The Beloved City

Poetry of Munir Momin, translated from Balochi by Fazal Baloch

Munir Momin is a contemporary Balochi poet widely cherished for his sublime art of poetry. Meticulously crafted images, linguistic finesse and profound aesthetic sense have earned him a distinguished place in Balochi literature. His poetry speaks through images, more than words. Momin’s poetry flows far beyond the reach of any ideology or socio-political movement. Nevertheless, he is not ignorant of the stark realities of life. The immenseness of his imagination and his mastery over the language rescues his poetry from becoming the part of any mundane narrative. So far Munir has published seven collections of his poetry and an anthology of short stories. His poetry has been translated into Urdu, English and Persian.  He also edits a literary journal called Gidár.

The Beloved City

Bemoan not the silence.
You are still a new arrival here, 
Your colour' still brighter than this city’s trees 
No one will talk to you yet. 
Once the city’s poison 
Seeps into your veins and fades away, 
A relationship will blossom 
And then the city will converse with you. 

Look at me, 
I’ve travelled all my life 
Still my questions remain thirsty for an answer 
And dry are the eyes of these stagnant clouds. 
If you seek life here,
Look for a few graves on the city’s outskirts 
Which are not ruined yet.
On these graves, 
Some flowers have blossomed 
They often whisper to each other 
And there are a couple of pigeons 
Whose eyes well up at times, otherwise, 

The inhabitants of this city are the kind of people 
Who right at the time of their death
Drifted off to sleep.
When they woke up, 
The battler was over 
And the caravan’s dust had settled. 

Fazal Baloch is a Balochi writer and translator. He has translated many Balochi poems and short stories into English. His translations have been featured in Pakistani Literature published by Pakistan Academy of Letters and in the form of books and anthologies.

.

PLEASE NOTE: ARTICLES CAN ONLY BE REPRODUCED IN OTHER SITES WITH DUE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO BORDERLESS JOURNAL