Returning to the Old Home
By Mohamed Abdel Majid
Despite the losses and trials of war, and even though its a tough and harsh experience, it has given us the ability to deal with these circumstances with resilience, patience, and faith. It has tested our personal capacities, and its undoubtedly a difficult exam. We hope to overcome it while being more steadfast, united, and strong.
Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Every heart has its own tribute, and the tribute of the heart is grief. We are now paying the tribute of our hearts with sorrow and longing. So, dont be dismayed, for relief is coming, God willing.
Its not enough to just sympathize with those who have suffered from the war, and its not sufficient to support them or feel frustrated and pained for their sake through social media posts or even protest demonstrations. We must live through their suffering or be a part of it. Perhaps this firsthand experience will lead us to broader horizons. War experiences turn nations rich with heritage, strong with patience, and unity. Thats if we succeed in surpassing this crisis without losing our identity or destroying our cultural foundation, which is more important than infrastructure, to prevent our protective wall from collapsing and plunging us into a civil war that leaves nothing standing.
Victor Hugo, the prince of French poets, said: In adversity, truth is splendid. I bow to it.
This price we are paying now may serve as redemption for future generations and for a Sudan that stands tall, democratic, and free from all harm. We say may because theres no fixed truth in times of war.
Regarding war, Winston Churchill said: In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies. His words dont need any commentary; silence here speaks louder than words.
Henry Louis Mencken stated: War leaves three armies behind: an army of cripples, an army of mourners, and an army of thieves. Thieves most accurately reflect what this war has left behind. However, we must understand that the thieves left by this war are not just those who seized homes and cars. There are more sophisticated thieves who benefited from this war, they are more eloquent and elegant. They continue to ignite its flames with diplomacy, pretentious patriotism that they lack, and they even reject ceasefires, all in the name of the nation, which is innocent of them. Meanwhile, innocent citizens, isolated children, and helpless patients pay the price, and they offer sacrifices until they become victims or unidentified bodies.
Some understand patriotism in the manner of their morning coffee and a neatly tied necktie, as well as the saying of the philosopher Russell, Patriotism is willingness to kill and be killed for trivial reasons. Alongside those three leftovers mentioned by Henry Louis Mencken, the war has also left us crisis merchants, opportunists, and pseudo-patriots, who found their lost path in the war. They swapped peace for war, security for fear, stability for chaos, all for their personal interests, and to boost their bank accounts and cell phone balances.
About them, Hamid said: Mercenaries are heartless even to their kin. Theyre not concerned about the peoples death; theyre concerned about their work. Death stops; their business stops. But, death stands; their work stands. They make a living from killing. If the war stops, so does their business. However, the justice of heaven always proves that the most harmed by war are those who ignite it, and the first to be burnt by its flames are those who kindled its fire.
The deluded ones are those who think they will benefit from this war. The gain from a ruined homeland remains a burden on its owners shoulders. It continues to haunt them until the day they are cornered.
Among the lessons we can draw from this war is the lesson of the futility of returning to our roots. Muhammad al-Hassan Salim Hamids poetic prophecies have often come true. The Hamadab Reservoir and the climate it produced were disclosed by Hamid twenty years before the construction of the Merowe Dam, in his poem in which he says, The Arab camels intercede... holding their water bags. Perhaps his poem or colloquial poem Returning to the Old Home holds another prophecy, as nowadays, returning to the country and going back to the old home has become the best option for Khartoum residents witnessing the military conflicts occurring in the three capital cities.
Joseph Heller said: War is an enterprise of ambitious, assertive men who feel the need to get rid of their memories through movies about war. They are doing the same now, but under the name of patriotism. As for Hamid, in his poetic remedies, he finds refuge and a reminder of returning to the country. He says:
I am walking...
Returning...
To houses
That open their doors for me,
Or even
Without asking who I am,
And dont even say,
Its good for the caller.
Dont you have a purpose
In bringing me?
However, we fear that the return has burdened many and wrecked their homes, along with rents that have exceeded a billion in old Sudanese pounds or a million in new ones, equivalent to around 1,500. This value surpasses apartment rents in European capitals. In the Sudanese states, weve reached those prices without denying that many homes have preserved that nostalgia brought by Hamid, keeping the essence of affection and dwelling. These homes have kept their doors open without the visitor or newcomer feeling awkward asking, Dont you have a purpose in bringing me? Or even without saying, Its good for the caller. Dont you have a purpose? Whats the reason for bringing me?
Not asking here is a form of natural generosity, which these homes extend to visitors without showing it on the bill. Are you not ashamed, you who approach me? Are you not ashamed, you who approach me? There is no compromise, not a single word, no hand, no cheek.
We hope that our people in the states, all of us, the sons and daughters of states, would hold on to this tariff we know from the homes of al-Jalous and the doors of as-Sant, which havent been closed in anyones face.
The people of Khartoum, who fled to the states, leaving their homes and furniture vulnerable to looting, plundering, shelling, or destruction, must know that they left behind those homes that were open to visitors from the provinces. Every person who brought with them illness or came to get a passport or even for their honeymoon found mercy and shelter in those homes.
This capital that is currently enduring its hardships had homes that hosted students from the states who came to Khartoum for university studies and stayed with an uncle, aunt, cousin, or even more distant relatives, so they remained in their own lands until graduation without experiencing boredom or discomfort from the locals.
For this reason, the least that can be offered to the people of Khartoum in their ordeal is for the states to open their homes, returning some of the hospitality they used to extend to all visitors from the states.
I believe that the homes of al-Jalous in the states have that same principle and generosity mentioned by Hamid:
If you come at night,
If you come at dawn,
Ring the doorbell,
And enter.
The people of the land are still characterized by their generosity and ease even in the midst of economic hardship, just as their homes doors and walls have felt:
Welcoming gestures,
Believing
In the worlds tolerance,
Happiness.
How secure you are
When you give us security,
Theres no difference
Between the guest
And me.
There is no distinction between the guest and the homeowner; differences dissolve and cease to exist. Hamid has the ability to convey this sense of affection even to the teams clubhouse. This isnt limited to just al-Mukhalayiq:
The teams clubhouse told me,
A companion,
Throughout the night,
And the people at dawn.
The dawns breeze has a special character, carrying all the warmth and safety. Hamid, through the words of a woman named Sitt Noor, considered the dog (Hawhai) or (Nabiha) as part of the guest (deserving of reward). Hamid doesnt know that there are those who have taken the dogs place in barking (Hawhiwa):
The people of Sitt Noor
Called to the dog,
They called it,
Compelling it,
By force.
Its barking
Has no price.
They thought
The dog,
Between the teams,
A guardian of the intestines,
In the game,
Late at night,
Leaving the homes,
Blocking the road,
Ruling the path.
To its sisters, Sitt Noor said,
As long as theres security,
And people are well,
The dogs are active,
In the hallway,
Evil,
Barking, deserving of reward.
Now, security is absent in the capital and most of Darfurs states. People are searching for it in other states of Sudan, in homes that have open doors in the following manner:
No drums,
No kilons of meat,
No trapeze acts,
No bells,
No barbed wire,
No trenches,
No surveillance,
No negotiations,
No barking dogs,
Sniffing,
Sniffing sacks,
Searching and probing,
Oh,
No way.
Everything is different in those homes, and its not limited to the locks and the doorbells. There are no trapeze acts or guards. Even the walls of these homes are different. Their state is not like the state of the walls in the capitals houses. Despite being high, raised, thorny, and constructed with bricks, cement, and iron, all of that didnt protect them or shield their inhabitants from theft and looting. In contrast, the modestly built and secured homes of al-Jalous provide a sense of peace and security:
Our walls,
Not cement,
But stone.
No bars,
No glass.
Just as Hamid considered the dogs barking (Nabiha) as a reward or a loss, he refused, through Sitt Noors words, to define the dogs face (Wash) for them. She rejected the idea that the dogs face would be the first thing to greet guests. This does not align with their noble nature:
The hallway is enough for them,
Humans,
Evil came to them.
The hallway is enough for them,
The immunity in it,
Didnt turn into a fight.
What virtue,
The thoughtful corridors,
Other than a disgrace?
She took off a little bit,
Sitt Noor,
And lifted a stone.
She tore off a stone,
Tore off a stone,
Lifted a stone,
And said:
Relatives of the night,
They might come to her,
From traveling,
Or a stranger,
They fought the evidence,
Passersby,
The alleyway is rainy,
Theyre heading to their women,
Tying them,
The first thing
The dog receives,
A bark welcomes,
Barking spreads.
Why does it turn away from us,
The dog,
Why does the dog
Leave us with its face?
In the homes of our people in the provinces, we find that ease that people dont even find in their homes in the capital.
Homes made of clay and al-Jalous possess a lot of loyalty and dedication. They are more capable than cement and brick homes of preserving features, memories, and intricate details.
Why do we always feel nostalgia and longing for the old house? The house of the extended family? In this context, the Arab poet said: How many houses on this earth does a young man come to know, and his longing never fades for the first home. Al-Mutanabbi expresses the same sentiment, To you, homes in hearts are homes. The lover always justifies this longing: My love for homes is not an infatuation of my heart, but rather love for those who inhabited the homes.
The people of the states have a similarity with their homes, and their open houses are always welcoming to visitors and travelers alike:
This house
Is your house,
Oh beloved,
Enter,
You have the choice,
And you are not a stranger.
Extend in the nearest,
Close in proximity,
In the basin of their hospitality,
They are prepared.
The Neem tree,
Oh the Anabah tree,
Stay,
Concealed,
I faintly hear the ringing,
In tea,
Hungry I am consumed,
And there is the date,
And the ripe fruit is nearby,
Rested since yesterday,
Full,
Lying in the chest of their hospitality,
Reading a story,
A story of a child.
And Hamid remains committed to his great national message, even when he returns to his old home:
Tell the son of Adam,
In a land,
His suffering has extended,
And exhaustion,
Its people,
Are suffering,
In the east,
And its rulers,
Are erring,
In the west.
Yes, the inhabitants of this country are suffering in the east, and our rulers are erring in the west, from one state to another, in their constant travels, moving from airport to airport, they have become like airline captains:
We are the ones,
Who have lost everything,
In this world,
Yet we possess everything,
In us,
By our skills,
And this path,
The true path,
The followers did not abandon,
What was left of the elders,
The merchants,
Ashamed of the beggars,
The foreigners,
The blues,
All lies...
All lies...
Yes, this is the Sudanese people. Even in the face of adversity, they remain connected, maintaining their ethics. Even though we lose everything, we still possess everything:
We are the destitute,
The largest party,
We wont be defeated,
And we wont be shaken,
And the true path,
The followers did not abandon,
What was left of the elders,
The merchants,
Ashamed of the beggars,
The foreigners,
The blues,
All lies...
All lies...
And this is a warning and a message from Hamid to the opportunists and thieves, who appear in full elegance, stealing not only the nations wealth but also its security and stability, and its victorious revolution:
Oh you who has consumed,
Out of necessity,
Consume,
Save the destitute,
From humiliation,
And Gods law will heal,
The wounded.
And he calls on all those who stole, yearned, kidnapped, betrayed, and ignited this war... They will not reap any good. Whoever trades in the blood of this people, whether in the name of religion or in the name of the nation, to further his revolution or achieve his interests:
Your purity is the reason,
For this wound,
If God wills,
Neither evening,
Nor morning,
If God wills,
Oh my country, enduring,
With hope,
The best of us will triumph,
They will subdue,
An enemy,
If God wills,
Neither above,
Nor below.
Everyone who harms this nation and speaks in its name, if God wills, will not find wellness or goodness. This is our challenge and our commitment. As for those, they will question this nation and its people, who have endured so much:
By God,
Oh travelers,
Regarding the trials,
God will question us about the nation,
Before anything else.
As Joseph Césaire says, In the haste for survival these days, many are those who leave no room in their lives for living.
The End!
