The Ayat Tree and Other Poems
Ebi Langkung
Translated by Madina Malahayati Chumaera
Illustration by Dewi Candraningrum.
THE AYAT TREE
the night branch that arches and
twists to the sky
its silent ear petals creeping
over the drone of quran
the dewdrops perch
wrung from the dark marrows of revelation
the nests of those conversing with god
the All Deep and Steadfast
both solitude and i scale the boughs
of dogs baying from beyond
howling the surahs of glory
from the hushed kingdom of forests
in you god entrusts seed and kernel, flower and fruit
borne by the silent void’s flute
where my prayers are protected from from that desolate clay
and reach the leaves of transcendent sentences
HIJAB
and the distance from my heart to yours
separated by these silken walls
is impassable
even waving won’t be enough
let alone an unsounded greeting
—they’ll only be a hiss
inviting the gust of alarm
this even purer alienation
the more lonely the more truthful—if only you could
dismantle it
but you will never lay it bare
if your rifle lies ready on the tabletop
for here is not the surface
but rather the more fathomless depths
than the sands of the seafloor
love is what can thaw
the clay and brick blindfold over their eyes
and you will taste the sweetness of the tasbih
only when we surpass the worldly
can we step our feet to the endless sky
THE SUN’S MIRROR
the birds hover on their flight
trajectories
blackened are the feet of those who hope
to touch their wings
with small tiptoes sometimes lengthening
you head to where the sun has risen and
exposed the fog
the dew melts and drips
the caressed leaves create shadows
just as everything creates shadows
the light that toils with sincerity
we will always tread on top of shadows
and peer at the surface
the parched shadows,
slowly fading
will be engulfed by the night
if you cannot grasp the expanse
THE DOOR OF HIJAB
go knock on that door
what is unveiled will be an enigma
rose petals in bloom
offering happiness atop a fresh
glass of wine
the true drink of those who seek
for every shutting
between the barrier of the earth and the mystical sky
even though we have arrived we do not know the source
of its tendrils of light
the light kindled by
those lonesome hands
surpassing shriveling stomachs
and thorned minds
yet we have walked its coils
we hunch too like old trees
not mourning at being left behind
although the dark birds nest
in the lush leaves of its spirit
the ants savor its sweetness
the soft leaves permeate our prayers
no longer do we need His heaven
YOKE
the heavy together we shoulder, the light together we bear
i shoulder the world and my afterlife
like waters weighing down my left and right
i bear the sorrow of my heaven and hell
my deeds both good and bad
my earth and my sky
in that balance i place
humans facing calamity and blessing
catastrophe and salvation filling each other up
to love completely is the only way
the feet that walk, accepting the weight
the soaring heart trespassing that shadowy blur
how heavy the eyes that see, heavy too the shoulders that bear
alone, hauling themselves into god’s gaze
it is not you or them that will be judged
but each of us whole will plunge (with our burdens)
in front of Him
BEDENGAN
This land is toiled for these green ones
So it can take seed and bear fruit
The drops of sweat streaming
From those laden shoulders
This land is toiled for you to water
So that it grows from the seeds of prayer within
Sustaining acceptance between hope and effort
Microbes and pesticides labor in love
And a farmer
Opens a field of wisdom
Where he reigns as khalifah
This thawed land
is the mother of your roots
protecting the kernels and futures of your grandchildren
before everything is sown with stone
This toiled land
is the flare of your heart
Never too tired to spread its seedlings
Though the pests keep winning this game of chess
TESTIMONY
And so the sea rises
The salty breaths of trees
Sustaining the tongues of birds
Chirping to pull themselves away
from the sullen waves
Searcher’s eyes, towers of water
Emerge from the depths
Upright are the legs who witness Your Vastness
And the first in his ashen form
Abandons the leaves and scent of heaven
A blasphemous demon, him an exception
From all those always prostrating in your command
On earth, the second witness
to nature’s exaltation: those who wither in your worldly forms,
Go and find His love
For I gave you the scripture to say syahadah
The hymn of night and day
of Sun and moon
Sends each other their souls’ light
Even a speck of dust or drop of dew
is never overlooked by your God
the Ever Laboring
THE HEARTH OF WORDS
And so words ignite
From the fires of revelation
Simmering hearts into enemies
The poets whisper the secrets of its rupture
The ulamas and leaders give fatwas
The sufis stir the ashes
With the fires of love
And so words ignite
Engulfing the leaves and their trees
You hear of the snapped ones
The weak and arid branches of their hearts
—so easily do their souls burn
It is easy to be consumed by the moment’s heat
Created by the pits left by dreams
Visions of its igniter
Ash is all that will remain
Mere particles of what you set against each other
Back when the ash was still wilted bark
© Ebi Langkung
English translation © Madina Malahayati Chumaera
ilustrasi oleh Dewi Candraningrum.
