Jump to content
    AC Benus
  • AC Benus
  • Author
  • 04/29/2024
  • 225 Words
  • 98 Views
  • 5 Comments
Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

The Great Mirror of Same-Sex Love - Poetry - 110. the love of an emperor

.

He

 

He comes, with the surprise

Of a moon out of the clouds,

And Love throws her arm

About the hearts of all men.

 

I never sighed until I knew him;

But now my weeping tastes of blood.

I have slain lions and terrified captains;

But now I am the slave of a boy

Glancing like a young deer.

 

If he shuts his eyes, when we sit

In the light of the sun together,

I am plunged in darkness;

Also his eyes are the two jewels

Of my kingdom.

 

As the song of a fountain woos

All memory of the desert,

So his voice woos all my

Care away from me.

He is my fountain and my lute,

The shadow where my sleep is calm.

 

I would bow myself before him,

If Allah were not, saying:

“You are my God!”

—Ottoman Sultan Selim I,[i]

circa 1495

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[i] “He” Sultan Selim I Eastern Love: Anthology of Eastern Love Volume I (London 1929), [E. Powys Mathers, Editor and Translator from the French], p. 3

https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.238178/page/n11/mode/2up?q=

Mathers’ versions are based on L’anthologie de l’amour Turc [Edmond Fazy / Abdul-Halim Memdouh, Editors and Translator] (Paris 1905), and Les colombes des minarets: anthologie islamique [Franz Toussaint, Editor and Translator] (Paris 1928)

_

as noted
  • Like 3
  • Love 1
Poetry posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 
You are not currently following this story. Be sure to follow to keep up to date with new chapters.

Recommended Comments

Chapter Comments

AC Benus

AC Benus 36,255

Posted (edited)

I'm not sure Mathers' "I would bow myself before him,/ If Allah were not, saying:/ 'You are my God!'” comes across as well as it could.

Selim's poetry is hinting that if Allah did not exist, the emperor would be content to bow before his boy, saying "I'll worship you as my God."

 

 

Edited by AC Benus
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Parker Owens

This is a timeless poem. Even half a millennium after it was written,  love and enchantment echo to our ears.  

  • Love 3
Link to comment
AC Benus

AC Benus 36,255

Posted (edited)

On 4/29/2024 at 9:38 PM, ReaderPaul said:

This seems lyrical to me in the way it comes across.  Very good, @AC Benus.

I feel I could improve it, but that'd necessitate my searching for the Turkish original . . . and I could not even find the two French books online . . . 

That being said, Mathers' chapter -- the one containing this poem -- is called "Eleven Turkish Poems", and I'll be posted a couple more in the Great Mirror of Same-Sex Love. One is from a 19th century poet too, and quite interesting

Edited by AC Benus
  • Love 2
Link to comment
AC Benus
On 4/30/2024 at 4:21 AM, Parker Owens said:

This is a timeless poem. Even half a millennium after it was written,  love and enchantment echo to our ears.  

Yes, the first stanza particularly sounds as if it could have been written by Shakespeare, or Ezra Pound -- so timeless it seems  

  • Love 3
Link to comment
View Guidelines

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Newsletter

    Sign Up and get an occasional Newsletter.  Fill out your profile with favorite genres and say yes to genre news to get the monthly update for your favorite genres.

    Sign Up
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Our Privacy Policy can be found here: Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue..