Request

Posted on January 25, 2017 by ITS

By Muhammad Yamin, 1921

Listening to the waves close to me
Pounding to the left and to the right
Chanting a song full of compassion
Awakened is a longing for the place of my birth.

In the East on my side
Shrouded in cloud-billowed skies
Appears the island full of marvels
That assuredly is the country of my birth.

Wherever the sea may pound and crash
And run seething up the sand
That is where my soul is, was first cast forth.

Wherever the waves may spraying writhe
Watering the isle of the Barisan Range along its coast
That is the place please, lay me to rest.

On the Indian Ocean, June 1921

Padang city, West Sumatra

Request (Permintaan) was first published in Indonesian in the Dutch-language journal Jong Sumatra : organ van den Jong Sumatranen Bond, Batavia, June 1921. It was republished in Pane, Armijn (ed), Sandjak-Sandjak Muda Mr. Muhammad Yamin [The Young Poems of Mr. Muhammad Yamin], Firma Rada, Djakarta, 1954, p. 6.

Miners in the Ombilin Coal Mine at Sawahloento, Sumatra's West Coast, 1920

Homeland

Posted on January 24, 2017 by ITS

By Muhammad Yamin, 1920

On the border, the Barisan Range,
I gaze out, look down and behold;
A vista of dense jungles and valleys;
And charming rice fields, winding rivers;
And then more, I see also,
The green canopy changes color
With forest crown, palm fronds;
That is the country, my homeland
Sumatra is its name, my beloved birth country.

As far as the eye can see, only forest,
Mountainous and hilly, nestling valleys;
Far in distance, way over there,
Bounded by mountains one by one
There is assuredly a heaven,
Without doubt a second paradise on earth
– A Malay Garden of Eden on top of the world!
That is the country I love,
Sumatra is its name, which I honor.

On the border, the Barisan Range,
Gazing down on beautiful beaches and bays;
A vista of water, endless water,
That is the sea, the Indian ocean.
Visible there are the waves, so many waves
Breaking onto the sand, then spreading out,
They thunder, as if to proclaim:
“Oh Andalas, island of Sumatra,
Make sweet the name, from north to south!”

Bogor, July 1920

Ngarai Sianok

Homeland (Tanah Air) was first published in Indonesian in the Dutch-language journal Jong Sumatra : organ van den Jong Sumatranen Bond, Batavia, 1920 No. 4. It was republished in Pane, Armijn (ed.), Sandjak-Sandjak Muda Mr. Muhammad Yamin [The Young Poems of Mr. Muhammad Yamin], Firma Rada, Djakarta, 1954, p. 5.

HASSAN BASRY: Pahlawan Nasional dari Kalsel

Face of a Hero

Posted on January 21, 2017 by ITS

By Kosim Pohan, December 1945

The sudden thought passes, the intangible transforms,
In the mind, and makes the faces take form,
Going deep into the feelings, to the gates of the soul,
The spirit of the heroes of ancient times.

In ages past, among the islands, in mother earth,
Spilling blood flowed flooding the earth,
Mighty warriors inflicted vengeance,
Tears of suffering the Motherland shed.

Remembering you, oh noble fighter,
Clearly visible is your service, sir,
Like a torch illuminating young hearts
Lighting the path of the great struggle.

Hero, You Poet and Creator,
True warrior, creator of signs,
Your spirit burns bearing destruction,
Shines flickering into the depths of the heart.

You mighty hero, handsome dashing,
Embodiment of the present struggle,
Your soul will live eternal throughout the ages,
Reigning forever in the throne of our hearts.

Published in the second issue of revolution-era nationalist bimonthly journal Pantja Raja I:2, 1 December 1945, p. 34. The picture is of Hassan Basry.

Suffering

Posted on January 19, 2017 by ITS

By Marlupi (Utari Kusno), January 1943

The soul is crying sliced by sadness,
Dejected downcast overwhelmed by sorrow
The soul is weeping sobbing in grief
The body is weak racked by suffering.

Like the sound of howling wind,
Thick clouds rolling churning,
Lightning rumbling canon roaring,
All of nature seems to be grieving.

There are no friends to relieve the pain,
There is no sound of guests dropping in,
Alone the soul feels like it is drowning in flood water,
Is there no sound of people approaching?

The only sound heard is howling wind,
In the heavens above cold stretching;
Is there no one to extend a hand?
Yes, God whispering be patient.