POHON AYAT DAN PUISI-PUISI LAINNYA
Ebi Langkung
POHON AYAT
batang malam yang runduk dan
meliuk ke langit
daun telinganya hening merambati
suara-suara quran didaras
embun-embun hinggap
terperas dari sumsum gelap wahyu
sarang-sarang berdialog dengan tuhan
yang maha dalam dan tegap
aku dan sepi memanjat
salak anjing dari kejauhan
meneriakkan surah kejayaan
kerajaan hutan yang senyap
darimu tuhan menitip biji, benih, kembang, dan buah
yang dibawa seruling lubang hening
di mana doa-doaku terjaga dari lumpur sunyi
menemui daun-daun kalimat tinggi
HIJAB
dan dari hatiku ke hatimu
terpisah dinding-dinding halus
tak terjangkau
tak cukup melambai
apalagi akal menguluk salam
sebab ia desiran
mengajak angin keterjagaan
keterasingan yang lebih murni
lebih sepi lebih saksi, jika kau mampu
membongkarnya
cuma kau tak akan dapat membuka
jika hanya menaruh senapan di atas meja
karena ini bukan permukaan
tapi kedalaman lebih dalam lagi
dari pasir dasar lautnya
cintalah yang dapat meluruh segenap
lumpur dan bata bebat matanya
dan kaurasakan manis tasbihnya
ketika yang ukhrawi semata
ke langit tinggi kita menginjakkan kaki
CERMIN MATAHARI
burung mengambangkan gerakan
terbangnya
hitam kaki-kaki orang berharap menyentuh sayapnya
dengan langkah kecil kadang memanjang
kau menuju ke mana setelah terang
kabut-kabut tersingkap
embun meleleh dan menetes
daun-daun yang terjilat mencipta bayangan
semua menciptakan bayangan
cahaya yang bekerja dengan keringat ketulusan
kita sejatinya berjalan di atas bayangan
dan menatap permukaan
bayang-bayang yang kehausan
yang pelan-pelan hilang
ditelan malam
jika kau tak dapat menjangkau kedalaman
PINTU HIJAB
ketuklah pintu itu
yang terbuka akan jadi rahasia
kelopak bunga mawar memekar
menawar bahagia di atas cawan
anggur yang segar
minuman hati para pencari
untuk setiap ketertutupan
di antara dinding bumi dan langit kegaiban
meski telah sampai kita tak cukup tahu
kecuali renangnya menyentuh asal
sumber sulur sinar
cahaya yang termantik
tangan-tangan sepi
melewati susut perut dan pedih duri akal
namun jika kita telah berjalan di liuknya
kita pun runduk semacam pohon tua
tak sedih tertinggal
malahan burung-burung kelam bersarang
di rimbun daun hayatnya
semut-semut mencecap manisnya
daun-daun halus merimbun doanya
kita tak lagi butuh surga-Nya
PIKULAN
berat sama dipikul, ringan sama dijinjing
kupikul dunia dan akhiratku
seperti air yang menekan di bahu kanan dan kiriku
kutanggung nestapa surga dan nerakaku
amal saleh dan burukku
bumi dan langitku
dalam keseimbanganlah kutaruh
manusia menghadapi musibah dan berkah
bencana dan keselamatan saling mengisi
mencintai dengan utuh adalah jalannya
kaki yang berjalan menerima beban
hati yang terbang menembus bayang buram
betapa berat mata memandang, berat juga bahu memikul
menimba sendiri di hadapan tuhan
bukan kau atau mereka yang ditimbang
tapi masing-masing kita yang utuh menyelam (membawa isi)
di hadapan-Nya
