blood will not speak up 

as long as you pride yourself in death

as long as you keep announcing -secretly- that you have put your soul 

at the hands of those who do not know much.. 

losing your soul will cost time, 

much longer than what it takes to calm 

your eyes that have cried tears of oil 

* These poems appeared in Fayadh's poetry collection Instructions Within which was published by the Beirut-based Dar al-Farabi in 2008 and later banned from distribution in Saudi Arabia. 

Translated by: Mona Kareem

You can now order it on AMAZON!