Imagine (a 9/11 poem)

[Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã]

Why must
The poor be dispossessed, even of their tears
If their homes are torn down
Or when the town you were born and raised in
Was taken away from you?
That this land, ripe with olives
Which your ancestors foiled invaders and heatstroke for
Must have its fertility taken away
To be consumed by a glut of sterile cement?


Their honour bleeds; their daughters starve ...
What can these people do to keep their rights? nothing.
And what have you done to give them back their rights -
That shibboleth of
enjoyment of Life and the pursuit of Happiness,
Wherever and whatever it be -
Which you guarantee for your own?
Nothing.


But now
See how the terror and despair
Of these heathens reached out
To your shores
And tore down your towers, tore your loved ones away
To join the eternal party in Hades
Sowing hatred in your cities
When they who worship God five times a day
Were overwhelmed with grief, hatred and murder,


Could you imagine it?


When others were filled with rage
And took your loved ones away from you
- in the exact, iniquitious manner
their brethren were taken away -


Could you imagine it?


These people you know little about...
Exiled and lost to your eyes, your friends, your news channels...
The heathen is a human, despite his language and appearance.
The heathen has dreams like you too.


Could you imagine it then?


The children of the pagan are the same as your children:
Must they taste your swords, merely because your own
Never came out to meet the blades of their fathers?
With blood, and missiles, and the accursed abominations
Of war and bloodshed
On your doorstep, on your mind, on your telly screens


Perhaps you can imagine it all -


Five thousand is nothing compared to generations lost
Bereft of state, freedom or bread.
So enough with your sob story
That their religion hates you -
Do not be so blind, dear persecutor
Or ignorant and disinterested, as you may be:
Once they raised their hands out to you,
With fear in their eyes and sorrow in their hearts;
You turned them a deaf ear.


Now, imagine:
What fear there must be in your eyes and what sorrows lie in your own hearts!
So think not highly of how many you lost,
or how bitter be
the vintage of your tear-flavoured spite
- you drink it but for one day every year.
For the heathens of Palestine, there is no escape
from sorrow, tears or hatred -
their own, your own, No reprieve from the gaoler's own -
even for a single day.

[Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã]

My thoughts on this poem:

I wrote it "on the top of my head" with very little review and editing. To me there are several reasons why I am not pleased with it:-

• It seems too wordy - using tonnes and tonnes of words to describe one concept was a sin I committed repeatedly when I was young
• In many areas it's thematically repetitive

But of course these are only my thoughts, so I'd like to know what you think

[jeannerené]

Hi Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã

Thanks for posting in Poems in Progress ...

My first reaction was there are too many topics for one poem ... three different topics from what I can decipher, all of which deserve or could be written about separately and perhaps the significance/severity of each would be better/more fully expressed.

I am not sure why you have chosen to use the word "heathen" because if you are under the impression that that is what the majority of U.S. citizens think of Islam and Muslims then you are greatly mistaken. Yes, there are factions within the U.S. whose opinions concerning Islam are not favorable, no denying that fact. However, your choice to write a poem which seemingly appears to be addressed to U.S. citizens and using the word "heathen" ... for me makes the poem less affective. Actually, the word if a reference to Islam, confuses me. Are you are using the word to mean uncivilized or strange, or as heathen in reference to one who does not believe in God of the Bible/Qur'an/Old Testament? I believe you can write the same poem, arguing the same points without using "heathen" which minimizes (speaking for myself) the argument you are trying to express. I taught for the past 14 years at a high school in which the minority of the students are white/Christians and the majority of our students are of Asian, Middle Eastern and Indian descent, being either lst generation Americans or not of American birth. The events of 9/11 were very difficult for our student body and our community as you can imagine, and for our students who worship as Muslims we were greatly concerned and we were there to support them at all times.

OK ... ?

Wordiness ... well ... it is wordier than the poems you have posted, but like you said it was a spontaneous write and not edited. I am sure that you will have no problem addressing it with a good edit.

As I said, I really believe you have or should have three separate poems here and perhaps you could expand on your opening and your closing and present it as a poem in three parts.