BEDENGAN
Tanah yang dilambungkan ini untuk si hijau
Agar berbiji dan berbuah
Buah keringat yang bercucuran
Di bahu pikulan
Tanah yang dilambungkan ini untuk kausiram
Agar tumbuh dari sebiji dua biji doa di dalamnya
Dan usaha dan harapan tetap saling menerima
Kerja cinta mikroba dan pestisida
Dan seorang petani
Membuka ladang hikmah
Sebagai khalifah
Tanah yang melumah
Adalah ibu bagi akar-akarmu
Menjaga benih dan masa depan cucumu
Sebelum segala ditanami batu
Tanah yang dilambungkan ini
Adalah nyala hatimu
Tak lelah membuka semai
Meski terus kalah dari hama caturnya
KESAKSIAN
Dan laut pun berdiri
Napas asin pohon-pohon
Menghidupi lidah burung
Berkicau menarik diri dari gelombang kelam
Mata pencari, menara air
Muncul dari kedalaman
Tegak kaki-kaki memandang keleluasaan-Mu
Dan yang pertama dalam wujud debu
Meninggalkan daun dan wewangian firdaus
Setan yang ingkar, kecualinya
Seraya bersujud dalam perintah-Mu
Di bumi, saksi kedua
Bagi perayaan alam, siapa mengering
Carilah wujud Cinta
Kuberi kitab untuk kaubaca syahadat
Lantun malam hari dan siang
Matahari dan bulan
Saling mengirim cahaya jiwa
Meski setitik debu dan embun
Tanpa terlewatkan
Tuhan-Mu yang maha bekerja
TUNGKU KATA
Dan kata menyala
Dari api berita
Menanak kalbu jadi seteru
Penyair menyentuh rahasia letupnya
Ulama dan umara berfatwa
Para sufi meluruhkan debu
Dengan api cinta
Dan kata menyala
Merambati daun dan pohonnya
Kaudengar yang terpatahkan
Ranting hati yang lemah dan kering
Akan mudah terbakar jiwanya
Mudah terlalap nafsu suasana
Yang dicipta dari lubang mimpi
Impian tuan pemantiknya
Tinggallah debu
Yang kaupertentangkan
Semenjak masih kayu layu
© Ebi Langkung
EBI LANGKUNG, lahir dan tinggal di Pasongsongan Sumenep, Madura. Buku puisinya berjudul Siul Sapi Betina (2015). Saat ini tengah menggarap buku puisi berikutnya, Dari Ikan Sampai ke Bulan. // Ebi Langkung was born and still lives in Pasongsongan Sumenep, Madura. His book of poems is entitled Siul Sapi Betina (The Cow’s Whistling, 2015). He is currently working on a new book of poems, Dari Ikan Sampai ke Bulan (From Fish to the Moon).
MADINA MALAHAYATI CHUMAERA is an 19-year-old student in Greater Jakarta, Indonesia. Her interests lie in the intersection between the humanities, the sciences, and everything in between. Her book Contact Light: the void inside and out–a collection of prose and poetry revolving around the concept of the human brain, outer space, and the connection between them–was published by Gramedia Pustaka Utama in October 2017. She can be greeted on Twitter at @falsecatch and other places at malahayati.carrd.co/.
DEWI CANDRANINGRUM is the founder of Jejer Wadon and a lecturer of gender, literature, and ecology. She graduated from Monash University and Universitaet Muenster. In her spare time she paints with her autistic son Ivan Ufuq Isfahan.
THESE POEMS ARE PUBLISHED AS PART OF INTERSASTRA’S UNREPRESSED SERIES.