LIKE KEREM

by Nazım Hikmet

(English translation by Cem Ryan and Hüda Cereb)

Kerem was a Turkish folk hero who literally died for love. His unbridled passion for his beloved Sirin on their wedding night raged beyond control. He spontaneously combusted and burned to ash. Nazım Hikmet’s imagery of burning and melting lead lends a particular gravitas, a seriousness of purpose to the piece. First, there is a deeply rooted cultural tradion in Turkey of melting lead to dispel nazar, the evil eye. Second, melting lead connotes a call to arms, that is, using lead to cast bullets. Published in 1930, the poem is a call to ultimate action. Dispelling oppressive, dark-mindedness requires a passionate commitment and a willingness to suffer, even to die. The poem remains enormously popular in today’s problem-ridden Turkey. 


LIKE KEREM

Air heavy as lead!!

Shout

        Shout

                Shout

                        I am shouting.

Run!

       I am calling you   

                              to melt lead.


He tells me:

-Hey! You’ll become ashes with your own voice!

      burning

              burning

                   like Kerem’s

                                 burning…



<<Many troubles

                             no fellow sufferers>>


The ears of the

                      hearts are

                                     deaf…

Air heavy as lead…

 I tell him:

-Let me burn to ashes

                                 just

                                         like

                                                Kerem’s

                                                        burning.    

 If I don’t burn

                      if you don’t burn

                                                if we don’t burn

how will the light 

                             vanquish the darkness?

 

Air pregnant as earth.

Air heavy as lead.

Shout

        Shout

                Shout

                        I am shouting.

RUN

       I am calling you  

                                to melt lead…

 

Nazim Hikmet, May 1930

 (Translation: James Ryan and Hüda Cereb)

 


Original Turkish and poetic structure and layout follow… 

 KEREM GİBİ
by Nazim Hikmet

(Turkish and original poetic structure) 

 
Hava kurşun gibi agır!! 
Bağır 
        bağır
               bağır
                       bağırıyorum.

Koşun 
         kurşun
                 erit-
                     -meğe 
                             çağırıyorum…

O diyor ki bana: 
--Sen kendi sesinle kül olursun ey!
                                              Kerem
                                                   gibi
                                                        yana 
                                                              yana…

«Deeeert
              çok,
                  hemdert
                          yok»

Yürek- 
        -lerin
kulak-
       -ları
             sağır…
Hava kursun gibi ağır…

Ben diyorum ki ona:
- Kül olayım 
               Kerem 
                     gibi
                          yana 
                                 yana.
Ben yanmasam
                    sen yanmasan 
                               biz yanmasak, 
                               nasıl
                                     çıkar
                                            karan-
                                                    -liklar
                                                       aydın-
                                                               -lığa…       

Hava toprak gibi gebe.
Hava kurşun gibi agir.
Bağır
        bağır
               bağır
                      bağırıyorum.
Koşun
         kurşun 
                 erit- 
                     -meğe 
                             çağırıyorum…..

 
Nazım Hikmet (May 1930)

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