Your own soul your friend of one heart,
God alone your only shelter,
So you believe
Always

That all your suffering
Is as nothing against the suffering of this world;
That all suffering slowly
Will vanish swept away by time.

Jassin, H. B. Gema tanah air, prosa dan puisi 1942-1948 / H.B. Yassin Dinas Penerbitan Balai Pustaka Djakarta 1959, p. 20, attributing first publication to the revolution-era nationalist bimonthly journal Pantja Raja I:14, 1 June 1946.

Pantja Raja magazine No. 9 Vol. II 15 March 1947

Early Morning

Posted on November 19, 2016 by ITS

By Muhammad Yamin, 1921

Fiery sunset still glows wondrously,
Saddening the majestic stars;
Becomes dim then the light is gone,
Rising and setting since time immemorial.

Dawn in the east arrives fiercely,
Spreading jewels all over the world;
Radiant bright as rare pearls,
Variety of colors, sparkling.

Slowly and gloriously,
Gradually rises the sun;
Illuminating the earth with beauty.

All the flowers spread their perfume,
The blooms are open, a splendorous array;
Covered in dew, beading the branches.

First published in Indonesian in the Dutch language journal Jong Sumatra : organ van den Jong Sumatranen Bond, Batavia, June 1921 via Pujangga Baru II/9, March 1935. Republished in Jassin, H. B. Pujangga baru : prosa dan puisi / dikumpulkan dengan disertai kata pengantar oleh H.B. Jassin [Pujangga Baru : prose and poetry / collected and accompanied by an introduction by H.B. Jassin] Haji Masagung, Jakarta, 1987, p. 327.

Image care of Wanderlust East Java, Private Travel Agency for Nature Tourism in East Java Indonesia.

Love

Posted on November 12, 2016 by ITS

By Muhammad Yamin, 1921

I often laze about, deep in thought,
Watching the sky aglow,
Vaguely visible, joyful,
Sweeping all away, my contemplative thoughts.

What is there to say, what does the future hold?
Weak is my heart, without any strength,
Watching the stars shining gloriously,
Far atop the mountains.

Oh God of all nature,
What is the point of being here,
Worrying about my lot, after night has fallen?

The stars are shining now and it is dark,
Leaving me sitting here like this
Longing for love . . . leave me here to drown in my thoughts.

Based on and adapted from the work of Keith Foulcher (“Perceptions of Modernity and the Sense of the Past: Indonesian Poetry in the 1920s.” Indonesia, no. 23, 1977, pp. 39–58. www.jstor.org/stable/3350884.) First published in Indonesian in the Dutch language journal Jong Sumatra : organ van den Jong Sumatranen Bond, Batavia, June 1921.

7

Posted on November 9, 2016 by ITS

By Emha Ainun Nadjib

My God

I entrust myself

to the heart

I make a life ready

for the vibration

where courageous thoughts

are solely of the ultimate gift

which is the frailest

of all prayers

My God

in this my small cell

on this aging mat

as I behold the wooden shelves

books

buildings of an overcast civilization

having done battle in the deceiving sun

I lay down my thoughts

I lift up my heart

and wash

in Your hands.

Emha Ainun Nadjib. 99 untuk Tuhanku [99 For My God], Pustaka Bandung 1983

6

Posted on November 6, 2016 by ITS

By Emha Ainun Nadjib

My God
Extinguish not the fire
with a bare foot
but allow me to cross it.

My God
be pleased to permit me
in a world of fire
to attempt to tread
the boundary line
between vicious devils
with the source of drizzling rain.

My God
I beseech you remain alert
within my soul
spray forth the fire
which I may soak in my blood
and so shown forth may be
Your victory.

My God
make of me
part of that fire
which burns up the sun
revolving
opening the dawn of day.

My God
before my future day arrives
leadeth me
to be able to divine
which is the false flame
and which the fire true.

