Selected Poem: THINGS THAT CANNOT BE SAID
26 September, 2021
KHARTOUM (Sudanow) - Abdul Rahim Abu Zikra (1943-1989) was one of the best known Sudanese poets. His high sensitivity and yearning for an ideal world was clearly reflected in his poetry collection “Night Departure”.
Abu Zikra ended his own life when he jumped from a window out of the 13 floor of the Russian Sciences Academy, Moscow, in October 1989.
He obtained his PhD in Russian language and literature, Antoine Chekov writings and translations in particular, in 1987. He was known to be highly talented in translation, literary writings, journalism and academic performance as a lecturer at the University of Khartoum.
His following poem was translated from Arabic by Bakhit Bakhit and Aron Aji:
THINGS THAT CANNOT BE SAID
If I drift from silence to silence
ashamed of my face, if my feet are unsteady,
it is because they said: bow your head,
keep it down, now, look down at your feet,
forget the sea, the mountains, the clouds,
forget the horizon.
I have grown accustomed to silence,
the shame, the shaky footsteps.
But my head grows heavier and heavier
And when you ask me to raise my head,
I can’t–each step is a trap,
each choice a minefield.
I hear the volcanoes’ deadly rumbling,
ash rains like bullets.
Who dares to hold up his head
beneath these thunderous volcanoes?
Source: M-DASH, a magazine of translation
E N D
Post your comments
Photo of the Week
PortSudan(Sudanow)- Sudan lost a fundamental pillar and one of the pillars of art last Tuesday. It lost a cornerstone on which the concept of musical diversity and richness relied. The music icon the singer, Dr. Abdel Gader Salim, passed away after a struggle with illness at his home in Omdurman. The singer of heritage departed, and a voice carrying the scent of the plains...
More-
30 November, 2025
Chronicles from the Battlefield Babanusa: The Resilient Heart of Kordofan… A City on the Line of Fire and the Memory of
Port Sudan, (Sudanow) — The systematic destruction practiced by the rebel militia and its mercenaries against public and private property has spared no one. It has impacted agricultural, industrial, and pastoral projects in both rural and urban areas. Even cities and neighborhoods have been struck by this devastation, turning into ghost towns. The city of Babanusa stands as a model of the destruction that has befallen these cities...
Contact Us
Address: Sudan News Agency (SUNA) Building, Jamhoria Street, Khartoum - Sudan
Mobile:+249 909220011 / +249 912307547