Tariq Saeedi
Adam Laten Willson has written a comprehensive essay on Magtymguly Pyragy.
Willson holds a BA in Liberal Arts from St. John’s College, Santa Fe, NM (2007), and an MLitt in Comparative Literature from University of Glasgow (2019, Award of Distinction). The majority of his Master’s program was devoted to Russian and European modernism. His current research focuses on Central Asian Socialist Realist literature. Other interests include Russian avant-garde performance/performativity, European decadence, Russian postmodernism, and structuralist sociology.
We are producing here some passages from the essay of Adam Laten Willson:
The title of the essay is ‘Magtymguly Pyragy and the Turkmen Nation’ and it was published at Museum Studies Abroad on 17 March 2022.
Magtymguly’s image and biography have played a constitutive role in Turkmen modern history, providing a poetic vision for a unified Turkmenistan.
Though Magtymguly was not the only poet of his generation to call for Turkmen unification, he was the first known to develop this as a central motif in his poetry.
Magtymguly’s legacy runs like a continuous thread throughout the developments of 20th century Turkmen socialism. In Soviet Turkmenistan, appreciation of Magtymguly’s poetry continued to expand across media, influencing such canonic works as Aihan Hajiev’s Portrait of Magtymguly (1947), in which the poet is depicted in a moment of inspiration, seated on a carpet with Teke insignia. The painting sets Magtymguly squarely in dialogue with Turkmen national heritage, since the Teke were celebrated as the last major tribe to fall under Russian conquest.
In the other arts, Veli Mukhatov’s first symphony To the Memory of Magtymguly (1976) is considered by many to be the pinnacle of Turkmen symphonic composition. Over the course of six sections, this well-known masterpiece ranges from quiet gravitas to capricious passion, evoking the spectrum of Magtymguly’s patriotic and spiritual connection to his homeland.
Throughout the 20th century, a new European artistic style was adopted by Turkmen visual artists. Also during this time, Turkmenistan’s rich history in textiles was transformed into a fine art, and many tapestries called gobelins were devoted to Magtymguly’s life and teachings. Vera Gylliyeva’s 1982-1985 gobelin, titled ‘Constellation’ portrays Magtymguly along with six other sages standing under the tree of knowledge. This quote from Magtymguly’s famous poem Türkmeniň (The Land of the Turkmen) is emblazoned over the poet’s head:
When souls, hearts and minds of tribes are united…
When Turkmen gather around one table to share a meal. (Taylor 2014: 15)
Not only did Magtymguly’s life experiences figure extensively in his verse, his widespread travels across the Near East provided him with an intimate knowledge of the history, culture, and geography of his region. While studying in Bukhara, he and respected Syrian scholar Nuri Qasim Ibn Bahr made excursions as far as Northern India [present-day Pakistan and parts of India]. After this period, Magtymguly often travelled across the Turkmen territory as an itinerant teacher and spiritual guide, and late in life visited Baku, Azerbaijan.
Magtymguly’s career as a poet coincides with an epochal shift in the development of the Turkmen language. Beginning in the 18th century, a Turkmen literary language is introduced, largely due to the influence of Magtymguly, his father, Azady, and contemporary, Andalib.
Replete with metaphors of shared feasts and military valor, Magtymguly’s poems are often clearly nationalistic, calling for unity among the various Turkmen tribes and developing a common Turkmen heritage.
Magtymguly’s thematic development is vast and ranges from an epic historical register to personal lament. Moreover, Magtymguly is widely known among his countrymen as the pioneer of Turkmen literary realism. Ethnomusicologist Walter Feldman highlights the simplicity with which Magtymguly often writes, also noting features of secularism and rationalism in his poetry, uncommon for traditional Sufi verse.
One well-known poem is “The Land of the Turkmen,” presented below in the original and in an English translation by Paul Michael Taylor, who has many other English translations online.
TÜRKMENIŇ
Jeýhun bilen bahry-Hazar arasy,
Çöl üstünden öser ýeli türkmeniň;
Gül-gunçasy – gara gözüm garasy,
Gara dagdan iner sili türkmeniň.
