Thursday, 25 November 2010

The Desert (The Diary of Beirut Under Siege, 1982) - Extracts

Adonis aka Ali Ahmar Said Asbar was born in 1930 in Syria. After 6 months in jail for his political leanings he moved to Beirut in 1956. He now lives in Paris. Extracts from 'The Desert' are below. 
الصحراء

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لم نعد نتلاقى 
لم يعد بيننا غير نبذٍ نفيٍ
  ,و المواعيد ماتت، و مات الفضاء 
.وحدة الموت صار اللقاء


8


We no longer meet, 
Rejection and exile keep us apart.
The promises are dead, space is dead,
Death alone has become our meeting point. 





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,أغلق الباب، لا ليقيِّد أفراحه  
. ليحرِّر أحزانه   ...
9

He shuts the door
Not to trap his joy,
...but to free his grief

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