Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Forbidden

"Forbidden"

I have dug inside me,
A well – a deep, infinite well.
In it lives with me My God
The God of both women and men,
The God of the oppressed and the liberated,
The God of the cursed and the blessed

There with me, my feelings dwell,
Far from the fondness of human thought,
Unwelcome elsewhere
The feelings I’m forbidden to relish,
The secrets I’m forbidden to reveal,
The questions I’m forbidden to raise,
The mistakes I’m commanded to regret,
But I don’t. For I have no regrets.
Only mistakes to learn from.

There, I speak the unspeakable
I quarrel with My God,
And My God allows me this –
And there, I think the forbidden
And My God hears me, too,
There, I demand answers,
And My God answers me, too,
My God hears the shattering of my voices
And pacifies my frustrated nerves
There, I heave sighs suppressed elsewhere,
And screams ignored elsewhere,
But I must scream,
For the forbiddance of speaking has boiled my brain,
And the ludicrousness of the ulama, the “learned,” vexes me,
And the labels of heresy and blasphemy grieve my soul
But I must tell my stories.

And I tell my God,
Why have you forbidden me these natural thoughts?
Why am I nothing but a dangerously seductive being, who
Incites sordid feelings in men?
You must forgive me, Dear God, for I mean no harm,
But you must permit me to ask –
Why do you objectify me when You created me Yourself?
They tell me You’re all-powerful;
But then why did you make me the reason men behave so despicably
When they see my face, or my hair,
Or my ankles,
Or my eyes?

And My God smiles at me
And tells me
“Don’t confuse My guidelines with the orders of men.”
Just as the well starts to flood, and I
Develop confidence and valor
And my spirit ascends the seventh heaven,
And my heart glows with peace
And my mind enfolds the universe

I have become a woman.
A woman at last.
And I’m going to tell my stories.

~ Qrratugai
~ Mon., March 1, 2010

8 comments:

  1. very charming poem. you are not forbidden to raise questions. questions are your birth right.
    b.r.

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  2. I agree, Anonymous!
    Thanks for your comment!

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  3. Simply great! Great literature is simple language charged with meaning to the utmost possible degree.

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  4. Thanks, Anonymous # 2!

    P.S. No more anonymity allowed on my blog! ... :p please, PLEASE, folks, put SOME name! ~pulls all hair out~

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  5. A very good poem.

    "Just as the well starts to flood, and I
    Develop confidence and valor
    And my spirit ascends the seventh heaven,
    And my heart glows with peace
    And my mind enfolds the universe"

    Dair a'ala ...


    Your poem reminds me of a poem that I wrote for my Pakhtun sisters, it is called "Princess and her Flying Carpet. Here ...

    PRINCESS AND HER FLYING CARPET

    Dreams and sighs
    moans, groans
    hidden, deep down inside
    A suffocated silhouette
    on a flying carpet
    on a quest to discover
    hope, yearning
    and the desire
    Carpet flies
    but, no replies
    cant be seen, heard or spoken
    the growing blaze of her burning desires



    Please keep writing,

    ata

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  6. Thanks for sharing that, Ata! A really nice poem!
    Der kha, manana!

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  7. Shanu, this is the most beautiful poem I've ever read! Bless you sweetie!

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  8. Thanks, Humaira! How kind of you to say!

    ReplyDelete

Dare to opine :)

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