Padi

Emha Ainun Nadjib. 99 untuk Tuhanku [99 For My God], Pustaka Bandung 1983

The image is “The seal of Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Syah of Kedah. The Arabic inscription reads: al-‘azīz dhū al-mulk al-qadīr al-ghālib ghayr al-maghlūb al-sultān khalīfat Allāh ‘alā dā’īrah Kedah wa-huwa al-Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Syah ibn al-Sultan Abdullah Mukarram Syah sanat 1219, ‘The mighty one, possessor of the kingdom, the powerful one, the conquering [yet] unconquered one, the sultan [who is the] vicegerent of God over the territory of Kedah, and he is Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Syah, son of Sultan Abdullah Mukarram Syah, the year 1219 (1804/5)’. The seal is stamped on a letter from the Sultan to the Governor-General of Bengal, [Lord Minto], 26 Rabiulakhir 1226 (20 May 1811), pleading for protection against the Siamese. British Library, MSS Eur.D.742/1, f.3.” http://blogs.bl.uk/asian-and-african/2014/02/malay-ballad-from-kedah-the-naval-battle-for-phuket.html

59

Posted on November 6, 2016 by ITS

By Emha Ainun Nadjib

My God

What really is the meaning of Your will

By not sending down any more

Even one more Prophet

For an age which needs

So many more Prophets?

Farmers Shackled by Cement! #Dipasungsemen

Emha Ainun Nadjib. 99 untuk Tuhanku [99 For My God], Pustaka Bandung 1983

In Flight

Posted on November 3, 2016 by ITS

By Efek Rumah Kaca

I am often threatened
Terror grips me too
I am often removed
any place any time

I can be drowned in the sea
I can be poisoned in flight
I can be murdered on the footpath
but I will never die
will never stop

I am often threatened
And terror grips me too
I can be made to suffer
I can be made lifeless
Electrocuted or even stabbed

But I will never die
will never stop
But I will never die
will never stop

I can be made to suffer
I can be made lifeless
Electrocuted or even stabbed

I can drown in the sea
I can be poisoned in flight
I can be murdered on the footpath

But I will never die
will never stop
But I will never die
will never stop

https://youtu.be/74OzJPO7w2Q

Rustle of the Ulla Grass

Posted on October 30, 2016 by ITS

By M. Adil, 1935

Ulla grass, I often listen to your whistling rustle,
If the soft wind swirls around you;
Your heads lowered as if in homage,
You bow singing of grief which cuts the heart;

While shivering grips your long stems
Straight and bowed declaring your praise –
Completely pervading my conscience,
Because your song makes an agreement with my sorrow.

In the shade I often lazing sit
Gazing at the waves which gently undulate,
Escorting the song of your sighing siren leaves
Serene, at peace, unperturbed
I recede me into a wave of ecstasy
Into your oneness mystic soaring oblivious to time,
Caught in the stream as if in a dream,
Prostrate to intercede for God’s mercy divine.

Desau Pimping, From Panji Pusaka via Pujangga Baru II/9, March 1935. Republished in Jassin, H. B. Pujangga baru : prosa dan puisi / dikumpulkan dengan disertai kata pengantar oleh H.B. Jassin [Pujangga Baru : prose and poetry / collected and accompanied by an introduction by H.B. Jassin] Haji Masagung Jakarta 1987, p. 34.

Themeda gigantea (Cav.) Hackel ex Duthie [as Anthistiria gigantea Cav.] Cavanilles, A.J., Icones et descriptiones plantarum, vol. 5: t. 458 (1799) [A.J. Cavanilles] Drawing: A.J. Cavanilles http://plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=240997

Savanna Valley, Whispering Desert Mount Bromo https://bromoeastjava.wordpress.com/2016/03/26/savanna-valley-whispering-desert-mount-bromo/

Bromo Midnight Tour and Travel http://www.midnightbromotour.com

Images: Themeda gigantea (Cav.) Hackel ex Duthie [as Anthistiria gigantea Cav.] Cavanilles, A.J., Icones et descriptiones plantarum, vol. 5: t. 458 (1799) [A.J. Cavanilles] Drawing: A.J. Cavanilles http://plantillustrations.org/illustration.php?id_illustration=240997; Bromo Midnight Tour and Travel; Savanna Valley, Whispering Desert Mount Bromo

Tahun Baru Di Dartmoor

Posted on October 22, 2016 by ITS

Tahun Baru Di Dartmoor

Oleh Sylvia Plath

Ini adalah kebaruan: setiap halangan murahan
Kecil yang terbungkus oleh kaca dan ganjil,
Berkilauan dan berdenting dalam suara falsetto seorang santo. Cuma kamu
Tidak tahu bagaimana memahami kelicinan mendadak itu,
Kemiringan buta, putih, seram yang tidak teraih.
Yang tidak dapat didaki dengan perkataan yang kamu tahu.
Tidak dapat didaki dengan gajah atau roda atau sepatu.
Kita hanya datang untuk melihat. Kamu terlalu muda
Untuk menginginkan dunia di dalam topi kaca.