FAZIL HÜSNÜ DAGLARCA
Seçme Siirler * Selected Poems 		< i >
Translated by Talat Sait Halman 

Geceye Karþý Müdafaa

     Bu adam ölmüþtür ama,
     Düþmedi topraða henüz vakit.
     Hayatýný devrettik aðaçlara
     Kalbi kimlere ait.

     Bu adam ölmüþtür ama,
     Baþucundan ayrýlamadýk.
     Sonsuz kederinde gecelerimizin
     Nedendir hala bu beyazlýk.

     Bu adam ölmüþtür ama,
     Henüz durmadý nehir.
     Ve nasibi muhteþem kuþlar gibi
     Onu götürebilir.



Defense Against the Night

     This man is dead and gone but
     Time did not fall in the ground for long.
     To the trees we delivered his life.
     To whom does his heart belong?

     This man is dead and gone but
     We could not leave the dead man's side.
     In the endless sorrow of our nights
     Why does this pallor never subside?

     This man is dead and gone but
     Still the river would not stay,
     And like the birds of a glorious fate
     It can carry him away.

"Geceye Karþý Müdafaa" is from SELECTED POEMS OF FAZIL HÜSNÜ DAGLARCA, translated by Talat Sait Halman, © 1969 by University of Pittsburgh Press.
Reprinted by permission of the University of Pittsburgh Press.
All rights reserved.