[deadturkishpoets]

yunus emre, fuzuli, baki

"know this well i found the divine after i knew me well the fear to me ever nigh did then quell & now i fear neither the sky nor to die"

translated and adapted from a poem by yunus emre

"the times have lent no joy to anybody everything we meant apparently unseemly and our every act but energy misspent

so take the chance today to cry in every breath for as anybody would say life is frail, and death quickly has its own way

friend, listen to the advice given by your humble poet fuzuli may have his vice but he's wise, you know it & arguing comes at a price for the fools who show it"

translated and adapted from a poem by fuzuli

"to renounce all worldly possession to vanish into thin air in one motion

the bird of my soul lost in the ether i got wanderlust, i can't stay either"

translated and adapted from a poem by baki

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short excerpts from works of yunus emre, fuzuli, and baki in translation

[deadturkishpoets]

lewd poem

iffet and her late husband since they tied the proverbial knot every night believe it or not stretching out on the feather bed

"whither the believer

& freedom preacher

whither joie de vivre

whither traveller

whither innkeeper"

iffet no older than twenty three her husband Rıfat only thirty sheltered from the drizzle out in that bed with squeaky springs the two going all the way out be it summer, winter, or spring eating chocolate and sweets as though not in enough heat

& giggling caressing lovemaking

and reading out to each other for good measure kitschy porn with great zing

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translated from the poem "müstehcen şiir" by turgut uyar

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translation of the poem “müstehcen şiir” by turgut uyar

[deadturkishpoets]

a headstone inscription

suffered worse from nothing in this world than his callus didn't mind as much being born ugly or his tiny phallus

he wouldn't utter god's name in prayer but for cursing him for shoe bites yet wouldn't qualify as a sinner either so death was, and this is no slight, an act of pity on süleyman all right

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translated from the poem "kitabe-i seng-i mezar" by orhan veli kanık

*

translation of the poem “kitabe-i seng-i mezar” by orhan veli kanık

[deadturkishpoets]

to the water pundits

i pee with such glee under the morning sun behind me the wall of a madrassa long gone and facing the square where business is run

the itch which abides under the jurisdiction of shared convictions by which i don't abide & dogged addictions seems it hasn't died

i hurried & went to and fro found nothing new though under this sun of ours and i'd grow sad and tired for my quest proved futile in the darkest of hours

oh boy, how i can think of anything and everything all that lies under the sun it all comes to me at dawn and at dusk, too, the sun ascending & descending you, all my woes, begone

the world we coexist in assumed to be spoiled really remains pristine the wicked plans foiled so here i am telling you & everyone hears it too

might be time we turned this off we are always on and never off under the abhorrent clutches of vile curses like tuberculosis and uranium and impasses which we just cannot shake off

and we stopped and fed the flames the birds led behind us the wall of a madrassa long gone and facing the square where business is run

under the sun, the sun

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translated from the poem "su yorumcuları'na" by turgut uyar

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translation of the poem “su yorumcuları’na” by turgut uyar

[deadturkishpoets]

along rivers i have seen women

women through whom river porsuk runs i have seen each at least a hundred times

it is their lot to hold onto hopeless love & it is their lot to live growing sparser against the steppe

each gives a man everything that she's got i have seen all that i've seen in women through whom river porsuk runs

river kızılırmak be damned and fall, fall to pieces a piece of black bread a dime for henna, red

along dirt and gravel their folk songs travel in the dark they remain partly covered & partly nude

& their large eyes, oh mother so frail, mournful and tender who could've frightened this many women one could only wonder

once the train arrives at the banks of river dicle a vast stretch of sky that one just keeps going at

when generally at first their eyebrows appear then their eyes that blink sleepless not even a wink and their cheeks bearing abscesses like dried roses

you too might at some point find yourselves in the country and see for yourselves the women dutifully fated to be defeated

it lies between the bone and the blade between the quiet and the tears shed the defeated women

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translated from the poem "nehirler boyunca kadınlar gördüm" by cemal süreya

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translation of the poem “nehirler boyunca kadınlar gördüm” by cemal süreya

[deadturkishpoets]

the upbeat song

the celebration's done & a bitter breeze through the trees is all that's left in the yard

the upbeat song plays and my Celia quiver as i shed a tear

friends are gone the fest is over nothing left from pace or fervor that once were

