Pashto poetry is increasingly becoming a means for young people in Afghanistan to express the daily horrors they often face. The destruction caused by Islamic terrorists and the Arab import of suicide bombings, has led to the expansion of the Pashto lexicon. Violence has fuelled not only more violence but also poems regarding the “ill fate” of their nation and homeland.
“Poets are inspired by what is happening in the outside world. Their imagination absorbs it,” says veteran Pashto poet in the city of Peshawar, Rahmat Shah Sael. “That is why Pashto poets are writing about violence in one way or another.”
Poetry has a long history in the region and has often be used as an expression of cultural pride and indeed of identity. Regular poetry gatherings are arranged, despite the many dangers and threats from the Taliban. Large crowds gather to listen to poets recite their work and that of the historical figures.
Khushhal Khan Khattak, who was a warrior poet in the 17th Century is still greatly revered as is the mystic poet Rahman Baba (pictured) who died in the year 1711. They are both considered giants of Pashto poetry and literature.
“It is not the poets’ choice to write about war and violence, they are compelled to do so – to express their reaction and hatred to bloodshed,” says Darwesh Durrani, a popular Pashto poet and professor of literature in Quetta.
Young poets from across the country have written poems describing events they have witnessed with their own eyes, including the deaths of parents, children and whole villages. Some address their poems directly to the suicide bombers who sow so much destruction and pain.
Zarlasht Hafeez, a female Pashto poet has managed to publish a collection of poetry about the events in her homeland. The collection is called “Waiting for Peace” and here is a brief extract:
“The sorrow and grief, these black evenings,
Eyes full of tears and times full of sadness,
These burnt hearts, the killing of youths,
These unfulfilled expectations and unmet hopes of brides,
With a hatred for war, I call time and again,
I wait for peace for the grief-stricken Pashtuns”
If you want to read some Pashto poetry then the book below will be of particular interest to you.
The active voice of the Afghan woman affirms simple pleasures and bemoans widespread suffering. The poems celebrate nature, mountains, rivers, dawn, and night’s magnetic space. They are songs of war and honor, shame and love, death and beauty.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I am writer & translator of Bangladesh. Trying to connect me to the world’s poet & writers.
This is ur’s very important web. But I visit first. I will try to visit it more & more time in future.
salaam
i m Poeter of Pashto i like this site because i m a little poeter of my language
Well!
This is very refreshing to hear!
God bless our Zarlasht Hafeez sister for illustrating the pain of every Pukhtun with with her gifted penmanship!
HALO SANGA YAY