Dreams cried, Nightmare laughed. Cup smashed, Wine spilled— Mujeeb Jaihoon’s poetic dissent against the civilian deaths in the Yemen conflict.

One by one the Hoor
Welcomed one and all
To the world of good
With not a pinch of foul

She sang to every visitor
The melody of peace
And showed them wonders
Seen not even once

And then arrived
A beautiful bride
With her bosom,
Blood-stained

The hoor had not seen till then
A beauty of her like
The light on her face
Like the icing on the cake

‘Had the Lord created Hoors
out of clay
Or was my heavenly mind
Putting a play?’

Zealous of her beauty
Curious of her blood
She went closer to the Bride
For the clay-ling to confide

‘O the dazzling daughter of Eve
Wherefrom such beauty you weave?

Reveal the tale
Of the ruby on your robe
How a bride like you
Looted in such pain-rob?’

Replied the Bride with pain and pride

I hail from the land of Queen Bilqis
Joy and peace where never cease
Deserts and mountains plenty
Wealth and comforts scanty

My kith and kin-
Of simple folks
My home was made
Of stone blocks

That night fortune smiled
That night misery cried
That night dreams realized
That night nightmare razed

I have heard
Lord has the habit
Keeping triumphs
And trials apart

But do Harvest ever
Coincide with hurricane?
Do Spring of joy
With the Winter of pain?

That night a prince came
Seeking my hand
My folks knew not how
To their rejoice stand

My dreams were about
to come true
With love upon love
my heart was to bloom

Abi and Ummi
Shed tears of delight
Bright as day
Had become that night

My young ones at home danced
And my face with love blushed

That night I was
The happiest of all
In Sa’ada was I
The most gleeful girl

Yet, that very night
Life lost to death
Dreams cried,
Nightmare laughed
Rose withered,
Thorns bloomed
Cup smashed,
Wine spilled

From the skies
Rained the scourge
Shrieks were heard
From all over streets

My folks got buried
Under the stones
Blood-like river flowed
Beneath the rubble

Blinding dust
Deafening sounds
Schools shattered
Homes horrified

We let our father
Become orphaned
A witness for the tragedy
We suffered

Even my sister-
Aged one was unspared
For, she appeared not
On their secure radars

Giving us neither choice
Nor any chance
The airborne monster
Ravaged us at once

The cause for this curse:
Unknown
The hands behind this plague:
Unseen

Neither any rockets in our hands
Nor any guns in our pockets
Our hearts had mere dreams
And homes had just sweets

Those Rogue Regimes’ power-greed
Those arms dealers’ wealth-need
Those who on the black-gold feed
Those who sold our faithful creed

We had nothing
To do with them all
Our hopes and dreams
Were so small

I am now past
The hell on earth
Their sins are now
My pass to bliss

I am the unwed
Martyr-bride from Yemen
I seek justice
From the HE in the Heaven”


June 07 2015 (Ramadan 20 1436). Edit March 2021


Notes

Based on a report of the Human Rights Watch, dedicated to the innocent civilians killed by the airstrikes in the Yemen conflict, especially in the Sa’ada province.

Hoor : The escorts of paradise, generally taken to be females

Bilqis : The Queen of Sheba from the times of Prophet Solomon

Abi and Ummi : Mother and Father (Arabic)

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