Hak sylamyş bardyr onuň saýasy,
Çyrpynşar çölünde neri, maýasy,
Reňbe-reň gül açar ýaşyl ýaýlasy,
Gark bolmuş reýhana çöli türkmeniň.
Al-ýaşyl bürenip çykar perisi,
Kükeýip bark urar anbaryň ysy,
Beg, töre, aksakal ýurduň eýesi,
Küren tutar gözel ili türkmeniň.
Ol merdiň ogludyr, mertdir pederi,
Görogly gardaşy, serhoşdyr seri,
Dagda, düzde kowsa, saýýatlar diri
Ala bilmez, ýolbars ogly türkmeniň.
Köňüller, ýürekler bir bolup başlar,
Tartsa ýygyn, erär topraklar-daşlar,
Bir suprada taýýar kylynsa aşlar,
Göteriler ol ykbaly türkmeniň.
Köňül howalanar ata çykanda,
Daglar lagla döner gyýa bakanda,
Bal getirer, joşup derýa akanda,
Bent tutdurmaz, gelse sili türkmeniň.
Gapyl galmaz, döwüş güni har olmaz,
Gargyşa, nazara giriftar olmaz,
Bilbilden aýrylyp, solup, saralmaz,
Daýym anbar saçar güli türkmeniň.
Tireler gardaşdyr, urug ýarydyr,
Ykballar ters gelmez hakyň nurudyr,
Mertler ata çyksa, söweş sarydyr,
Ýow üstüne ýörär ýoly türkmeniň.
Serhoş bolup çykar, jiger daglanmaz,
Daşlary syndyrar, ýoly baglanmaz,
Gözüm gaýra düşmez köňül eglenmez,
Magtymguly – sözlär tili türkmeniň.
The Land of the Turkmen
Between the Jeyhun river and the Hazar sea,
The wind of the Turkmen land rises above its deserts,
Its blossoming flowers are as precious as the apples of my black eyes,
Torrents rush from the slopes of its tall black mountains.
The Almighty blessed this land with His care,
The herds of thoroughbred camels graze in its deserts,
Its green meadows will blossom with colorful flowers,
The Turkmen steppes are filled with sweet basil.
Its fairies will appear in their colorful dresses,
The sweet smell of ambergris will fill the air all around,
The beg, töre and elderly are owners of the country,
The beautiful land of the Turkmen will be filled with populated and prosperous villages.
He is a son of a brave man, his forefathers were brave,
Görogly is his brother, his enthusiasm is high,
If hunters hunt for him in the mountains or steppes,
A Turkmen, the son of a lion, won’t be caught alive.
When souls, hearts and minds of tribes are united,
Their troops when gathered will melt stones and ground on their way,
When Turkmen gather around one table to share a meal,
The destiny of Turkmen will rise high.
The spirits get high when on a horseback,
Its mountains, at a glance, look like rubies,
When its rivers are full-flowing, bringing honey within,
No dam can withstand the floods of the Turkmen land.
They will not be taken unaware by intruders, nor trampled down in battle;
They are not dependent on either a curse or violence,
They will neither wither nor yearn when separated from a nightingale,
The flowers of the Turkmen will always spread the fragrance of the ambergris.
All tribes are in brotherhood, all clans are at peace,
Their destinies won’t go counter; they are the Creator’s blessing,
If the brave straddle their horses, the battle will be over,
The only path Turkmen take is toward the intruders.
They will have their spirits high and be cool inside,
They will crumble stones; nothing can stop them on their way,
I won’t cast a glance anywhere else; my soul will not take joy,
Magtymguly, the elderly of Turkmen will have his say.
The poetry and legacy of Magtymguly are deeply interwoven into the culture and everyday existence of contemporary Turkmenistan, in the nearby regions of Uzbekistan and Karakalpakistan, and among Turkmen populations in Russia, Iran, and elsewhere.
As Turkmenistan remains a strong regional player and gains more global visibility, Magtymguly’s dream of a peaceful, unified, prosperous, and wise nation should be remembered as a core component of Turkmen heritage. /// nCa, 21 June 2024 [to be continued]