Dervish leader Sayid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan

[Thinkerman]

Dervish leader Sayid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan, whose rise to power depended heavily on his talent as an epic poet, was a master of the genre. In a poem warning his followers about the perfidy of an ally who changed sides when threatened by enemy reprisals, there is a preamble about the loyalty and bravery of the Dervish "reciter," who carries the poetic message and transmits it to others. Although the alliteration - a key component of Somali verse - is lost in translation, the evocative images remain.

 

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You did not leave me when the ignorant stampeded ...

 

You loaded your camels and came over to me when they defected

to the British generals ...

 

And I count on you during the dry season of the year.

 

A rosy cloud, a scud of white vapor, precipices of cloud flashing

with lightning,

 

Resounding thunder, flood water running over the parched earth,

 

The past night's repeated showers, noisy as the jibin bird

 

The heavy rain which fell, the longed-for rain of the spring,

 

Ponds brimming over, old campsites luxuriant,

 

Thorns become as tall as grass, thick undergrowth crackling-

 

I shall satisfy your needs as when one pours out salty water for a

she-camel

 

And I shall entertain you with a poem as precious as a jewel.

 

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source: allafrica.com