& the only thing that is left in our sorrowful solitude at a random hour

the upbeat song plays and my Celia quiver as i shed a tear

erupted from the most fiery forest saplings the three were, youngest they would chisel from the sun its light

the three as tough as anyone their insolent laugh would shake the light

it turned dark soon as they left before the sun would even set

what came next the longing of fiddles without an ending

what comes next being a mystery opens a unique chapter in history

a blackest consolation perhaps for those that still remain

a dreary, lifeless night expands a prelude to autumn rain

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translated from the poem "mahur beste" by attila ilhan

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translation of the poem “mahur beste” by attila ilhan

[deadturkishpoets]

reap what you sow

an iota of flickering life, scant possesses the diminutive ant while the enormous elephant just bursts with life abundant yet both get equally frantic struck with deranged panic when death knocks on the door let them know they are done for

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translated from the poem "men dakka dukka" by bedri rahmi eyüboğlu

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translation of the poem “men dakka dukka” by bedri rahmi eyüboğlu

[deadturkishpoets]

as the sun sets

a great many things to choose among the new day will bring while still young

you can help out a bro or perhaps fight a foe then again at sunset heralded by its red

a guy has no time left to search right and left for a rhyme to find or to lose his mind

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translated from the poem "gün batarken" by melih cevdet anday

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translation of the poem “gün batarken” by melih cevdet anday

[deadturkishpoets]

the door

it must have been

a mishap or

a mistake

that i was placed

on this earth 

oh i abhor 

oh i ache

i feel misplaced

i am so distant

from the

rest of

the human race

my eyes on the

lookout for

a thing

to bless & grace

yet deep down

inside me

i long for

a different space

as if awakening

from nasty

visions

a voice calls out

from the world

of dreams

of love 

says come out

and that sound

to my ears

music

so i hear out

a door opens

all i need

now is

to step out

nobody notices

as i depart

adieu

& peace out

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translated from the poem "bir kapı açıp gitsem" by cahit sıtkı tarancı

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translation of the poem “bir kapı açıp gitsem” by cahit sıtkı tarancı

[deadturkishpoets]

the tree

cast a stone

at a tree

the stone

i've thrown

at the tree

now stolen

as the tree

made it 

its own

on the count of three

you covetous tree

set my stone free

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translated from the poem "ağaç" by orhan veli kanık & oktay rifat

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translation of the poem “ağaç” by orhan veli kanık & oktay rifat

[deadturkishpoets]

the accident

whose gaze are you

just a moment ago

whose hands legs

severed torn off 

in just a moment

all of a sudden

all

in a horrific hurry

what time'll bury

as has happened

coming your way from

the firmament

while what'll

happen has

dawned anew

as darkness

that was

born grew

& permeated

the moments

now vacated

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translated from the poem "görünmez kaza" by fazıl hüsnü dağlarca

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translation of the poem “görünmez kaza” by fazıl hüsnü dağlarca

[deadturkishpoets]

west

the trees as if

sleepwalking

have forgotten

all life

and the birds

sweettalking

to send away

the day

don't care to

betray

where it is

they

are hiding

away

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translated from the poem "batı" by fazıl hüsnü dağlarca

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translation of the poem “batı” by fazıl hüsnü dağlarca

[deadturkishpoets]

lost

when we need it

we look for it

but it

's nowhere to be found

where is it?

or whither is it bound?

the response

where is what?

it was right here

right in front of me

come on dear

you remember

around here

somewhere

i swear

they do know 

though

they just don't say

no need anyway

it shows

in the implied cognizance

of their feigned ignorance

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translated from the poem "yitik" by behçet necatigil

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translation of the poem “yitik” by behçet necatigil

[deadturkishpoets]

death itself shivers

seized him in a wood

tied him up against

a tree

he closed

gently

like a sleeper would

his eyes against

the peril

posed

a cold wind blows

death itself shivers

and tells of

the blood that flows

with its white voice

they knelt 

and shot

& he felt

the hot

gush of blood

that did flood

his chest

where bullets

now rest

a cold wind blows

death itself shivers

and tells of

the blood that flows

with its white voice

later that night

a dove perched on

and kissed

his hand

quite the sight

and the cuffs on

his wrists

turned then

into a red wreath

and thereupon

ended his plight

a cold wind blows

death itself shivers

and tells of

the blood that flows

with its white voice

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translated from the poem "üşür ölüm bile" by ülkü tamer

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translation of the poem “üşür ölüm bile” by ülkü tamer