AZIZ ISA ELKUN THE PROMINENT UYGHUR FIGHTER IS ALSO A POET

BIODATA OF AZIZ ISA ELKUN

Aziz Isa Elkun, is a London based poet, writer and academic. He was born in EaTurkistan (Uyghur Autonomous Region, China). He is an active member of the exile Uyghur Community (www.azizisa.org/en).From September 2017 to 2021, he has served as Secretary of the PEN International Uyghur Centre.
Since January 2021, he is working as a director for the Uyghur PEN Centre Online Revitalisation Project (www.uyghurpen.org).

A BLOSSOMING THOUGHT

The morning filled is with blossom
but my soul is worrisome
something is missing in this world
is there anyone to be there for the Uyghurs?
Even the corners of these streets
are cold like a city of graveyards
I can’t feel my Uyghurness anymore
my tongue stutters.
It’s difficult to differentiate the seasons
knowing only the falling of leaves
and the growing of blossom
in nights of solitude I mourn,
there is no dawn star I can greet.

London’s sky looks like a fortress
there is a street under it, it’s name is Kashgar
its prospects gone for the Uyghurs
it’s become a relic, a sorrow in our hearts.
Life is racing, why there is no news from my love?
my patient says enough, enough
and my mood becomes sours
will my life continue with sorrow?
If there is a hurricane or storm
they couldn’t make me afraid no more
my roots are buried deeply under the Tarim
they will grow with effortless.
Humanity is the best deed
like spring, like a Kings’ favourite garments
our faces will smile with inspiration –
to be a soulmate for whom hearts has frozen.
Blossom fell today
and they brought thoughts to your soul
Elkun, but don’t become grief-stricken,
spring will come
You can solve the puzzle of the flower.

08th April 2018, London.

THE SPRING OF MY LIFE

When the morning star smiled with happiness,
When my spring bloomed from my fifties,
When this life passes and love is never enough,
The world is beautiful to us, truly beautiful!
If not a lover, the nightingale won’t alight on the flowering branch,
Until a young man grows, he won’t achieve his desires,
If he is a man, he will never break his promise.
A man must struggle hard to reach his destination.
My star shines like a torch in the dark night,
The full moon has become my companion shadow
When will my Sun come out with fiery warmth,
Your life will pass by if you don’t grasp it.

This life passes like flowing water,
Each day dawns and never returns,
Day by day the strength leaks from your limbs,
Until one day you understand life’s truth.
People come into the world with tears,
They depart with the tears of their loved ones,
People who did good deeds leave behind a good name.
Such questions will be asked of everyone.
When you have travelled for a while on life’s journey,
You will naturally ask the meaning of life,
But you won’t solve life’s mystery,
As the passing years curve your spine.
I ask myself these questions,
Did I come to this world only to live?
How can I live on when there is burning pain?
When the earth feels hard, and the sky is high.
Today, when half a century has passed by,
Today, as the Uyghur world has fallen into crisis,
Today, when justice is distant from the Uyghurs,
Elkun’s heart is bleeding from this calamity!
With my healer, I gaze at the tranquil night,
I flew to the horizon with my dazzling star,
I begged God for help and looked at him with hope,
There is the sound of an echo saying the Uyghurs will survive.
The Grey Wolf’s howl sounds out from afar,
The victory march can be heard from ear to ear,
Calls for freedom erupt from spring to spring,
Saying enough, now the Uyghurs will stand up!

June 22, 2020, London
www.azizisa.org/en