As I've come to expect, your imagery is creative and thought through quite well, and always a pleasure to read.

I would drop the second "Could you imagine it?" ... the one that leads into "These people you know little about" .... I believe it is one too many and really not necessary.

I hope my thoughts help. It is a challenging subject, but I do hope that you will not abandon it and that you pursue its development.

~jeanne

[rocha]

A problem with writing a poem like this is not letting it become a diatribe. Maybe a metaphor would create more serious thought in the mind of the reader. The art is to make us think. I must applaud you for tackling such a difficult subject .

Heathen = a person who does not belong to a widely held religion (especially one who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim) as regarded by those who do.

I think I'm a heathen.

[Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã]

Mar 29, 2014 22:43:24 GMT -8 jeannerené said:

Hi Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã
I am not sure why you have chosen to use the word "heathen" because if you are under the impression that that is what the majority of U.S. citizens think of Islam and Muslims then you are greatly mistaken.

There is a reason why I chose the word "heathen" - because I wanted to imply how these people - Middle Eastern Muslims - are often sidelined and treated as barbarians unworthy of respect or recognition, if not inhuman.

Consider the following famous lyrics (which are written in Mediaeval German):

Kristen juden und die heiden
jehent daz dis ir erbe sî

Translated, it reads:

Christians, Jews and Heathens
claim this (Palestine) to be their heritage.

Even in the Middle Ages, Islam was being demonised - here "heathen" is actually an allusion to Muslims, which will be made clear in the following lines of the song (not printed here)

So the term heathen and Muslim was used (in this my defence) interchangeably to depict Islam and Muslims as outside forces and peoples who have no place in the American (or Western???) scheme of things.

Of course this poem may reflect what I think about the reasons why 9/11 took place, but my thoughts on the Palestine crisis are another matter.

[jeannerené]

So the term heathen and Muslim was used (in this my defence) interchangeably to depict Islam and Muslims as outside forces and peoples who have no place in the American (or Western???) scheme of things.

Of course this poem may reflect what I think about the reasons why 9/11 took place, but my thoughts on the Palestine crisis are another matter.

No place in American society? Is this poetic license or what you assume is the currently the state of Islam and practicing Muslims in the U.S.? If you a writing within a vision of history .... ok .... but if you are writing, believing that Muslims do not participate or do not have a strong presence in American society today then you are completely off base. Muslim communities have a strong presence in all our major cities and I am sure that presence will not remain solely in major metropolises. As I have already said I worked with Muslims, taught Muslims, shopped at Muslim groceries, eaten at Muslim restaurants, been treated by Muslim doctors .... and yes, even gone to Mosque. I am an all-American girl, born and bread and very patriotic, and I embrace all good people, and appreciate and learn from diverse ethnicities and birth/religious cultures, and I am not alone in that sentiment here in the United States. Again, I will reiterate that there a factions who are not supportive of Islam and fear Islam, and there will always be those who do, just as there will always be those who fear dislike Christianity or Judaism, or who fear one particular race or others who fear sexual diversity. To me all that hatred is incredibly sad, and I suppose that I am a dreamer who hopes someday humankind will be able to embrace each other without fear or prejudice ... someday I truly hope.

As far as history ... we will always reference back to history, but to hold on to history is dangerous if it blinds us to future possibilities/realities.

As far as Palestine, yes ... a different matter ... and one in which my sympathies lie with the Palestinians, but who hopes for no blood shed on either side.

Below is a video that moves me to tears each time I watch it and I am only an observer, and I can't image the depth of feeling that those who live it must feel.




Renatus ... you know of course that you are most welcome to  always express your beliefs and point of view through your poetry and discourse here at Poetic Horizons. I always appreciate your posts and replies, I just disagree with the point of view expressed in this write. From your explanation I understand your use of the word "heathen", but I hope you understand as well that Islam and its practicing Muslims are not collectively viewed as heathens in the U.S. 

Certainly, I do not expect you and or anyone else to always agree with me.

Looking forward to reading more ...

jeanne

[Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã]

Mar 30, 2014 19:07:34 GMT -8 jeannerené said:

No place in American society? Is this poetic license or what you assume is the currently the state of Islam and practicing Muslims in the U.S.? If you a writing within a vision of history .... ok .... but if you are writing, believing that Muslims do not participate or do not have a strong presence in American society today then you are completely off base.

If you read my poem carefully you will understand that I am not saying that Muslims do not exist in America. I am critiquing the idea o(of pseudocons like Glenn Beck) that Muslims should not have a place in America because of their religion and way of life, and am explaining that Islamic terror has plenty to do with the fact that IT is the result of American foreign policy which if not predatory can only be described as discriminatory. The poem is an attack on those who discriminate against Muslims and consider the Arab Muslims of Palestine as "heathen vermin" and "terrorists" whose lands should be annexed by Israel. It is easy to point fingers when something goes wrong and people turn bad. However, I noticed that people are seldom prepared to ask what makes people turn bad.

[jeannerené]

Mar 31, 2014 4:51:26 GMT -8 Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã said:

Mar 30, 2014 19:07:34 GMT -8 jeannerené said:

No place in American society? Is this poetic license or what you assume is the currently the state of Islam and practicing Muslims in the U.S.? If you a writing within a vision of history .... ok .... but if you are writing, believing that Muslims do not participate or do not have a strong presence in American society today then you are completely off base.

If you read my poem carefully you will understand that I am not saying that Muslims do not exist in America. I am critiquing the idea o(of pseudocons like Glenn Beck) that Muslims should not have a place in America because of their religion and way of life, and am explaining that Islamic terror has plenty to do with the fact that IT is the result of American foreign policy which if not predatory can only be described as discriminatory. The poem is an attack on those who discriminate against Muslims and consider the Arab Muslims of Palestine as "heathen vermin" and "terrorists" whose lands should be annexed by Israel. It is easy to point fingers when something goes wrong and people turn bad. However, I noticed that people are seldom prepared to ask what makes people turn bad.

I have read your poem carefully and I do understand the point you are making, and my point merely being that many Muslims do participate fully and successfully in the U.S.

Glenn Beck is a buffoon, but he is a very, very rich buffoon who knows his target audience and will say anything to make money. But rather than thinking of Beck's absurd money-making paranoia as solely representative of the U.S. citizenry, please consider us little people, such as my husband whose best friend is from Iraq, once a young man who escaped from Iraq after his father and older brother were taken from their home and murdered for political views. He has since gotten his sister and mother out of Iraq. My husband and A. were acquaintances before 9/11, but their strong and continuing friendship grew out of 9/11.

Also, do not assume that there are no Americans who do not support Palestinians ... you would be wrong in that assumption.

I can recall talking to a good friend on the very day of 9/11 and discussing what you propose that the attack was the result of our foreign policy, so it is not something that has not been discussed among us. We would be getting into a very, very long discussion if we were to follow suit here. I do acknowledge and welcome your opinion. However, for me, I will say quite frankly, I believe the responsibility for the attack lies solely with those who planned and carried it out, and it was a matter of hatred, power and opportunity combined.

~jeanne

[Datuk Seri Maharaja Dúryodhanã]

Mar 31, 2014 8:16:57 GMT -8 jeannerené said:

Glenn Beck is a buffoon, but he is a very, very rich buffoon who knows his target audience and will say anything to make money. But rather than thinking of Beck's absurd money-making paranoia as solely representative of the U.S. citizenry, please consider us little people, ... Also, do not assume that there are no Americans who do not support Palestinians ... you would be wrong in that assumption.

Too rich, IMHO. But as von Mises, says, "every penny gives the right to vote" - which I find horrifying. I'm from Malaysia so I know what it's like when the rich can throw their weight around. It's just that here in Malaysia it is very, very visible and the worst part is that people are too simple-minded or greedy to realise the dangers that happen when the rich can subvert government to their own ends.

I am aware that there are pro-Palestinian blocs in the US of A. The problem is that your government doesn't really listen to them. Besides, I don't think the USA can solve them either, since it is in LIKUD's and HAMAS' benefit to prolong the conflict and suffering that goes on.